SCS Katayanagi Distinguished Lecture - Tom Mitchell
— 5:30pm
Location:
In Person
-
Rashid Auditorium, Gates Hillman 4401
Speaker:
TOM M. MITCHELL
,
SCS Founders University Professor
Machine Learning Department, School of Computer Science,
and Block Center for Technology and Society
Carnegie Mellon University
https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~tom/
The History of Machine Learning: How Did We Get Here?
Tuesday, February 10, 2026, 4 – 5:30pm Machine learning is the key technology underlying today's amazing artificial intelligence systems.
How did we get to today's technology which now supports a trillion dollar AI industry? What were the key scientific breakthroughs? What were the surprises and dead-ends along the way, as seen by the researchers who created them? Who were the personalities involved, and what were they thinking at the time? What should we learn from all this?
This talk will explore the history of machine learning based on personal experience of the speaker, augmented by video interviews with a dozen pioneering researchers in the field.
—
Tom M. Mitchell is the Founders University Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where he founded the world's first Machine Learning Department, and served as Interim Dean of the School of Computer Science (2018-2019). Beginning with his 1979 Ph.D. research he has worked in machine learning and AI, and he remains optimistic about its future. In 2010 Mitchell was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering "For pioneering contributions and leadership in the methods and applications of machine learning." Mitchell is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a Fellow and Past President of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI).
…
About the Lecture: The Katayanagi Lectures recognize the best and the brightest in the field of computer science and are presented by the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University in close cooperation with the Tokyo University of Technology (TUT). The lectures recognize both senior and junior talent. The series were established through a gift from Japanese entrepreneur and education advocate, Mr. Koh Katayanagi, who founded TUT and other technical institutions in Japan over many multiple decades. We are delighted to have TUT as partners.
Rescheduled from January 27
Event Type: SCS Distinguished Lectures
Room Number: In Person
Building: Rashid Auditorium, Gates Hillman 4401
Speaker's Name: TOM M. MITCHELL
Speaker Website: www.cs.cmu.edu…
Speaker's Professional Title: SCS Founders University Professor, Machine Learning Department, School of Computer Science,, and Block Center for Technology and Society, Carnegie Mellon University
Talk Title: The History of Machine Learning: How Did We Get Here?
For More Information: scs-dls@cs.cmu.edu
Affiliations: Computer Science Department (CSD), Human-Computer Interaction Institute (HCII), Language Technologies Institute (LTI), Machine Learning Department (MLD), Ray and Stephanie Lane Computational Biology Department (CBD), Robotics Institute (RI), Software and Societal Systems Department (S3D)
Organization(s): School of Computer Science
Event Website Title: Event Website
Event Website URL: www.cs.cmu.edu…
For More Information:
scs-dls@cs.cmu.edu