McIntire School of Commerce faculty member Ryan Wright has been appointed Co-Director of AI Research@UVA, alongside Henry Kautz, Professor of Computer Science in the School of Engineering & Applied Science.
AI Research@UVA advances and connects artificial intelligence research across the University. Fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and amplifying the impact of UVA’s AI-related scholarship, the initiative aims to expand and coordinate AI research efforts.
In his new role, Wright, the Rolls-Royce Commonwealth Eminent Professor, will provide strategic leadership to strengthen UVA’s position as a national and global leader in AI. He will collaborate with schools, institutes, and research centers across Grounds to drive innovative AI projects and partnerships while continuing to represent McIntire’s leadership in data-driven business education and digital transformation.
Goal-Oriented, Both Great and Good
Wright is eager to accomplish three major goals in his new role.
“I want to raise the profile of UVA’s current AI research teams by highlighting their accomplishments, fostering visibility across Grounds, and ensuring our work is recognized nationally as part of a cohesive UVA AI research identity,” he says. “Second, I aim to equip faculty with the latest AI technologies and techniques so they can remain at the forefront of discovery and application. Third, I want to strengthen connections across Grounds by building networks that bring together faculty, students, and partners from different disciplines to collaborate on AI projects that address pressing societal challenges.” He believes that achieving those outcomes will ultimately position UVA as a leader in responsible, innovative AI research, the type “that drives impact across the University and the Commonwealth.”
Wright has been a leading voice in advancing conscientious and effective use of AI in business and higher education.
With scholarship focusing on how novel technologies including AI spread, become adopted, and reshape organizations, Wright’s current work ranges from the reasons for AI projects’ failure to the diffusion of genAI across firms, and concepts such as building an AI‑native university. At McIntire, he has developed an AI plan for the School, upskilling faculty on AI tools and techniques and piloting agentic AI.
“All of these experiences I’m eager to scale within the AI Research@UVA initiative.”
In 2024, Wright led McIntire’s AI Task Force, which has launched a number of different initiatives in the curriculum, research, and operations (some of which were suggested in a report for integrating AI at the Commerce School). As his expertise spans cybersecurity, digital innovation, as well as AI, Wright serves on the aforementioned Provost’s Advisory Committee on AI and co-authors the AI Exchange @UVA, a newsletter exploring AI in teaching, research, personal productivity, and operations—all areas that increasingly shape business strategy and commerce education, with the latter growing more in its practical usefulness and potency seemingly by the day.
It’s a consequential technology that demands the kind of intense examination and open collaboration that the initiative will deliver.
“AI research is happening in all 12 UVA schools, including a heavy presence in McIntire,” he says. “But AI research needs shared strategy, coordination, and visibility. This initiative will be the integrative glue we need across Grounds.” He notes that UVA’s public mission includes serving Virginia with AI expertise, and as such, this program will connect research to public service, allowing the Commonwealth to benefit from responsible, deployable, and impactful AI. “It’s not just about papers,” says Wright.
A Peerless Partnership
Wright will co-direct the AI Research@UVA with Kautz, an award-winning researcher and former Division Director for Information and Intelligent Systems at the National Science Foundation, where he led the National AI Research Institutes program. Together, they will help convene UVA’s AI-related institutes and initiatives, engage internal and external partners, and foster collaboration that advances both technical and applied aspects of AI research.
“Henry is an accomplished computer science scholar with deep experience in leading large-scale, funded research initiatives. His proven ability to build collaborative institutes that tackle complex, interdisciplinary challenges will be incredibly valuable as UVA expands its AI research footprint,” says Wright. “He is also a true pioneer in the field of artificial intelligence, with decades of contributions that have helped shape the discipline from its early stages. I believe our skills are highly complementary, and together, this computer science and business ‘dream team’ will accelerate AI research and impact across the Commonwealth.”
Wright insists that anyone interested in learning more, sharing ideas, and helping to shape UVA’s next chapter in AI can reach out to him or Kautz.
“We’re looking for the best ideas and collaborators to ensure our storied University leads in this rapidly evolving space,” he says. “I also encourage everyone to subscribe to the AI Exchange @UVA newsletter and podcast to stay up to date on our initiatives and the latest developments in AI across the University and beyond.”
The initiative was developed following a recommendation from the Provost’s Task Force on AI Research and developed by the 2024–2025 Provost’s Special Advisors on AI, Darden Professor Yael Grushka-Cockayne and School of Engineering Professor Scott Acton. For more information about AI in research, teaching, operations, and public service, please visit AI@UVA and AI@McIntire.
