Engineer sees AI as new layer of civic infrastructure

Guru Madhavan views artificial intelligence as a new, invisible layer of civic infrastructure. Madhavan is a Stony Brook University alumnus who holds a Master's degree from 2022 and a PhD. He serves as the Norman R. Augustine Senior Scholar and Senior Director of Programs at the National Academy of Engineering.

Madhavan has worked in engineering design, public health, and technical advising. He has written foundational texts including Applied Minds and Wicked Problems. His career spans several decades of work in systems scholarship.

At the National Academy of Engineering, Madhavan leads a multi-stakeholder initiative. The group works to improve understanding of complex technical and social systems. It also seeks to find unifiable approaches for managing these systems more effectively.

In a recent interview with Ankita Nagpal at the AI Innovation Institute, Madhavan described his focus. He stated that he is interested in large engineering systems with large consequences. He also noted an interest in small systems that have extra-large consequences.

Madhavan cited aviation, power grids, health infrastructure, and digital commerce as examples. He explained that these sectors operate through a large network of invisible coordination. Standards and maintenance regimes hold these networks together, often built by people from diverse backgrounds.

The full interview is available on the AI Innovation Institute website.