Professor of Artificial Intelligence

University of Hertfordshire, UK

School of Computer Science, College Lane Campus, Hatfield

Salary £58,293 to £64,397 pa dependent on skills and experience

FTE: Full time position working 37 hours per week (1.0FTE)

Duration of Contract: Permanent position

Applications are invited for an exceptionally well qualified Professor of Artificial Intelligence of international standing who shares our commitment to research-informed teaching, embraces the research impact agenda, and values collegiality. Applicants will strengthen existing activity within the School and develop it further, enhancing the research strengths and external reputation of the School of Computer Science and contributing significantly to its performance in future research assessments and collaborations with public and commercial partners. The successful applicant will connect to and complement the research conducted by the Adaptive Systems Research Group within the Centre for Computer Science and Informatics Research. The School hosts the University of Hertfordshire Robot House, a facility ubiquitously equipped with low-cost sensors providing a realistic environment for experiments with robotics in a smart home; a fully-fledged RoboCup lab for development of humanoid robots participating in international competitions, and a large variety of different robotic platforms, including iCub and Baxter. We encourage applications from researchers across a wide spectrum of AI, and particularly encourage applications from researchers working on emerging topics in AI. Possible fields include, but are not limited to: 

• Machine learning: reinforcement learning, Deep Methods, statistical methods, large scale data modelling/intelligent processing and high-performance learning algorithms 

• Robotics: embodied and/or cognitive robotics, HRI, robot safety, emotional/social robots, smart homes and sensors, sensor fusion, assistive robotics 

• Complex Systems: collective intelligence, adaptive, autonomous and multi-agent/robot systems, collective and swarm intelligence, social and market modelling, adaptive, evolutionary and unconventional computation 

• Mathematical Modelling: statistical modelling, information-theoretic methods, compressive sensing, intelligent data visualization, multiscale models, optimization 

• Emerging Topics in AI: computer algebra and AI, topological methods (e.g. persistent homology), modern topics in games and AI 

• AI and applications: financial modelling, AI and biology/physics/cognitive sciences 

• Foundations: fundamental questions of intelligence and computation, emergence of life/intelligence, Artificial Life

As well as providing research supervision at PhD and MSc level, the School of Computer Science offers modules in Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, neural and evolutionary computing, as well as Artificial Life on the BSc and MSc programmes. Applicants will be committed to a strong research and research-informed teaching agenda, and will actively contribute to increase research impact of the School, in the enthusiastic, welcoming and collegiate environment of the school.

Applicants must hold a PhD (or equivalent) in a relevant subject, possess excellent communication skills in English, an internationally excellent research record and reputation, including publications of the highest quality suitable for submission to the REF (UK Research Excellence Framework). Applicants are expected to show evidence of experience and success in research/commercial income generation, engagement with the research impact agenda, engagement with key stakeholders in the relevant Artificial Intelligence community and management and leadership ability. The professor will have opportunity to contribute actively to interdisciplinary research projects at the school and university level.

Applications must be made online https://www.herts.ac.uk/contact-us/jobs-and-vacancies/academic-vacancies​, reference 016194​.

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Dr Volker Steuber (Associate Dean Research, v.steuber@herts.ac.uk) or Professor William Clocksin (Dean of School, w.clocksin@herts.ac.uk). Please note that applications sent directly by email  will not be accepted.