Dr. Mahdi Soltanolkotabi

Professor

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Biography

Mahdi Soltanolkotabi is the director of the center on AI Foundations for the Sciences (AIF4S) at the University of Southern California. He holds the Andrew Erna Viterbi Early Career Chair and is an associate professor. Prior to joining USC, he completed his PhD in electrical engineering at Stanford University in 2014 and served as a postdoctoral researcher at the EECS department at UC Berkeley during the 2014-2015 academic year. His research focuses on the mathematical foundations of modern data science and artificial intelligence, characterizing behaviors and pitfalls of contemporary nonconvex learning optimization algorithms, and applications in AI reliability and trustworthiness. His work encompasses a range of specific interests, including mathematical foundations of data science, high-dimensional probability statistics, statistical inference, AI safety, deep learning, and biomedical sciences. Soltanolkotabi is dedicated to advancing the understanding and application of AI in healthcare and other critical areas.

Research Interests

Awards

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Amazon GenAI Research Award

2024-01-01
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NIH Director's New Innovator Award

2023-01-01
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Viterbi School of Engineering Junior Researcher Award

2021-01-01
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Amazon Faculty Research Award

2020-01-01
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IEEE Information Theory Society Paper Award

2019-01-01
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Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering

2018-01-01
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Sloan Fellowship in Mathematics

2018-01-01
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NSF Career Award

2017-01-01
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Air-force Office Scientific Research Young Investigator Award

2017-01-01
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Google Faculty Research Award

2015-01-01

Requirements for University of Southern California

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3
TOEFL
Listening
Required:20
Reading
Required:20
Writing
Required:20
Speaking
Required:20
Total
Required:90
IELTS
Listening
Required:6
Reading
Required:6
Writing
Required:6
Speaking
Required:6
Overall
Required:6.5
GRE General
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Math, or Hard Science
Application Checklist
  • Online application
  • Official transcripts
  • Personal Statement
  • Resume/CV
  • Letters of Recommendation (not required for MS CS, but allowed)
Specialization Notes

GRE is NOT required for Master's applicants for 2025-2026.