Generative AI and the Future of Research Speaker Series: Haohan Wang

Haohan Wang is an assistant professor in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on the development of AI methods for computational biology and healthcare applications. In his work, he uses statistical analysis and deep learning methods, with an emphasis on data analysis using methods least influenced by spurious signals. Wang earned his PhD in computer science through the Language Technologies Institute of Carnegie Mellon University. In 2019, Wang was recognized as the Next Generation in Biomedicine by the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard because of his contributions in dealing with confounding factors with deep learning.

Abstract:
Recent advancements in machine learning have transformed the landscape of computational genomics, particularly in the identification of disease-associated genes from complex datasets. In this context, we introduce GenoAgent, an innovative AI-driven framework designed to accelerate scientific discovery in genomics by automating the identification of disease-associated genes from complex gene expression datasets. This framework utilizes Large Language Models (LLMs) to simulate roles traditionally filled by human experts, such as project managers, data engineers, and domain experts. These LLMs collaborate effectively, leveraging context-aware planning, iterative correction, and expert consultation to enhance the efficiency and scalability of research processes. GenoAgent reduces the dependency on extensive human expertise, thereby streamlining the exploration and analysis of genomics data. Additionally, to evaluate and support the development of GenoAgent, we have curated the GenoTEX benchmark dataset. In addition, we will also introduce our recent advances in multi-agent research and prompt optimization that enables future agentic AI scientist. 

About the speaker series:
The CIRSS Speaker Series continues in Spring with a new theme of “Generative AI and the Future of Research.” Our speakers will share their research on the opportunities and risks associated with the rapidly evolving landscape of generative AI usage in scholarship.

We meet most Wednesdays, 9am-10am Central time, in Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend. More information, including upcoming speaker schedule and links to recordings, is available on the series website. For weekly updates on upcoming talks, subscribe to our CIRSS Seminars mailing list. Our Spring series is led by Yuanxi Fu and Timothy McPhillips, and supported by the Center for Informatics Research in Science and Scholarship (CIRSS) and the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.