Bring what only
you can bring.

At SIAS, we are building an ecosystem where individuality has room to flourish, curiosity has the freedom to roam, and ambition finds people who will help it grow.

Our shared ambition is to make the pie bigger and even bake a new pie: ask questions that open new fields, create opportunities that did not exist, and take one another further than we could go alone.

Dream boldly. Root for each other. Enjoy the adventure.

Portrait of Professor Ruolin Li

I’m here to grow ideas—and cheer you on.

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Ruolin Li

Gabilan Assistant ProfessorSonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringThomas Lord Department of Computer ScienceAndrew and Erna Viterbi School of EngineeringUniversity of Southern California

Ruolin Li leads the Societally-aware Interactive Autonomous Systems (SIAS) Lab at USC. Her research asks how intelligent agents can make better decisions together—and how collective goals can guide their individual actions. Combining game theory, control, optimization, and learning, she studies the interactions among autonomous vehicles, people, and shared infrastructure, with applications to mobility and community resilience.

She earned her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley in 2023 and her M.S. in 2018, and was a CARS Postdoctoral Fellow at the Stanford Center for Automotive Research before joining USC.

Her research is supported by the National Science Foundation, the National Center for Sustainable Transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the Oliveri Sustainable Prosperity Fund. She leads EVAC-AI, a $2 million NSF FIRE-WUI project (2026–2030) investigating how agentic AI and multi-agent decision support can help communities coordinate wildfire evacuation. Alongside this work, her group studies how routing, incentives, and fleet decisions shape the performance of transportation networks.

Her doctoral work was a finalist for the 2024 IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Society Best Dissertation Award. More recently, the student-led MAPLE paper received the Western Track Best Paper Award at the 8th Bridging Transportation Researchers Conference, connecting network-level traffic objectives with vehicle-level incentives. Her earlier recognition includes selection for the Rising Stars programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering by MIT and in Mechanical Engineering by Stanford, as well as scholarships from the WTS Foundation and the International Society of Automation.

PhD Students

Portrait of Kexin Wang

I’m not Kevin!

Kexin Wang

PhD Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Southern California

Joined SIAS · Aug 2025

  • Multi-agent coordination
  • Game theory
  • Intelligent transportation systems

Do smarter agents necessarily make better teams? I study multi-agent coordination: how autonomous agents can make better decisions together. My research combines game theory and multi-agent learning to align individual decisions with collective goals, especially for safer, more efficient transportation.

Selected projects

  • MAPLE: Macro–Micro Aligned Predictive Lane-Change Coordination for Mixed-Autonomy Traffic Efficiency Best Paper
  • When Altruism Meets Autonomy: Managing Bottleneck Congestion with Strategic Autonomous Vehicles
Portrait of Luyao Niu standing beside an indoor staircase

I follow my curiosity—and the music.

Luyao Niu

PhD Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Southern California

Joined SIAS · Aug 2026

  • Autonomous Systems
  • Multi-Agent Decision-Making
  • Collective Intelligence

I study how autonomous systems and people can make better decisions together. My research focuses on coordination, learning, and strategic interaction among multiple agents in complex environments, with applications to mixed-autonomy transportation. The goal is to design systems that are safer, more efficient, and beneficial at the collective level.

Selected projects

  • Operational Competition on Shared Networks: A General Framework with Applications to Transportation, Communications, and Infrastructure Markets
  • SCOPE: Selective Coordination of Commercial AV Operators for Public-Road Emergencies in Wildfires

Master’s Students

Portrait of Yizhe Guan

I’m always up for a new trail.

Yizhe Guan 管怡喆

Master’s Student, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Southern California

Joined SIAS · Jan 2026

  • Game-Theoretic Transportation Modeling
  • Intelligent Transportation Systems
  • Large Language Models (LLMs)

My research studies how drivers, automated vehicles, and mobility operators make strategic decisions in shared transportation systems. I combine game-theoretic equilibrium modeling, traffic simulation and data, and LLM-assisted model discovery to understand merging behavior, mixed-autonomy coordination, and competition on congested networks.

Selected projects

  • Strategic Merging Behavior and Mixed-Traffic Control
  • LLM-Guided Discovery of Interpretable Traffic Behavior Models
  • Operator Competition and Equilibrium in Shared Transportation Networks

Undergraduate Researchers

Portrait of Tyler Davis in a suit and red tie beneath a campus colonnade

I’m here for new food, One Piece, and Game of Thrones.

Tyler Davis

Undergraduate Student, Computer Science and Business Administration

Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science
University of Southern California

Joined SIAS · Aug 2025

  • AMoD
  • Reinforcement Learning
  • Machine Learning

I study how autonomous taxi fleets should reposition empty vehicles across cities. I compare different optimization goals and measure the tradeoff between profit and equity across supply-and-demand conditions.

Selected projects

  • The Regime-Dependent Cost of Equity in Autonomous Mobility-on-Demand Rebalancing (undergrad as 1st author)
Portrait of Gavin Huang in a white shirt and striped tie

I’m always up for a game of pickleball.

Gavin Huang

Undergraduate Student, Computer Science

Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science
University of Southern California

Joined SIAS · Sep 2025

  • Reinforcement Learning

I study how autonomous vehicles can help reduce traffic congestion. Through the MAPLE project, I build and run traffic simulations to evaluate our coordination framework and measure its effects on mixed-autonomy traffic efficiency.

Selected projects

  • MAPLE: Macro–Micro Aligned Pigouvian Lane Control for Mixed-Autonomy Traffic Efficiency Best Paper

Alumni

Haohui He

Haohui He

PhD student

Civil Engineering, USC

2024–2025

LinkedIn
Shreya Nair

Shreya Nair

Undergraduate student

Computer Engineering and Computer Science, USC

2024–2025

LinkedIn
Roda Hassan

Roda Hassan

Undergraduate student

Computer Engineering, USC

2024–2025

LinkedIn
Zuge Li

Zuge Li

MS student

Computer Science, USC

2025–2026

LinkedIn
Alina Du

Alina Du

Undergraduate student

Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, USC

Fall 2025

LinkedIn
Brian Shi

Brian Shi

Undergraduate student

Computer Science, USC

Fall 2025

LinkedIn
Bethania Dagim

Bethania Dagim

Undergraduate student

Civil Engineering, USC

Fall 2025

USC profile

Roaming Supervisors

Puff, the SIAS Chief Morale Officer, a black-and-white dog wearing a pink collar

I take my treats—and your happiness—seriously.

Puff 泡芙

Chief Morale Officer

Joined SIAS · Aug 2025

  • Human–Canine Interaction
  • Treat Optimization
  • Ball Retrieval

Puff studies how strategic tail wagging, sustained eye contact, and precisely timed paw gestures influence human decision-making! Puff contributes to several ongoing SIAS initiatives, including morale enhancement, stress reduction, and real-time snack detection. Puff understands both English and Chinese—especially when either language involves treats!

Cheese, the SIAS Chief Mischief Officer, an orange-and-white cat resting on a speaker

I’m just checking if this desk is mine.

Cheese 奶酪

Chief Mischief Officer

Joined SIAS · Nov 2025

  • Human–Feline Interaction
  • Treat Optimization
  • Unauthorized Desk Exploration

Cheese studies how persistent meowing, strategic cuddling, and the occasional well-timed disruption influence human decision-making. Energetic, affectionate, and remarkably resilient, he contributes to SIAS by exploring unauthorized desk space, testing the limits of household rules, and interrupting overly serious thinking with a fresh perspective—usually his own.

Oreo, the SIAS Chief Quiet Officer, a gray-and-white cat wearing a colorful crocheted collar

I’m easygoing. Until I’m not.

Oreo 奥利奥

Chief Quiet Officer

Joined SIAS remotely from San Francisco

  • Human–Feline Interaction
  • Startle Response
  • Boundary Enforcement

Oreo studies how a shy, quiet cat can maintain personal space in a lively household. She is easily startled and often lets Cheese get away with mischief—until she reaches her limit and delivers a surprisingly decisive response. Despite her round appearance, Oreo is a modest eater. Her contributions to SIAS include calm companionship, careful observation, and occasional demonstrations that even the gentlest team member has boundaries.