Rate My Professor Andrew Howes

Professor Andrew Howes serves as Head of the Department of Computer Science at the University of Exeter. He is a computer scientist focused on computational models of the mind and the design of Artificial Intelligence systems that interact effectively with people. His research explores the interaction between humans and intelligent machines, with an emphasis on engineering AI to collaborate seamlessly with users by inferring their goals and preferences. Howes is the programme director for the Human Centred Artificial Intelligence MSc and leads a new Human-AI programme. He heads the department's efforts in AI for Humans and Health within the Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.

Howes has held positions at numerous leading institutions, including the Department of Computer Science at the University of Birmingham until 2023, the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan, the Department of Information and Communications Engineering at Aalto University, Manchester Business School, the School of Psychology at Cardiff University, the MRC Applied Psychology Unit in Cambridge, the Department of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University, and NASA Ames Research Centre. His research has received funding from organizations such as ONR, ARL, AFRL, EPSRC, EU, NASA, the Marshall M. Weinberg Foundation, and FCAI. Key publications include 'Computational Rationality: Linking Mechanism and Behavior Through Bounded Utility Maximization' (2014), 'Rational adaptation under task and processing constraints: implications for testing theories of cognition and action' (2009), 'The problem of conflicting social spheres: Effects of network structure on experienced tension in social network sites' (2009), 'AI governance by human rights–centered design, deliberation, and oversight: An end to ethics washing' (2020), and 'A framework for understanding human factors in web-based electronic commerce' (2000). These works have advanced fields like cognitive science, human-computer interaction, and collaborative AI, influencing theories of rational behavior and human-AI collaboration. He obtained his PhD from the University of Lancaster.