AI Agents to Model Human Cognition with John Laird

Tom chats with John Laird, who has spent the past 40 years trying to build an AI agent that accomplishes the full range of human cognitive abilities, beginning with his 1980s PhD research on the SOAR model of human cognition with Allen Newell and Paul Rosenbloom.

John E. Laird received his Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University in 1985, and is John L. Tishman Emeritus Professor of Engineering at the University of Michigan. He is one of the original developers of the SOAR architecture and leads its continued development and evolution. He was a founder of Soar Technology. He is a AAAI, ACM, AAAS, and Cognitive Science Society Fellow. In 2018, he was co-winner of the Herbert A. Simon Prize for Advances in Cognitive Systems.

Creators and Guests

Host

Tom Mitchell

Tom Mitchell is the University Founders Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, a Digital Fellow at the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, and the author of Machine Learning, a foundational textbook on the subject.

JL

Guest

John Laird

Co-Director, Center for Integrated Cognition | John L. Tishman Emeritus Professor of Engineering, University of Michigan

Producer

Matty Smith

Writer/director/editor from Los Angeles, with experience writing and directing scripted television and national commercials. Mixed media producer with hands-on experience in all areas of production.

What is Machine Learning: How Did We Get Here??

Tom Mitchell literally wrote the book on machine learning. In this series of candid conversations with his fellow pioneers, Tom traces the history of the field through the people who built it. Behind the tech are stories of passion, curiosity, and humanity.

Tom Mitchell is the University Founders Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, a Digital Fellow at the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, and the author of Machine Learning, a foundational textbook on the subject. This podcast is produced by the Stanford Digital Economy Lab.