Critical Thinking Conversations: Pairing Professors and Professionals - Building Thinking Machines

2025 Fram Spring Lecture Series - Critical Thinking Conversations: Pairing Professors and Professionals - Building Thinking Machines

In an era where AI is reshaping industries, Adam Weissman and Alex Ororbia come together for a thought-provoking fireside chat on the future of AI and how to build better decision making machines. With Adam’s expertise in AI applications for complex, regulated systems and Alex’s research in bio-inspired AI and computational neuroscience, this conversation will explore how critical thinking shapes AI development. How can we avoid over-reliance on black-box models? What can neuroscience teach us about building more adaptable and interpretable AI? Expect a discussion on the balance between automation and human oversight, the risks of unchecked AI adoption, and the importance of reasoning and skepticism in the next wave of AI innovation.

Please register to receive a Zoom link to the webinar. To request an interpreter, click HERE.

Adam Weissman (‘09 Computer Engineering BS/MS) is a seasoned engineer with 15 years of experience in the defense industry, specializing in applying new Adam technologies including AI and ML to complex, highly regulated systems. His work focuses on bridging cutting-edge AI technologies with real-world engineering challenges, ensuring end-operators have usable and effective systems to improve their decision making ability. While based in the Philadelphia area, he and his family are currently on assignment to Adelaide, South Australia.

Alex Ororbia (‘13 B.Sc. in Computer Science & Engineering, Bucknell, ‘18 Ph.D. in Information Sciences & Technology, Penn State). Currently, Alex is an assistant professor in Computer Science and Cognitive Science as well as an affiliate Professor in Psychology and Mathematics at RIT and also serves as the director of the Neural Adaptive Computing Laboratory. His research group investigates questions related to neurobiological credit assignment and develops mathematical models for spiking neuronal dynamics and synaptic plasticity, predictive coding, and active inference with applications in neurorobotic control.

This event is sponsored by RIT’s Eugene H. Fram Chair in Applied Critical Thinking and cosponsored by RIT’s AI Hub.