Hi, welcome to my website! :)
I am a PhD student at the
Language Technologies Institute
in the
School of Computer Science
at
Carnegie Mellon University,
advised by
Professor Virginia Smith.
My research interests center around tackling efficiency problems in machine learning
from systems, algorithms, and data perspectives. In my big head, the big goal is to drive
accessibility and participation in the creation of the AI technologies we use so that
resources cease to be a bottleneck or criteria for being part of the decision-making process.
"Driving accessibility" extends to other aspects of my life. I usually spend my weekends at
STEMforDevelopment, where I currently mentor over a score
of URM graduate school aspirants in enhancing their research interests clarity and optimizing
their applications for Western schools' graduate programs.
I am also an organizer for Nigeria's local chapter of
ML Collective, where we help our folks grow self-confidence in their
independent research skills--outside of formal education--via P2P study/reading sessions and shared projects.
Non-work-wise, I routinely powerlift, do amateur boxing, watch Liverpool FC games, and add to my bank of "useless" knowledge by reading diversely.
Moreover, I try to fine-tune my clowning game with every chance I get—through my conversations with friends,
via my speaking engagements, and in my head. My clowning game has been on hold as I try to adjust to my PhD program,
a new country, and a new culture.
Shortly before I resumed my PhD, I completed my BSc in Computer Science at the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Nigeria, advised by
Dr. Adebayo Abayomi-Alli. Academic union strike actions and COVID-19 lockdown led to an extension of my bachelor's degree timeline.
Fortunately, this gave me more time than a typical undergraduate to refine my interests
beyond what my immediate environment offered and also amass an eclectic mix of fulfilling experiences.
I had ample time to participate in several hackathons and internships, and I regularly spoke on tools and topics
I liked at tech conferences across different parts of the globe. Since early 2021, I have been an independent researcher
with ML Collective
(and made cameo appearances at
Masakhane
and
Cohere For AI), where I am fortunate to have
Rosanne Liu
and
Jason Yosinski primarily mentor me.
Toward the end, I (along with my friends) designed a real-time opinion mining system for digital assets and got a
115k USD grant to build the system. This enabled me to focus on exploring independent research without worrying much about my living expenses. :)
I am a "community-taught" ML person; hence, a big part of my BSc years were spent giving back to our tech communities,
including Data Science Nigeria, Google Developer Student Club, She Code Africa, the National Association of Computing Students,
and ML Collective.
I had stints as a choir director at my local churches in my earlier college years.
I had several existential crises littered throughout my BSc years
[1,
2].
My last year of BSc was spent transitioning from award-worthy social awkwardness to growing an unexpected reputation as a local clown, and dedicating an inordinate amount of time to fine-tuning
my Afro-pop dance skills as I became a reveler.
