Salem Lahlou

Assistant Professor of Machine Learning

Salem Lahlou | Assistant Professor of Machine Learning

I am an Assistant Professor at the Machine Learning department of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), focusing on uncertainty estimation, generative models, reinforcement learning sample complexity, and more generally in designing better “AI for science” tools.

I am actively recruiting **highly motivated students!** If you’re interested in joining my group as a PhD student, Master’s student, or research associate, do not hesitate to send me an e-mail, with your CV, your interests, and a few words about your previous research experience.

Research topics include but are not limited to:

Overall, I am more interested in understanding (and therefore defining) intelligence, be it animal or artificial.

Before this, I worked at TII as a Senior Researcher in 2024, obtained my PhD in 2023 from Mila and UdeM, under the supervision of Yoshua Bengio, interned in Google Brain in Paris in 2020 to work on hierarchical reinforcement learning. Prior to my PhD, I studied applied mathematics in Ecole Polytechnique and statistical learning in Ecole Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay. I did research in game theory and operations research in IBM Research Singapore, and worked as a data scientist in Booking.com in Amsterdam.

I have provided consulting services to dozens startups. Contact me if interested!