Ben Y. Zhao

Ben Y. Zhao is the Neubauer Professor of Computer Science at the University of Chicago, where he co-leads the SAND Lab with Professor Heather Zheng. His research focuses on adversarial machine learning, security and privacy, and human-computer interaction. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, where he created the Tapestry distributed hash table, and his bachelor's degree at Yale University. He is an ACM Fellow and has received numerous accolades, including being named one of TIME Magazine's AI/100 (Most Influential People in AI). He developed several innovative tools, such as Nightshade and Fawkes, to protect creators from generative AI misuse. His work has been widely covered by mainstream media including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

• 2022–Present·University of Chicago·Neubauer Professor
  • Focused on adversarial machine learning and the security and privacy challenges of generative AI, developing tools like Nightshade and Fawkes.
• 2017–2022·University of California, Santa Barbara·Professor of Computer Science
  • Research areas included networks, social networks, and data mining.
• 2004–2017·University of California, Berkeley·Researcher
  • Created the Tapestry distributed hash table and conducted research in networks and distributed systems.

• 2000–2004·University of California, Berkeley·Ph.D.
  • Field of Computer Science, mentored by John Kubiatowicz and Anthony Joseph.
• 1997–2000·University of California, Berkeley·Master's
  • Focused on networks and distributed systems research.
• 1993–1997·Yale University·Bachelor's
  • Major in Computer Science, graduated with Cum Laude honors.

• 2024: TIME AI/100 (Most Influential People in AI), Concept Art Association Impact Award
• 2023: USENIX Internet Defense Prize, TIME Magazine Best Inventions Special Mention, Chicago Innovation Award
• 2021: ACM Fellow
• 2006: MIT Technology Review TR-35 (Innovators Under 35)
• 2005: NSF CAREER Award