While studying for his master’s in Artificial Intelligence Systems, University of Florida engineering student Matheus Kunzler Maldaner recently took a weeklong detour to Heidelberg, Germany to rub elbows with international AI star researchers.
In September, he attended the Heidelberg Laureate Forum, a unique networking conference powered by about 200 young, carefully selected student researchers in mathematics and computer science.
It’s an event meant to motivate young scientists and give them a chance to interact with their scientific role models via lectures, panels, master classes, workshops, career guidance and frequent opportunities to engage with laureates.
A student in UF’s Department of Engineering Education, Maldaner met laureates such as the “father of the internet,” Vint Cerf; co-inventor of the Ethernet, Bob Metcalfe; chief scientist at Google DeepMind, Jeff Dean; and prominent scientists Leslie Valiant, Robert Tarjan and Pat Hanrahan.
“This opportunity gave me insights and advice that will shape my research path,” Maldaner explained.
He was excited to speak with “the pioneers of computer science and mathematics whom I had grown up hearing and reading about. It reinforced my commitment to pursue a Ph.D. in neuro-symbolic AI upon completing my master’s degree at UF.”
He gleaned much value from the all-star networking.
“I was able to ask a lot of questions to the world’s most renowned computer scientists, and these are insights I am grateful to be able to bring back to the University of Florida so that I can advance my research and continue helping the university,” he said.
One of the trip’s highlights was a boating event where Maldaner talked with reinforcement-learning pioneers David Silver and Richard Sutton about the future of artificial intelligence and how reinforcement learning will play a big role in it.
“It was very eye-opening to hear what their thoughts were, how they got to where they were and especially the key things that drive them forward. Additionally, the HLF has an art exhibition in which young researchers are invited to create and submit a piece of artwork that represents their research. I was one of the students who presented a piece,” he said.
Maldaner applied to attend with the help of Ken Holstein, Ph.D., and Jason Hong, Ph.D., at Carnegie Mellon University (with whom he researches remotely), as well as UF’s Joe Glover, Ph.D., Cátia Silva, Ph.D., and Damon Woodard, Ph.D.
Woodard, a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Maldaner’s research advisor said, “Matheus has continually impressed me with his ability to combine deep technical expertise with thoughtful collaboration. He approaches complex challenges with creativity and discipline, often finding elegant solutions in the process. He has genuine enthusiasm for learning and innovation.”
See Maldaner’s LinkedIn post about the event or watch a panel discussion with Silver.