Alexandre Bayen | Research UC Berkeley

Research Expertise and Interest

control, optimization, machine learning, Applications: transportation; mobile sensing ; connected health

Research Description

Alexandre Bayen is the Liao-Cho Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at UC Berkeley. He is a Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He currently serves as Associate Provost for Moffett Field program development. Prior to this, he was the Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS). He is also a Faculty Scientist in Mechanical Engineering, at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). He received the Engineering Degree in applied mathematics from the Ecole Polytechnique, France, in 1998, the M.S. and Ph.D. in aeronautics and astronautics from Stanford University in 1998 and 1999 respectively. He was a Visiting Researcher at NASA Ames Research Center from 2000 to 2003. Between January 2004 and December 2004, he worked as the Research Director of the Autonomous Navigation Laboratory at the Laboratoire de Recherches Balistiques et Aerodynamiques, (Ministere de la Defense, Vernon, France), where he holds the rank of Major. He has been on the faculty at UC Berkeley since 2005. Bayen has authored/edited 5 books and over 300 articles in peer reviewed journals and conferences. He is the recipient of the Ballhaus Award from Stanford University, 2004, of the CAREER award from the National Science Foundation, 2009 and he is a NASA Top 10 Innovators on Water Sustainability, 2010. His projects Mobile Century and Mobile Millennium received the 2008 Best of ITS Award for ‘Best Innovative Practice’, at the ITS World Congress and a TRANNY Award from the California Transportation Foundation, 2009. Mobile Millennium has been featured more than 200 times in the media, including TV channels and radio stations (CBS, NBC, ABC, CNET, NPR, KGO, the BBC), and in the popular press (Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, LA Times). Bayen is the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) award from the White House, 2010. He is also the recipient of the Okawa Research Grant Award, the Ruberti Prize from the IEEE, and the Huber Prize from the ASCE.

In the News

yellow bear overlaying Ursa Major constellation, with words against blue background

Campus Conversations: Excitement Grows for Berkeley Space Center

Three leaders of the NASA-partnered project to establish a research park at Moffett Field met in a virtual event to discuss the transformational promise of the Berkeley Space Center.

buildings and green space stretching into the distance

Berkeley Space Center at NASA Ames To Become Innovation Hub for New Aviation, Space Technology

UC Berkeley will develop a 36-acre site to house companies, labs and students in heart of Silicon Valley.

What Opportunities Do Robo-Taxis in San Francisco Offer? Experts Explain.

UC Berkeley experts evaluate the potential of AI and technology involved in a new fleet of self-driving cars arriving in San Francisco.

UC Berkeley-affiliated CIRCLES members pose in front of signed I-24 MOTION and CIRCLES banners at the end of testing week. (Photo & Caption Credit: Berkeley News)

Large-Scale Traffic Experiment Uses AI Against ‘Phantom’ Jam

CEE Professors Maria Laura Delle Monache and Alexandre M. Bayen discuss their research on the impact of AI-equipped vehicles on traffic jams and fuel consumption.

Alexandre Bayen Leads Massive AI Traffic Experiment

An interdisciplinary team of industry and academic researchers led by Professor Alexandre Bayen has completed its most ambitious real-time traffic experiment to date

Massive Traffic Experiment Pits Machine Learning Against ‘Phantom’ Jams

In a massive traffic experiment scientists tested whether introducing just a few AI-equipped vehicles to the road can help ease “phantom” jams and reduce fuel consumption for everyone. The answer seems to be yes.

Holographic images are superimposed over an illustration of a car dashboard.

Turning cars into robot traffic managers

Self-driving cars may one day do more than just get us from point A to point B. By adjusting their speed and position while they merge they could also help reduce the bottlenecks and random slowdowns on busy thoroughfares like the Bay Bridge, getting us where we’re going faster and more efficiently than if we all drove ourselves.

Computer Vision to Protect Patients — and Budgets

Alexandre Bayen and PhD student Pulkit Agrawal developed a computer vision-based system to help memory care centers monitor patient falls and to reduce them where possible.

Green light for Berkeley: Feds move on $11 million for S.F. transit innovation

The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the City of San Francisco and its partner UC Berkeley $11 million to fund six innovative projects aimed at reducing traffic congestion and creating a safer and more efficient transportation system.

Connected Corridors aims to up efficiency of existing roadways

Population and car numbers continue to increase, which means more frustrating hours spent in gridlock, more money lost on wasted energy, and more air pollution.

Map of Bay Area with freeways highlighted in different colors.

Cellphone, GPS data suggest new strategy for alleviating traffic tie-ups...

Asking all commuters to cut back on rush-hour driving reduces traffic congestion somewhat, but asking specific groups of drivers to stay off the road may work even better.

Floating Robots use GPS-Enabled Smartphones to Track Water Flow

A fleet of 100 floating robots took a trip down the Sacramento Riveron Wednesday in a field test organized by UC Berkeley engineers. The devices, equipped with GPS-enabled smartphones, demonstrated the next generation of water monitoring technology.

Eco-driving: Ready for prime time?

UC researchers are optimistic that improved driving techniques can cut fuel use by 10 to 20 percent. And the time may be right to sell the public on these methods, they say.

White House awards Alexandre Bayen with early career award

A UC Berkeley researcher who specializes in mobile Internet applications — used, to date, in traffic planning and environmental monitoring — nominated by the National Science Foundation.