Mo Tiwari

About

Hi! I'm a recent Ph.D. graduate from the Computer Science program at Stanford University, where I was advised by Sebastian Thrun and Chris Piech. I am grateful to have been supported by a Thomas C. Nelson Stanford Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellowship (SIGF), a J.P. Morgan AI Research Ph.D. Fellowship, a Stanford Data Science Scholarship, and multiple Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) Fellowships during my Ph.D.

I had an unconventional path to the Ph.D. program in that I worked for 4 years in between my undergraduate and graduate studies. I have an eclectic career spanning particle physics, quantum computation, finance, cybersecurity, virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and healthcare -- largely because I love learning new things about math, physics, statistics, and computer science!

For a more formal biography, check out my biography. If you're interested in collaborating, please get in touch -- especially if you're at Stanford! Our group is also open to applications from students; see the FAQ on how to apply.

Education


Ph.D. in Computer Science

Stanford University, GPA: 4.2+

I focused primarily on artificial intelligence and machine learning methods, with an emphasis on statistical machine learning and accelerating widely-used algorithms with adaptive sampling. I also completed the M.S. degree during the Ph.D.


B.S. in Mathematics, B.S. in Physics (double major)

Caltech, GPA: 4.0+

I double majored in Mathematics and Physics and graduated in the top 5% of my class (top 15 students), with Honors. I was even ranked 3rd for most of my time there!


B.A. in Mathematics, B.A. in Physics (incomplete)

Columbia University, GPA: 4.0+

While I loved Columbia and living in NYC, I transferred to Caltech after my freshman year.


Industry Experience


Software Engineer, Technical Lead - Security

2015-2017: Facebook (and Oculus)

  • Technical lead of the 4-person team building ThreatExchange, Facebook’s platform for sharing cybersecurity information
  • Led product and feature development through 5 major releases that grew the number of enterprise customers from 92 to 500+
  • Managed 3 interns who received and accepted fulltime offers

Software Engineer and Security Researcher

2014 - 2015: Expanse (previously known as Qadium)

  • Fifth fulltime employee; company was later acquired for $800MM by Palo Alto Networks
  • Performed the first systematic, continuous, and Internet-scale capture and analysis of device data and security vulnerabilities
  • Built backend and frontend infrastructure to help analysts understand terabytes of prostitution advertisements and uncover human trafficking
  • Work indirectly led to arrests of dozens of traffickers and rescue of victims

Researcher

Summer 2013: DRW

  • Supported the highest-performing traders with quantitative research
  • Created valuation models for various financial instruments, such as interest rate swaps and swaptions

Accomplishments

In my life, I've done a few things of which I'm particularly proud, largely because they required several years of sustained effort:
  • In 2017, I was admitted to Stanford's Ph.D. program in Computer Science and Berkeley's Ph.D. program in EECS (among others).
  • In 2015, I was admitted to MIT's Ph.D. program in Physics (among others) (I declined).
  • In 2013, I graduated with Honors in the top 5% and top 15 students from Caltech, with a double major in mathematics and physics.
  • In 2010, I was one of 7 transfer students accepted to Caltech.
  • In 2009, I won third place in category at the Intel ISEF, an international competition for high school students.
I am extraordinarily thankful to those who have helped me achieve my dreams, including my mentors, colleagues, friends, and family.
Stanford, CA
mohit + LAST NAME + "nyc" AT gmail DOT com
motiwari.com
Follow @motiwari

Selected Awards

  • 2022-2024: Stanford Data Science Scholarship
    • 1 of 16 graduate student awardees, University-wide, in cohort
    • 1 of 71 awardees since award inception in 2018
  • 2021: Stanford Center for Open and Reproducible Science (CORES) Innovator Prize
    • 1 of 2 University-wide inaugural awardees
  • 2020-2023: Stanford Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellowship
    • 1 of 33 graduate student awardees, University-wide, in cohort
    • 1 of 295 awardees since award inception in 2008
  • 2020: J.P. Morgan AI Research Ph.D. Fellowship
    • 1 of 13 awardees, nationally, in cohort
    • 1 of 27 awardees since award inception in 2019
  • 2019-: Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Engineering (ORISE) Fellowships (multiple)
  • 2018: UnifyID Fellow (Declined)
  • 2017-: Pear VC Fellow
  • 2013: NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Honorable Mention
  • 2011, 2012: Caltech Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF)
  • 2009-2012: IBM T.J. Watson Memorial Scholarship
  • 2011: Caltech San Pietro Travel Prize
  • 2009-2010: Columbia University I. I. Rabi Fellowship
  • 2009: Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF): Third place

Hobbies

  • Video Games
  • Board Games
  • Tennis
  • Frisbee
  • Running
  • Lifting
  • Travel
Note: I publish under "Mo Tiwari", though my legal name is "Mohit Tiwari" - I am not to be confused with Mohit Tiwari.