Long Tran-Thanh
Professor
Room: CS3.17
Email: long dot tran-thanh at warwick dot ac dot uk
Email: long dot tran-thanh at warwick dot ac dot uk
Office hours (2024/25 Term 2):
Fri 11am-1pm
- Please contact me in at least 1 day advance if you would like to see me during office hours. Many thanks!
Short bio: I am a Full Professor at the Department of Computer Science, University of Warwick. I did my PhD in AI at the University of Southampton under the supervision of Nick JenningsLink opens in a new window and Alex RogersLink opens in a new window. Before that I did my studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and InformaticsLink opens in a new window, Budapest University of Technology and Economics.
Online lectures: (incomplete) list of my online lectures/mini-courses (on selected topics related to my research, including reinforcement learning, multi-agent systems, game theory etc) can be found here.Link opens in a new window
Research interests: My main research area is Artificial Intelligence. I am interested in developing mathematical foundations for large systems of autonomous and complex agents (either AI or human users) that have to:
(i) collaborate with each other to deal with complex real-world problems; or
(ii) strategically act against each other in order to achieve their own goals.
In many cases, agents need to perform both, which adds an extra level of complexity to their decision making process.
In my research, I typically combine techniques from online learning/decision making, game theory, and other areas of multi-agent systems. I am also interested in applying my findings to AI for Social Good.
Digital Research Spotlight: I am also the Chair of the Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Spotlight in DigitalLink opens in a new window. This is a university's initiative to coordinate its research activities within AI, Data Science, Quantum Computing, Cyber Physical, and many more areas, focusing on the collaborative and interdisciplinary aspects. With my team, our goal is to create a community of excellence for interdisciplinary research, placing Warwick as a recognised global leader in digital research.
PhD studentships, internships
Prospective students: I am always looking for bright students with strong maths/stats/CS background. If you want to do a PhD with me then I would expect you to contact me by Sept/Oct. If your enquiries/research topic proposal are inline with my research, I will very likely respond to your email.
Warwick students: If you would like to do an internship with me, the best way to do is through the URSS schemeLink opens in a new window.
Current duties:
- Deputy Head (Director of Research), dept. of Computer Science, Warwick.
- Chair, Warwick Interdisciplinary Research Spotlight in Digital.
- Associate Editor of Artificial Intelligence, the flagship journal in AI.
- Associate Editor for the journal of Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (JAAMAS), the flagship journal in multiagent systems research.
Past duties:
- Member of the IFAAMAS Board of DirectorsLink opens in a new window (2018-2024), the main governing body of the international community of autonomous agents and multiagent systems.
- Member of the AI Advisory Board, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (2020-2030).
- Scientific advisor for Actable AILink opens in a new window (previously I was its Chief Scientific Officer).
- Scientific advisor for ContactEngineLink opens in a new window.
- Principal Scientist (advisory role) at FPT Software (QAI division).
Awards and recognitions
Research:
Teaching:
- AIJ Prominent Paper Award 2021
- IJCAI 2019 Early Career Spotlight Talk (invited)
- Vice-Chancellor's Award 2018 (Southampton)
- Royal Society's Kan Tong Po Visiting Fellowship 2017
- University of Southern California's CAIS Visiting Fellow 2017
- Runner-up - CPHC/BCS PhD Dissertation Award (Best Computer Science PhD thesis in the UK) in 2012/2013
- Honourable mention - ECCAI PhD Dissertation Award (Outstanding European PhD thesis in artificial intelligence) in 2012
- Honourable mention - AAAI 2012 Outstanding Paper Award
- Runner-up - ECAI 2012 Best Student Paper Award
Teaching:
- Dean's Award 2017 (Faculty of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Southampton)
- Most Engaging Lecturer in 2016 (Southampton)
Publications
Google ScholarLink opens in a new window profile
DBLPLink opens in a new window profile
ScopusLink opens in a new window profile
CSAuthorsLink opens in a new window profile
Recent talks:
- Seminar talk at Monash University on data poisoning against bandits and how to defend (2024): video linkLink opens in a new window
- My keynote talk at OptLearnMAS 2021 on multi-agent strategic learning: videoLink opens in a new window
- UMD College Park (6th Nov 2024) - hosted by Prof. Tom GoldsteinLink opens in a new window
- JAIST, Japan (19th Nov 2024) - hosted by Prof. Minh Le NguyenLink opens in a new window
- PRIMA/PRICAI 2024 keynoteLink opens in a new window (20th Nov 2024) - Kyoto, Japan
- Lancaster University (6th March 2025)
Upcoming talks:
- University of Manchester (Jan 2025? - TBC)
Research group:
Current PhD students
- Abhimanyu Pallavi SudhirLink opens in a new window
- Alex MosesLink opens in a new window
- Hoang PhamLink opens in a new window
- Jakub CzarlinskiLink opens in a new window (starting in Oct 2025)
- Luke MeredithLink opens in a new window
- Phurinut SrisawadLink opens in a new window
- Sam TaagholLink opens in a new window
- Tuan NguyenLink opens in a new window (starting in Oct 2025)
- Balint GucsiLink opens in a new window (Southampton, graduating end of 2025)
Past supervisees
- Md Mosaddek KhanLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2015-18) - decentralised constraint optimisation problems - Last known position: Assoc. Prof. at Univ. of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
- Edoardo ManinoLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2015-19) - Bayesian inference techniques in crowdsourcing - Last known position: Assist. Prof. at University of Manchester, UK.
- Paolo SerafinoLink opens in a new window (postdoc, Southampton, 2016-2019) – truthful mechanisms for secure traffic control systems. Last known position: Lecturer (Assist. Prof.) at University of Porthsmouth, UK.
- Nhat TruongLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2015-19) - incentive engineering in crowdsourcing systems. Last known position: industry.
- Taha GunesLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2017-2021) - vulnerability analysis of trust systems in AI (co-supervised with Tim Norman) – Last known position: CTO at Asset Dynamics GroupLink opens in a new window, UK.
- Tin LeelavimolsilpLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2016-2021) - selfish mining in multi-agent blockchain systems (co-supervised with Seb Stein) – Last known position: lecturer (Assist. Prof.) at University of Winchester, UK.
- Guillermo MorenoLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2018-2021) - influence maximisation games (co-supervised with Markus Brede) – Last known position: postdoc at University of Edinburgh, UK.
- Nick BishopLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2018-2022) - bilevel optimisation problems in machine learning (co-supervised with Enrico Gerding) – Last known position: postdoc at University of Oxford, UK.
- Le Cong DinhLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2018-2023) - learning and last round convergence in asymmetric games (co-supervised with Tri-Dung Nguyen and Alain Zemkoho) - Last known position: quant researcher VP at a major investment bank in London, UK.
- Tom DaviesLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Southampton, 2019-2023) - algebraic topology and its applications in machine learning (co-supervised with Ruben Sanchez Garcia) – Last known position: postdoc at the Alan Turing Institute, UK.
- Nam TranLink opens in a new window (PhD student, Warwick, 2021-2025) - geometric structures in multi-agent learning – Last known position: postdoc at Inria Lille, France.
Some personal info
- I was born in Hue, Vietnam but grew up in Budapest, Hungary. My favourite food are Hungarian chicken stewLink opens in a new window and beef noodle soup (Hue style)Link opens in a new window.
- My Erdos number is 3.
- My favourite high school maths journal: KoMaLLink opens in a new window.
- My sister's song from 2005Link opens in a new window. Some other of her songs from 2008Link opens in a new window and 2010Link opens in a new window.
- A wiki page about my maternal great-grandfather: Dao Duy AnhLink opens in a new window.