Leilani Battle Named MIT Technology Review Innovators Under 35

Assistant Professor Leilani Battle has been named to the 2020 MIT Technology Review Innovators under 35. In addition to being an assistant professor in computer science,  Battle holds joint appointment in UMIACS and is affiliated with the UMD Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCIL).

Battle is one of the 35 young innovators chosen for this honor.

The award was established in 1999,  to recognize exceptionally talented innovators younger than 35 years from all over the globe whose work has the greatest potential to transform the world in a wide range of fields, including biotechnology, materials, computer hardware, energy, transportation, communications, and the Internet.

Battle adds to the list of  previous awardees who include Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the co founders of Google; John Rogers, a materials scientist at the University of Illinois; Jonathan Ive, the chief designer of Apple; Helen Greiner, the cofounder of iRobot; and Max Levchin, the cofounder of PayPal.

A doctorate in computer science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Battle’s research focuses on developing interactive data-intensive systems that can aid analysts in performing complex data exploration and analysis. Her current research is anchored in the field of databases, but utilizes research methodology and techniques from human-computer interaction (HCI) and visualization to integrate data processing (databases) with interactive interfaces (HCI, visualization). Her work is currently supported by an Adobe research award, an NSF CISE CRII Award (2019-2021) and ORAU Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award (2019-2020).

“I am honored to be one of the MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 for 2020”, said Battle. “This recognition of my research reinforces the need for a more human-centered approach to data science research, as well as for developing data science tools to support people with a wide range of backgrounds and expertise”, she said. “I stand in solidarity with #BlackLivesMatter. Please show your support by sharing concrete steps you are taking to fight racism and discrimination in academia and STEM."

 Battle will be honored at the annual EmTech MIT, which will be held virtually in October.

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