Toby Walsh
{{short description|British computer scientist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2017}}
{{Use Australian English|date=September 2017}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Toby Walsh
| image = Toby_Walsh,_portrait.jpg
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| nationality = British
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| fields = Artificial Intelligence, Automated reasoning
| workplaces = University of New South Wales and Data61, (formerly NICTA)
| alma_mater = University of Cambridge
University of Edinburgh
| doctoral_advisor = Alan Bundy
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Toby Walsh is a British computer scientist who is Chief Scientist at UNSW.ai, the AI Institute of UNSW Sydney.{{cite web |url=https://www.inside.unsw.edu.au/innovation-and-engagement/unsw-launches-artificial-intelligence-ai-institute| title=UNSW.ai announcement|publisher=University of New South Wales}} He is a Laureate fellow, and professor of artificial intelligence in the UNSW School of Computer Science and Engineering{{cite web |url=http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au| title=CSE UNSW Webpage|publisher=University of New South Wales}} at the University of New South Wales{{cite web |url=http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/db/staff/staff_details.php?ID=tw| title=UNSW webpage|publisher=University of New South Wales}} and Data61 (formerly NICTA{{cite web |url=http://www.nicta.com.au/people/walshtoby| title=NICTA personal webpage|publisher=NICTA}}). He has served as Scientific Director of NICTA, Australia's centre of excellence for ICT research. He is noted for his work in artificial intelligence, especially in the areas of social choice, constraint programming and propositional satisfiability. He has served on the Executive Council of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence.{{cite web |url=http://www.aaai.org/Organization/officers.php| title=AAAI Officials|publisher=Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence}}
Career
He received an M.A. degree in theoretical physics and mathematics from the University of Cambridge and a M.Sc. and Ph.D. degree in artificial intelligence from the University of Edinburgh. He has held research positions in Australia, England, Ireland, Italy, France, Germany, Scotland, and Sweden. He has been Editor-in-Chief{{cite web |url=http://www.jair.org/vol/mast34.html|title=Masthead|publisher=Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research}}
of the Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, and of AI Communications. He was chaired several conferences in the area of artificial intelligence
including the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence.{{cite web |url=http://videolectures.net/ijcai2011_walsh_opening/| title=Opening Ceremony|publisher=VideoLectures.net}} He is Editor of the Handbook of Constraint Programming,{{cite web |url=http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/bookbibliographicinfo.cws_home/708863/description| title=Handbook of Constraint Programming|publisher=Elsevier}} and of the Handbook of Satisfiability.{{cite web |url=http://www.iospress.nl/book/handbook-of-satisfiability/| title=Handbook of Satisfiability| work=IOS Press| date=February 2009|publisher=IOS Press}} He proposed the idea of Turing red flag laws, which require any AI system to identify itself as a computer program to prevent human confusion.{{cite web |url=https://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2016/7/204019-turings-red-flag/fulltext| title=Turing's Red Flag| date=July 2016|publisher=Communications of the ACM}}
In 2015, he helped release an open letter{{cite web |url=http://futureoflife.org/AI/open_letter_autonomous_weapons| title=Open letter hosted by Future of Life Institute}} calling for a ban on offensive autonomous weapons that attracted over 20,000 signatures. He later gave a talk at TEDxBerlin on this topic.{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c277ynyRPgs |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/c277ynyRPgs |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live| title=Video from TEDxBerlin|website=YouTube |date=8 October 2015 }}{{cbignore}} In 2017, he organized an open letter calling for a ban signed by over 100 founders of AI and Robotics companies. Also in 2017, he organized a letter{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/nov/06/ban-killer-robots-experts-urge-australian-and-canadian-leaders-malcolm-turnbull-justin-trudeau|title=Ban killer robots, experts urge Australian and Canadian leaders|last=Sample|first=Ian|date=2017-11-06|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-09-18}} to the Prime Minister of Australia calling for Australia to negotiate towards a ban signed by over one hundred researchers from Australia working on artificial intelligence. In 2022, he was one of 121 prominent Australians banned from travelling to Russia indefinitely {{cite web |url=https://www.news.com.au/world/russia-hits-121-aussies-with-sanctions-for-russophobic-agenda/news-story/14bea9414c692f0d5fe812256c468181| title=Russian sanctions of prominent Australians}} for his outspoken criticism of the use of AI by the Russian military.
In 2018, he chaired the Expert Working Group of the Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) preparing a Horizon Scanning Report on the "Deployment of Artificial Intelligence and what it presents for Australia" at the request of Australia’s Chief Scientist, Dr Alan Finkel, and on behalf of the Commonwealth Science Council. Additionally, he was interviewed on ABC Comedy by Tom Ballard, discussing the "robot revolution".{{Cite web|title=An interview with Toby Walsh on the robot revolution.|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNfe5UAFEC0|website=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead YouTube link|date=February 2022}}
He is the author of four books on artificial intelligence for a general audience: "It's Alive!: Artificial Intelligence from the Logic Piano to Killer Robots",{{Cite book|url=https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/books/its-alive|title=It's Alive! by Toby Walsh|date=6 July 2016|language=en}} which looks at the history and present of AI, "2062: The World that AI Made",{{Cite book|url=https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/books/2062|title=2062 by Toby Walsh|date=4 March 2018|language=en}} which looks at the potential impact AI will have on our society, and "Machines Behaving Badly: the Morality of AI",{{Cite book|url=https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/books/machines-behaving-badly|title=Machines Behaving Badly|date=3 May 2022|language=en}} which looks at the ethical challenges of AI.
His latest book is Faking It: Artificial intelligence in a Human World. All four books are published by Black Inc. The books are available in ten different languages: Chinese, English, German, Korean, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Taiwanese, Turkish and Vietnamese.
Honors and awards
In 2023, Walsh won the Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science for his work on artificial intelligence.{{Cite web |last=Plant |first=Elizabeth |date=2023-08-23 |title=2023 Australian Museum Eureka Prize winners |url=https://australian.museum/get-involved/eureka-prizes/2023-eureka-prize-winners/australian.museum/get-involved/eureka-prizes/2023-eureka-prize-winners/ |access-date=2023-08-23 |website=The Australian Museum |language=en}}
In 2020, he was elected a Fellow of the ACM and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
In 2018, he was runner up in the Arms Control Association's annual Person/s of the Year Award.{{Cite news|url=https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/science-tech/unsws-toby-walsh-voted-runner-global-award|title=UNSW's Toby Walsh voted as runner-up for global award|date=2018-01-10|work=UNSW Newsroom|access-date=2018-09-18}}
In 2016, he was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science,{{cite web |url=https://www.science.org.au/news-and-events/news-and-media-releases/academy-announces-2016-fellows|title=Australian Academy of Science announces 2016 Fellows}} won the NSW Premier's Prize for Excellence in Engineering and ICT,{{Cite web|url=http://www.chiefscientist.nsw.gov.au/premiersprizes/2016-Premiers-Prizes-Category-Prize-Winners|title=2016 Category Prize Winners - NSW Chief Scientist & Engineer|website=www.chiefscientist.nsw.gov.au|language=en|access-date=2018-09-18}} and was made Scientia Professor at UNSW.{{Cite news|url=https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/general/unsw-appoints-16-new-scientia-professors|title=UNSW appoints 16 new Scientia Professors|date=2016-12-16|work=UNSW Newsroom|access-date=2018-09-18}}
In 2015, the Association for Constraint Programming presented him with their Research Excellence Award,{{Cite web|url=https://www.a4cp.org/awards/research-excellence-award|title=Research Excellence Award {{!}} Association for Constraint Programming|website=www.a4cp.org|language=en|access-date=2018-09-18}} which identifies and honours the most influential people in the field.
In 2014, he won a Humboldt Prize.{{cite web |url=http://org.nicta.com.au/2014/05/toby-walsh-humboldt-research-award/|title=Announcement at NICTA's Optimisation Research Group website|date=15 February 2015 }}
In 2008, he was elected a Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence{{cite web |url=http://www.aaai.org/Awards/fellows-list.php |title=AAAI Fellow |publisher=AAAI}}
for "significant and sustained contributions to automated deduction and constraint programming, and for extraordinary service to the AI community".
In 2003, he was elected a Fellow of the European Association for Artificial Intelligence
{{cite web |url=http://www.eccai.org/fellow.php?sort=year |title=ECCAI Fellow |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110123075833/http://www.eccai.org/fellow.php?sort=year |archive-date=23 January 2011 |df=dmy-all }} in recognition of "significant, sustained contributions to the field of artificial intelligence".
References
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External links
- [http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~tw/ Toby Walsh's homepage]
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Category:Artificial intelligence researchers
Category:British computer scientists
Category:Australian computer scientists
Category:Fellows of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence
Category:Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science
Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Category:Alumni of the University of Cambridge
Category:Fellows of the European Association for Artificial Intelligence