Osonde A. Osoba

Photo of Osonde Osoba
Codirector, Center for Scalable Computing and Analysis; Information Scientist; Professor, Pardee RAND Graduate School
Santa Monica Office

Education

Ph.D. & M.S. in electrical engineering, University of Southern California; B.S. in electrical and computer engineering, University of Rochester

Media Resources

This researcher is available for interviews.

To arrange an interview, contact the RAND Office of Media Relations at (310) 451-6913, or email media@rand.org.

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Overview

Osonde Osoba (pronounced “oh-shOwn-day aw-shAw-bah”) is codirector of the Center for Scalable Computing and Analysis (SCAN), an information scientist at the RAND Corporation and a professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. He has a background in the design and optimization of machine learning algorithms. He has applied his machine learning (ML) expertise to diverse policy areas such as health, defense, and technology policy. 

Osoba's recent applied work includes ML modeling for strategic decision-support, reinforcement learning applied to policy-relevant agent-based models, and causal modeling of social & behavioral phenomena. His recent work on the implications of AI/ML has focused on issues of data privacy and fairness in artificial intelligence and algorithmic decision systems generally. 

Prior to joining RAND, he was a researcher at the University of Southern California (USC). His research there focused on improving the speed and robustness of popular statistical algorithms like the expectation-maximization (EM) and backpropagation algorithms used in applications like automatic speech recognition. He also made contributions on the robustness and accuracy of approximate Bayesian inference schemes. Osoba received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from USC and his B.S. in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Rochester.

Research Focus

Pardee RAND Graduate School Courses

Selected Publications

Osonde A. Osoba, Bart Kosko, "Fuzzy Cognitive Maps of Public Support for Insurgency and Terrorism," Journal of Defense Modeling and Simulation, 14(1), 2017

K. Audhkhasi, O. Osoba, and B. Kosko, "Noise-Enhanced Convolutional Neural Networks," Neural Networks, 78, 2016

Osonde Osoba, Bart Kosko, "Noise-enhanced clustering and competitive learning algorithms," Neural Networks, 37, 2013

Osonde Osoba, Sanya Mitaim, and Bart Kosko., "The noisy expectation–maximization algorithm," Fluctuation and Noise Letters, 12(03), 2013

Commentary

  • Profile with fingerprint on a red background, photo by malerapaso/Getty Images

    Bans on Facial Recognition Are Naive. Hold Law Enforcement Accountable for Its Abuse

    Broader police reform may be difficult to achieve. But in the long run, it will be more effective than any specific technology ban.

    Jun 17, 2020 The Hill

  • A TV reporter wearing a mask, photo by brightstars/Getty Images

    Don't Make the Pandemic Worse with Poor Data Analysis

    The need for immediate answers in the face of severe public health and economic distress may create a temptation to relax statistical standards. But urgency should not preclude expert analysis and honest assessments of uncertainty. Mistaken assumptions could lead to counterproductive actions.

    May 6, 2020 The RAND Blog

  • Jennifer Bailey, VP of Apple Pay at Apple, speaks about the Apple Card during an Apple special event in Cupertino, California, March 25, 2019, photo by Stephen Lam/Reuters

    Did No One Audit the Apple Card Algorithm?

    Complex, opaque technologies like artificial intelligence provide significant benefits to society. But those benefits don't eliminate the need for accountability and transparency.

    Nov 21, 2019 The RAND Blog

  • Face detection and recognition

    Keeping Artificial Intelligence Accountable to Humans

    Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are often only as intelligent and fair as the data used to train them. To enable AI that frees humans from bias instead of reinforcing it, experts and regulators must think more deeply not only about what AI can do, but what it should do—and then teach it how.

    Aug 20, 2018 TechCrunch

  • Osonde Osoba in a RAND panel discussion in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, February 20, 2018

    The Human Side of Artificial Intelligence: Q&A with Osonde Osoba

    Osonde Osoba has been exploring AI since age 15. He says it's less about the intelligence and more about being able to capture how humans think. He is developing AI to improve planning and is also studying fairness in algorithmic decisionmaking in insurance pricing and criminal justice.

    May 1, 2018

  • Digital silhouettes of people

    Rethinking Data Privacy

    Society benefits from the exchange of large-scale data in many ways. Anonymization is the usual mechanism for addressing the privacy of data subjects. Unfortunately, anonymization is broken.

    Oct 5, 2016 Inside Sources

Publications

Multimedia