John Thangarajah is a Professor in AI and the Director of Research of CIAIRI (Center for Industrial AI Research & Innovation) at RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia. He leads the research directions and also the academic partnerships.
He collaborates with industry partners and researchers both local and international and have managed various aspects of research projects and product development. He is also a member of the IFAAMAS board of directors, an International foundation whose purpose is to promote science and technology in the areas of artificial intelligence, autonomous agents and multi-agent systems.
One of his strong beliefs is in applied research, and over the last five years he has been part of $4 million in research funding from the government and industrial sectors, with primary collaborations with the Defence Science Technology group.
John has over 20+ years experience in teaching and managing CS & IT related courses to undergraduate, postgraduate and industry personnel. During his time as the head of Computer Science and Software Engineering discipline, he transformed the first year education for Computer Science and Software Engineering students at RMIT moving away from the standard lecture model to hands-on experiential learning in bootcamps and studios.
His goal is to continue to be involved in developing smart systems that are not only intellectually challenging but also have practical benefit and impact.