Year: 2026

Advances in Differentially-Private Synthetic Data Generation

Differential Privacy (DP) has become the de facto standard for protecting users’ sensitive data in data analysis. Within this field, one of the most challenging problems is private synthetic data generation, which allows high-quality synthetic data to be shared publicly while retaining the original data’s statistical properties. However, worst-case query workloads often face steep computational …

Gernsbacher Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

DSI Affiliate Morton Ann Gernsbacher has been named the recipient of the prestigious Norman Anderson Lifetime Achievement Award by the Society of Experimental Psychologists (SEP).

Diakonikolas awarded the 2026 Gödel Prize

DSI Affiliate Ilias Diakonikolas, professor of Computer Sciences, has received the 2026 Gödel Prize, one of the highest honors in theoretical computer science, for transformational work in robust high-dimensional learning.

Uelmen tracks tick distribution and rising disease risk across Wisconsin

DSI Affiliate Jonny Uelmen, School of Medicine and Public Health, is collecting ticks from across Wisconsin to develop advanced models showing when and where tick risks are highest.

UW–Madison Designates 2026 as the ‘Year of AI Readiness and Competency’

The University of Wisconsin–Madison will designate 2026 as the “Year of AI Readiness and Competency” in a coordinated, campuswide effort to ensure that students, faculty and staff are prepared to use artificial intelligence thoughtfully, responsibly and in service to the Wisconsin Idea.

Zhao named 2026 ASA Fellow

Congratulations to DSI Affiliate Jiwei Zhao for being named a 2026 Fellow of the American Statistical Association. This honor recognizes sustained and significant contributions to statistical sciences. 

RISE-THRIVE lead and headquarters announced

Michal Engelman, a nationally recognized sociologist and demographer, has been chosen to lead the RISE-THRIVE Collaboration Headquarters (HQ). Engelman serves as director of the Center for Demography of Health and Aging and principal investigator of the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study in the College of Letters & Science. The HQ will be housed in the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery.

Three DSI Affiliates honored with Vilas awards

Three DSI Affiliates have been honored with Vilas Awards. Laura Albert was named a Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor, and Sharon Li and Shamya Karumbaiah received Vilas Early Career Investigator Awards.

UW–Madison names Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau founding dean of College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence, announces major investment in college’s launch

The University of Wisconsin–Madison has named Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau founding dean of the College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence, marking a major step forward as the university prepares to launch the new college on July 1, 2026.

Albert earns campus graduate student mentoring award

DSI Affiliate Laura Albert, a professor of industrial and systems engineering, is among the inaugural recipients of the University of Wisconsin–Madison Graduate School’s Faculty Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring.