URCAD 2025
Dr. Randi Williams ’16 B.S., Computer Engineering
Research Director at Day of AI
M.S., ’18, MIT
Ph.D., ’24, MIT
UC 312
Noon – 1 p.m.
April 16,2025
Randi Williams, Ph.D., is an AI educator and tinkerer passionate about empowering others to responsibly use AI for positive social impact. In her daily role, she works with AI researchers, policymakers, and everyday changemakers to address tech misconceptions and mitigate harm. Previously, she developed K-12 AI curricula and platforms for the Day of AI and MIT RAISE initiatives, making AI instruction available to thousands of educators worldwide.
Dr. Williams helps equip researchers, policymakers, and grassroots changemakers to responsibly use AI for meaningful social impact. She has spearheaded initiatives like the MIT RAISE AI Playground and Day of AI, which have made AI instruction available to thousands of educators worldwide. Her groundbreaking work on social robot learning companions (PopBots) and grade school AI + ethics curricula, (How to Train Your Robot) have garnered recognition and accolades from leading organizations such as Microsoft Research, LEGO, and the National Science Foundation and have been featured in prominent media outlets, including The Atlantic, Wired, and MIT Technology Review.
Dr. Williams earned her Ph.D. (’24) and Masters (’18) from MIT in the Personal Robots Group at the MIT Media Lab. She earned her Bachelor’s (’16) in Computer Engineering as a Meyerhoff Scholar, Honors College student, and CWIT affiliate at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County where she worked with Dr. Nilanjan Banerjee in the Mobile, Pervasive, and Sensor Systems Laboratory on the Inviz project and Flex Gloves projects and founded HackUMBC. She is a founding director of the Boston Chapter of Black in Robotics. Previously, Dr. Williams worked at Microsoft Research, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab, and MIT Lincoln Lab.