More about me...

I am currently a research engineer at Google DeepMind.

Before this, I was at Vicarious AI, leading a team working broadly on applying 3d computer vision, computational geometry and graphics, to the robotics domain. I find it exciting how the unforgiving nature of the physical world emphasizes the need for robust algorithms and powerful generalization from limited data.

Before that, I received a Ph.D. in physics (2011-2017) from The University of Texas at Austin working with Prof. Can Kilic as part of the Theory Group, and four exciting years (2007-2011) at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, getting an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering and making wonderful friends along the way.

Research

Over the last few years, my work has been situated at the interface of computer vision, 3d computational geometry, and graphics. More recently, I have been working on a variety of topics in artificial intelligence -- ranging from sequence modeling to model-based reinforcement learning. Broadly, I am most excited about the possibilities when algorithms (applied math) come into contact with the physical world.

On the one hand, this should help create better algorithms for information processing, to better understand the physical world and interact with it more robustly. On the other hand, in the longer term, I believe this perspective will provide powerful tools to better understand emergent physical phenomena in complex systems, from spin glasses to holographic quantum gravity.

Teaching

I have designed & taught a unique course aimed at giving students with a non-technical background an exposure to science and scientific thinking. The course I taught had a nominal focus on mechanics, but drew on examples from daily life, and emphasized inquiry, to help students see how critical analysis and quantitative thinking can help in understanding happenings and making judicious decisions.

One of my favourite class exercises focuses on conveying an intuitive understanding of exponentials

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Sport

I enjoy swimming and playing squash these days.

Writing

I write a lot (mostly for myself), and try to occasionally  blog some of that. (I haven't gotten around to publishing my recent writing, or content from my old blogs, so the content there is somewhat sparse and dated)

Reading

I like to read a variety of stuff; mostly non-fiction.
 Goodreads profile

Physics StackExchange

I have spent quite some time participating on the Physics StackExchange website, writing expository answers, sharing and growing my knowledge.
 phy.SE