Dr Jonathan Grizou
- Honorary Lecturer (School of Computing Science)
- Affiliate (School of Chemistry)
email:
Jonathan.Grizou@glasgow.ac.uk
School of Computing Science, Lilybank Gardens
Biography
I am a Lecturer / Assistant Professor of Computing Science at the University of Glasgow and a member of their Information, Data and Analysis (IDA) research section.
I received my PhD from INRIA (French National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology) in France for my work on self-calibration interfaces. I was supervised by Pierre-Yves Oudeyer and Manuel Lopes and received a national thesis award delivered by Medal Field Laureate Cédric Villani. I then was a research associate within Lee Cronin’s group at the University of Glasgow, where I led a team of nine researchers developing tools for assisting chemists in their discovery process. This involved creating a multidisciplinary mindset at the intersection of Robotics, AI, and Chemistry. I then joined the Center for Research and Interdisciplinarity (CRI) in Paris as a Research Fellow.
Additionally to the above, I worked or studied at various top international institutions, including EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne), DTU (Technical University of Denmark), UCSD (University of California San Diego), UT Austin (University of Texas at Austin).
Research interests
My research focuses on developing tools to assist people in their creative process. I study what creativity is, how it can be measured and implemented algorithmically. In return, I strive to apply these principles to the development of tools that enhance the creativity of their users.
In practice, with colleagues, I develop benchmarks allowing us to study, measure, and test creativity in both humans and machines. We devise machine learning methods that can autonomously and creatively explore systems of interests, which we then embed in user facing tools to help users discover and manipulate concepts.
Our tools should ideally adapt to each user’s preferences and style, without prior-calibration and in real-time. We focus on self-supervised and active learning paradigms and use generative models (e.g., VAEs, GANs) as testbeds for our algorithms.
I also have a keen interested in innovative approaches to STEAM education, especially in harvesting smartphones to make robotics and programming education available to students of all ages. I have previously been instrumental in various open-source and commercial robotics projects, one of which, the Poppy Project, has reached thousands of students in French classrooms.
Finally, I am an avid observer of the start-up world and co-founded two companies, Pollen Robotics and GrizAI. I am passionate about the history of technology and how technologies make their way into products people want. Along the same line, I enjoy collaborating with artists and had the good fortune to see my research exhibited at international exhibitions in Paris, Shanghai and Beijing.
Supervision
I’m looking for PhD students and Post-Docs interested in the topics described above and on my website at https://jgrizou.com/.
Do not hesitate to contact me. Spontaneous applications are welcomed and I will do my best to answer and engage with the proposals you make.
While there is no guaranteed funding, I will always help to find suitable funding if we agree on a topic we both would enjoy working on. Opportunities for scholarships will depend on your country of origin, see official guidance on scholarships.
Professional activities & recognition
Prizes, awards & distinctions
- 2015: French National Award awarded by a jury Chaired by Medal Field recipientCédric Villani (Best PhD Thesis Award)