Dr. Barry O’Sullivan

Professor Barry O'Sullivan, FAAAI, FAAIA, FEurAI, FIAE, FICS, MRIA, is an award-winning academic working in the fields of artificial intelligence, constraint programming, operations research, AI/data ethics, and public policy. He contributes to several global Track II AI diplomacy efforts at the interface of military, defence, intelligence, and AI.

Professor O’Sullivan is a full professor at the School of Computer Science & IT at University College Cork and a member of its Governing Body. He is founding Director of the Insight SFI Research Centre for Data Analytics at UCC and Director of the SFI Centre for Research Training in AI. He is an Adjunct Professor at Monash University.

Professor O'Sullivan is a Fellow and a past President of the European AI Association (EurAI). He is also a Fellow and a member of the Executive Council of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI). He chairs the Advisory Board of the GRACE project at Europol, and advises the Leuven.ai institute (KULeuven, Belgium) and the Computational Sustainability Network (Cornell University, USA).

In July 2018 Professor O'Sullivan was appointed Vice Chair of the European Commission High-Level Expert Group on AI. In 2019 the HLEG-AI published: Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI (April) and Policy & Investment Recommendations for Trustworthy AI (June). In 2019 he became an advisor on AI to the European Commission's Joint Research Centre.

Professor O'Sullivan is a member of the Digital Group at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA). The IIEA is Ireland’s leading international affairs think tank. We are an independent, not-for-profit organisation with charitable status. The IIEA provides a forum for all those interested in EU and International affairs to engage in debate and discussion, and to evaluate and share policy options.

Professor O'Sullivan is Senior Technology Advisor at INHR, a U.S.-registered 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to improving access to the United Nations and enhancing the effectiveness of small and mid-sized states and NGOs. INHR offers strategic advice, training, research, and capacity-building to maximize the impact of your interaction with UN agencies in Geneva and New York and bilateral presence in Brussels and Washington. INHR are training experts - supporting diplomatic skills for governments and advising on effective use of artificial intelligence in military, intelligence, counter-terrorism, and in humanitarian settings.

In 2019 Professor O’Sullivan was appointed by Ireland’s Minister for Health to the Health Research Consent Declaration Committee. In 2020 he was appointed Chair of the Oversight Board of Health Data Research UK (North). In 2021 he was appointed by the Minister for Health as Chair of the National Research Ethics Committee for Medical Devices. In 2022 he was appointed by the Minister for Trade Promotion, Digital & Company Regulation to the Enterprise Digital Advisory Forum.

His awards include: Fellow of the European AI Association (2012), UCC’s Leadership Award (2013), ACP Distinguished Service Award (2014), Science Foundation Ireland Researcher of the Year (2016), UCC Researcher of the Year (2017), elected to the Royal Irish Academy (2017), Fellow of the Irish Computer Society (2018), Fellow of the Irish Academy of Engineering (2019), IPEC-EATCS Nerode Prize (2020), Science Foundation Ireland Best International Engagement Award (2021), Fellow of the Asia-Pacific AI Association (2022), Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of AI (2022).

Professor O’Sullivan has been involved in winning over €300m in R&D funding.