Allen School Faculty

Our researchers are driving innovation across the entire hardware, software and network stack to make computer systems more reliable, efficient and secure.

From internet-scale networks, to next-generation chip designs, to deep learning frameworks and more, we build and refine the devices and applications that individuals, industries and, indeed, entire economies depend upon every day.

Allen School Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Groups & Labs »

Centers & Initiatives »

Naomi Alterman

Assistant Teaching Professor

Professor

Professor & Director

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Professor

Assistant Professor

Professor

Assistant Teaching Professor

Dan Grossman

Professor & Vice Director

Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Associate Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Professor

Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Professor

Associate Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Michael Bedford Taylor

Professor

Professor

Assistant Professor

Assistant Professor

Assistant Teaching Professor

Highlights

UW News

Some agentic AI browsers come with major cybersecurity risks, UW study finds

Professors David Kohlbrenner and Franziska Roesner (Ph.D., ‘14) of the Allen School’s Privacy & Security Research Lab found that browser agents are susceptible to cyberattacks by violating the same-origin policy, a cornerstone of modern web security that has safeguarded users for 30 years.

UW News

AI agents that quickly estimate electronic devices’ carbon footprints

A team led by Allen School professor Vikram Iyer and Ph.D. student Zhihan Zhang published a paper in Nature Electronics describing a system that can assemble life cycle assessments, or LCAs, for electronic devices in about a minute with the help of AI agents.

Allen School News

Professor emeritus Ed Lazowska receives Distinguished Teaching Legacy Award

The award, which is based on nominations from University of Washington alumni, honors “UW educators whose profound influence continues to shape the lives of their students long after they’ve left the classroom.”

Our study of the theoretical foundations of computing spans algorithm design and analysis, complexity, optimization, cryptography, quantum and more.

We seek to answer fundamental and long-standing questions about the capabilities and limitations of our field, which has practical implications in economics, logistics, social welfare, transportation and many other real-world domains.

Allen School Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Groups & Labs »

Centers & Initiatives »

Assistant Professor

Professor

Assistant Professor

Associate Professor

Professor

Associate Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Assistant Teaching Professor

Highlights

Institute for Foundations of Data Science

Professor Kevin Jamieson receives AISTATS Test of Time Award

The International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Statistics (AISTATS) recognized Jamieson for his 2016 paper underpinning an approach to hyperparameter optimization that has been widely adopted within the machine learning community.

Allen School News

Ph.D. student Er-Cheng Tang earns FOCS 2025 Machtey Award for Best Student Paper

In the award-winning paper, Tang developed the first quantum state obfuscation scheme for unitary quantum programs, which are the backbone of quantum computing, in the classical oracle model. He presented the research at the 66th IEEE Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science last December.

Allen School News

Professor Thomas Rothvoss receives Trevisan Prize

Rothvoss, who is a member of the Allen School’s Theory of Computation Group, collected the inaugural Trevisan Prize in the mid-career category for his breakthrough contributions in the study of optimization problems.

Advances in low- and no-power sensing, communication and interaction technologies offer new possibilities for blending digital innovation with our physical environment.

From gesture recognition that allows people to interact with objects in new ways, to low-power sensors that collect and transmit data about temperature, air quality, urban accessibility and more, our researchers are tapping into the potential of computation to transform how we experience the world around us.

Allen School Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Groups & Labs »

Centers & Initiatives »

Byron Boots

Professor

Lauren Bricker

Associate Teaching Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Assistant Professor

Ira Kemelmacher-Shlizerman

Professor

Professor

Teaching Professor

Professor

Professor

Siddhartha (Sidd) Srinivasa

Professor

Highlights

UW News

AI agents that quickly estimate electronic devices’ carbon footprints

Allen School News

Balazinska, Patel elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences

Professor Magda Balazinska was honored for her influential contributions in data management and data science, while Professor Shwetak Patel was recognized for his groundbreaking work applying computing to health and sustainability.

UW News

UW researchers launch "little free pantry" mapping pilot

Allen School researchers and collaborators in the Urban Freight Lab created Pantrymap.org to map the location of micropantries and community fridges in the greater Seattle region and installed sensors to automatically track stock levels at some locations.

Our work in human-centered computing explores and enhances the ways in which people and communities engage with and experience technology.

Our research considers the personal, educational, cultural, and ethical implications of innovation. Drawing upon techniques from human-computer interaction, learning sciences, sensing and more, we aim to maximize the potential benefits of technology while minimizing potential harms to individuals, groups and society.

Allen School Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Groups & Labs »

Centers & Initiatives »

Tim Althoff

Associate Professor

Matthew Golub

Assistant Professor

Justin Hsia

Associate Teaching Professor

Kevin Lin

Associate Teaching Professor

Zoran Popović

Professor

Katharina Reinecke

Professor

Adrian Salguero

Assistant Teaching Professor

Associate Professor

Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Teaching Professor

James Weichert

Assistant Teaching Professor

Amy Zhang

Associate Professor

Highlights

UW News

Some agentic AI browsers come with major cybersecurity risks, UW study finds

Allen School News

Balazinska, Patel elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences

Allen School News

Researchers recognized at CHI 2026 for HCI and AI projects

Multiple Allen School authors received Best Paper Awards or honorable mentions for their work on interactive systems that enable more flexible human-AI agent collaboration, an AI-based tool that helps screen-reader users make sense of geovisualizations, and more.

When imagining the future of technology, sometimes all we need to do is look out the window — or into a microscope.

Our researchers take inspiration from nature to redefine what a computer can be, from data storage using synthetic DNA, to sensors modeled on insects and leaves. We also advance technologies to help solve biology’s biggest mysteries, such as computational approaches for understanding the mechanisms of disease and brain-computer interfaces that can restore or augment physical function and mobility.

Allen School Faculty

Areas of Expertise

Societal Impact

Results will appear in alphabetical order.

Groups & Labs »

Centers & Initiatives »

Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Professor

Professor

Professor

Assistant Professor

Assistant Professor

Highlights

Allen School News

Balazinska, Patel elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences

American Academy of Arts & Sciences

Balazinska, Patel elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences

GeekWire

UW team working on CPR feedback device wins health innovation challenge

Allen School undergraduate Prisha Hemani and teammates won the grand prize in the 2026 Hollomon Health Challenge for CPRight, a real-time CPR feedback device. The annual competition is hosted by the UW’s Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship in the Foster School of Business.

Meet our World-Class Faculty

The Allen School’s tenure-track, research and teaching faculty members are at the forefront of innovation — both in the lab and in the classroom.

Our faculty, which is approaching 100 members strong, has been widely recognized for their contributions advancing the field of computing while preparing students to be the leaders and innovators of tomorrow. Among them are 29 Sloan Research Fellows, 52 recipients of National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER or Presidential/NSF Young Investigator awards, three Presidential Early Career (PECASE) Award honorees, eight TR35 Award winners, and multiple individuals honored for advancing specific areas of the field. We also have 13 Fellows of the ACM, 10 Fellows of the IEEE, and four members of the National Academies, signifying our faculty’s career-spanning leadership and service to the scientific and engineering communities.

While they are lauded for their research contributions, our faculty members are first and foremost educators. Five professors have received the University of Washington Distinguished Teaching Award, and we were the first unit on campus to earn the UW’s Brotman Award for Instructional Excellence.