59.3293° N 18.0686° E Stockholm

Hand-drawn portrait of Zirong Chen

Zirong (Rex) Chen

é™ˆć­èŁ

Trustworthy AI, NLP, and AI for social goodTillförlitlig AI, sprÄkteknologi och AI för samhÀllsnytta

Nashville, TN Stockholm, SE

RoleRoll
Incoming Postdoctoral Fellow
CentreCentrum
TECoSA
InstLÀrosÀte
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
BasedBaserad i
Stockholm, SE

Stockholm local timeLokal tid i Stockholm

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Fika with me?Fika med mig?

AboutOm mig

Hello! My name is Zirong (Rex) Chen (é™ˆć­èŁ).

Hej! Jag heter Zirong (Rex) Chen (é™ˆć­èŁ).

I am an incoming Postdoctoral Fellow at TECoSA, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, where I will work with Dr. David Broman and Dr. Rafia Inam. I defended my Ph.D. in Computer Science at Vanderbilt University, advised by Dr. Meiyi Ma. My research focuses on AI Safety and Trustworthy AI, with particular emphasis on Natural Language Processing (NLP), reliable AI systems for critical applications, and trustworthy AI-driven solutions for Smart Cities and emergency response.

Jag Àr tilltrÀdande postdoktor vid TECoSA, KTH, dÀr jag kommer att arbeta med Dr. David Broman och Dr. Rafia Inam. Jag disputerade i datavetenskap vid Vanderbilt University med Dr. Meiyi Ma som handledare. Min forskning handlar om AI-sÀkerhet och tillförlitlig AI, med sÀrskilt fokus pÄ sprÄkteknologi (NLP), tillförlitliga AI-system för kritiska tillÀmpningar och AI-lösningar att lita pÄ för smarta stÀder och rÀddningstjÀnst.

I earned my bachelor's degree (B.E. in Computer Engineering) in China and my master's degree (M.S. in Computer Science) at Georgetown University. I was a basketball athlete in high school and college.

Jag tog min kandidatexamen (B.E. i datateknik) i Kina och min masterexamen (M.S. i datavetenskap) vid Georgetown University. Jag spelade basket bÄde pÄ gymnasiet och universitetet.

EducationUtbildning

  • 2021–2026 Ph.D. in Computer ScienceDoktorsexamen i datavetenskap
    Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
  • 2019–2021 M.S. in Computer ScienceMasterexamen i datavetenskap
    Georgetown University, Washington, DC
  • 2015–2019 B.E. in Computer EngineeringKandidatexamen i datateknik
    Jinling Institute of Technology, Nanjing, China

NewsNyheter

Last updated July 2026.Uppdaterad juli 2026.

2026
2025
  • Nov.Invited talk "Neurosymbolic AI for Safety-Critical Systems" at DTAI Lab, KU Leuven by Dr. Luc De Raedt and Dr. Jessa Bekker. See you (virtually) in Belgium!Inbjuden förelĂ€sning ”Neurosymbolic AI for Safety-Critical Systems” vid DTAI Lab, KU Leuven, pĂ„ inbjudan av Dr. Luc De Raedt och Dr. Jessa Bekker. Vi ses (digitalt) i Belgien!
  • Nov.Our LwP (Learning with Preserving) is accepted by AAAI-2026 as Oral Spotlight! See you in Singapore! Shoutout to first authors David Wang and Siwoo Bae.VĂ„r LwP (Learning with Preserving) har antagits till AAAI-2026 som Oral Spotlight! Vi ses i Singapore! Stort grattis till förstaförfattarna David Wang och Siwoo Bae.
  • Oct.Okt.Invited guest talk on our Angie work at Dr. Ehsan Hoque's ROC-HCI Lab at University of Rochester.Inbjuden gĂ€stförelĂ€sning om vĂ„rt Angie-arbete vid Dr. Ehsan Hoques ROC-HCI Lab pĂ„ University of Rochester.
  • Aug.We presented LogiDebrief (oral and poster at IJCAI) in Montreal, returned to Vandy, Anchor Down!Vi presenterade LogiDebrief (bĂ„de muntligt och som poster pĂ„ IJCAI) i Montreal och Ă€r tillbaka pĂ„ Vandy. Anchor Down!
  • Jul.I won the IJCAI volunteer scholarship!Jag fick IJCAI:s volontĂ€rstipendium!
  • Jun.Our project won the Vanderbilt Catalyst Funds!VĂ„rt projekt tilldelades Vanderbilt Catalyst Funds!
  • MayMajI joined Epiq AI Labs as an AI Research Fellow (intern), researching legal AI topics, see you in NYC!Jag började pĂ„ Epiq AI Labs som AI Research Fellow (praktikant) och forskar om juridisk AI. Vi ses i New York!
  • Apr.Our work LogiDebrief is accepted by IJCAI-2025! See you in Montreal, CA!VĂ„rt arbete LogiDebrief har antagits till IJCAI-2025! Vi ses i Montreal, Kanada!
  • Apr.Our project is awarded by Google again (Gemma3 Academic Program)!VĂ„rt projekt har fĂ„tt anslag frĂ„n Google igen (Gemma3 Academic Program)!
  • Mar.Angie now has two solutions: desktop and web!Angie finns nu i tvĂ„ versioner: skrivbord och webb!
  • Feb.Sim911 and our newly developed debriefing function are now also available online!Sim911 och vĂ„r nyutvecklade Ă„terkopplingsfunktion finns nu Ă€ven pĂ„ webben!
  • Jan.Our work Sim911 is selected as Oral Spotlight (4.9%) at AAAI-25!VĂ„rt arbete Sim911 valdes ut som Oral Spotlight (4,9 %) pĂ„ AAAI-25!
Show earlier news · 2024, 2023Visa Ă€ldre nyheter · 2024, 2023
2024
  • Dec.Our paper Sim911 is accepted by AAAI-25! See you in Philadelphia.VĂ„r artikel Sim911 har antagits till AAAI-25! Vi ses i Philadelphia.
  • Oct.Okt.Our project is awarded by the Google Academic Research Award!VĂ„rt projekt tilldelades Google Academic Research Award!
  • Sep.We were invited (permanently) to present our work at the LIVE session.Vi blev inbjudna (permanent) att presentera vĂ„rt arbete pĂ„ LIVE-sessionen.
  • Sep.We were invited to the Innovation Panel organized by Davidson County and the Sheriff's Office.Vi blev inbjudna till innovationspanelen som anordnades av Davidson County och Sheriff’s Office.
  • Aug.Our project SimER/Angie got funded by NSF (pre-announcement).VĂ„rt projekt SimER/Angie har beviljats anslag frĂ„n NSF (förhandsbesked).
  • Aug.We were awarded by the OpenAI Research Access Program.Vi tilldelades stöd genom OpenAI Research Access Program.
  • Jul.We launched and deployed SimER/Angie V2 at DEC!Vi lanserade och driftsatte SimER/Angie V2 pĂ„ DEC!
  • Jun.We hosted a Workshop on Future Technologies for Emergency Response and Public Safety!Vi arrangerade en workshop om framtidens teknik för rĂ€ddningstjĂ€nst och samhĂ€llsskydd!
  • MayMajWe were invited to the TN State Government of Education's K-12 Event at Peabody!Vi blev inbjudna till delstaten Tennessees utbildningsmyndighets K-12-evenemang pĂ„ Peabody!
  • Apr.SimER/Angie prototype first participates in real-world training!Prototypen av SimER/Angie anvĂ€ndes för första gĂ„ngen i skarp utbildning!
  • Mar.We won the Vanderbilt Generative AI Seed Grant!Vi tilldelades Vanderbilt Generative AI Seed Grant!
  • Feb.We were at AAAI 2024 in Vancouver, CA.Vi var pĂ„ AAAI 2024 i Vancouver, Kanada.
  • Feb.Our work Auto311 is selected as Spotlight Oral Presentation (6%) at AAAI 2024!VĂ„rt arbete Auto311 valdes ut till Spotlight Oral Presentation (6 %) pĂ„ AAAI 2024!
  • Jan.Serve as TA for Automated Verification.Undervisningsassistent i kursen Automated Verification.
  • Jan.I won the AAAI Scholarship and Volunteer Award!Jag fick AAAI:s stipendium och volontĂ€rutmĂ€rkelse!
2023
  • Dec.I won the Vanderbilt Graduate Student Travel Grant!Jag fick Vanderbilt Graduate Student Travel Grant!
  • Dec.Our paper Auto311 is accepted by AAAI-24! See you in Vancouver!VĂ„r artikel Auto311 har antagits till AAAI-24! Vi ses i Vancouver!

Research projectsForskningsprojekt

Personalized Adaptive Curriculum for 9-1-1 TrainingPersonanpassad adaptiv utbildning för 9-1-1

PACE is a personalized adaptive curriculum engine that tailors 9-1-1 call-taker training to individual trainees. By modeling trainee proficiency and dynamically adjusting scenario difficulty, PACE delivers targeted practice that improves learning efficiency in safety-critical emergency response training.

PACE Àr en motor för personanpassade, adaptiva utbildningsplaner som skrÀddarsyr trÀningen för 9-1-1-operatörer efter varje enskild deltagare. Genom att modellera deltagarens fÀrdighetsnivÄ och löpande justera scenariernas svÄrighetsgrad ger PACE riktad trÀning som effektiviserar lÀrandet i sÀkerhetskritisk rÀddningstjÀnstutbildning.

Adaptive Learning, Trustworthy AI, Safety-Critical Training

Learn moreLĂ€s mer
PACE system architecture showing personalized adaptive curriculum engine for 9-1-1 call-taker training
Trainee proficiency modelling drives adaptive scenario difficulty across the curriculum.Modellering av deltagarens fÀrdighetsnivÄ styr scenariernas svÄrighetsgrad genom hela utbildningen.

Logic-informed Call-taking Performance DebriefingLogikstödd Äterkoppling pÄ samtalshantering

We develop trustworthy AI systems that decompose LLM runtime into modularized function calls enhanced with Signal Temporal Logic, ensuring reliable and interpretable performance evaluation for safety-critical call-taking scenarios.

Vi utvecklar tillförlitliga AI-system som bryter ner sprÄkmodellens exekvering i modulÀra funktionsanrop förstÀrkta med signaltemporal logik. Det ger en tillförlitlig och tolkbar utvÀrdering av prestation i sÀkerhetskritiska samtalsscenarier.

Trustworthy AI, AI Safety, Reliable LLMs

Learn moreLĂ€s mer
LogiDebrief system architecture showing LLM integration with Signal Temporal Logic for automated debriefing
LLM runtime decomposed into modular function calls, each checked against Signal Temporal Logic.SprÄkmodellens exekvering uppdelad i modulÀra funktionsanrop, vart och ett kontrollerat mot signaltemporal logik.

Customized Emergency Response TrainingSkrÀddarsydd utbildning för rÀddningstjÀnst

Collaborating with Metro Nashville Department of Emergency Communications, we develop Angie/SimER, a safety-critical AI system that provides reliable, trustworthy simulation environments for call-taker training in high-stakes emergency response scenarios.

Tillsammans med Metro Nashville Department of Emergency Communications utvecklar vi Angie/SimER, ett sÀkerhetskritiskt AI-system som ger tillförlitliga simuleringsmiljöer för att trÀna operatörer i skarpa rÀddningsscenarier.

Safety-Critical AI, Trustworthy LLMs, Reliable Systems

Learn moreLĂ€s mer
SimER system overview showing AI-driven simulation environment for call-taker training with Metro Nashville DEC
Angie / SimER, the simulation environment deployed with Metro Nashville Department of Emergency Communications.Angie / SimER, simuleringsmiljön som driftsatts tillsammans med Metro Nashville Department of Emergency Communications.

Trustworthy Emergency Response SystemsTillförlitliga system för rÀddningstjÀnst

We develop reliable AI systems with built-in safety guarantees that enhance emergency response decision-making. Our trustworthy machine learning approaches ensure robust performance in critical situations while maintaining transparency and accountability.

Vi utvecklar tillförlitliga AI-system med inbyggda sÀkerhetsgarantier som stÀrker beslutsfattandet inom rÀddningstjÀnsten. VÄra metoder för tillförlitlig maskininlÀrning ger robust prestanda i kritiska lÀgen samtidigt som transparens och ansvarsutkrÀvande bevaras.

AI Safety, Trustworthy ML, Reliable Decision Systems

Learn moreLĂ€s mer
Auto311 system diagram showing confidence-guided automated processing for non-emergency calls
Confidence-guided routing and handling of non-emergency 311 calls.Konfidensstyrd dirigering och hantering av icke-akuta 311-samtal.

Adaptable City Knowledge

The Adaptable City Knowledge project aims to create a dynamic, data-driven platform that helps cities respond to evolving challenges. From traffic management to disaster preparedness, this initiative fosters collaboration between city officials, businesses, and residents to promote resilience.

Projektet Adaptable City Knowledge bygger en dynamisk, datadriven plattform som hjÀlper stÀder att möta förÀndrade utmaningar. FrÄn trafikstyrning till krisberedskap frÀmjar initiativet samarbete mellan kommun, nÀringsliv och invÄnare för ökad motstÄndskraft.

AI/ML, NLP, Life-long Learning

Learn moreLĂ€s mer
CitySpec system architecture for intelligent requirement specification in smart cities with formal verification
City requirements captured in natural language and formalised into verifiable specifications.Kommunala krav fÄngade i naturligt sprÄk och formaliserade till verifierbara specifikationer.

Selected publicationsUtvalda publikationer

ContactKontakt

EmailE-post
zirong.chen [at] vanderbilt.edu
OfficeKontor
LindstedtsvÀgen 30, TECoSA, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
AddressAdress
Södermalm, Stockholm, SE
LinksLĂ€nkar
Google Scholar · ORCID · LinkedIn

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