Meet the P-ai Leadership Team

  • Austin Zang

    PRESIDENT

    Pomona ‘24

    CS/Math

  • Serena Mao

    DIRECTOR OF PROJECTS - DSAI

    Harvey Mudd ‘25

    CS

  • Saatvik Kher

    DIRECTOR OF PROJECTS - DSAI

    Pomona ‘24

    CS/Math

  • Sam Malik

    DIRECTOR OF PROJECTS - SWE

    Pomona ‘24

    CS/Math/Econ

  • Franklin Paas

    FINANCE

    Pomona ‘25

    CS/Math

  • Zachary Davis

    MARKETING

    Claremont McKenna ‘24

    PPE/Philosophy/Data Science

  • Asya Lyubavina

    GRAPHICS

    Pomona ‘26

    CS/Chinese/French

  • Arjun Govind

    INFRASTRUCTURE

    Pomona ‘25

    CS

  • Sangeon Park

    WEB

    Harvey Mudd ‘26

    CS/Math

 

Advisory Board

David Kauchak (Pomona College), George Montañez (Harvey Mudd College), Michael Spezio (Scripps College)

Avery Bedows (Neurotechnology Specialist Loup Ventures), Ron Sege (Partner Benhamou Global Ventures)

Aashita Kesarwani (HMC Scientific Computing Specialist/ML Researcher), HaoLiang Chang (CityU HK PhD Student/NLP Researcher)

Andrew Strait (DeepMind Researcher)


Partners

Please send an email to p.ai.claremont@gmail.com if you are interested in partnering or sponsoring P-ai!


P-ai Alumni

 
 

Hannah Mandell - Managing Director

PO ‘23

Bansi Patel - Director of Marketing

SCR’ 23

Bansi is a senior at Scripps College studying Media Studies and Psychology. She is interested in the role AI can play in social media monitoring and marketing. Outside of P-ai, Bansi has experience in marketing in the semiconductor industry. In her free time, Bansi enjoys photography, videography, and graphic design.

Waverly Wang - Director of Design

Waverly is a senior at Harvey Mudd as a potential CS or Media Studies major. She’s interested in the intersection between art and technology, specifically computer animation. She’s been commissioned for multiple graphic designs including logos, banners, and icons. Outside of P-ai, Waverly is associate publicist for The Green Room and Chief of Design for The Muddraker. In her “free time”, she enjoys playing piano or creating 2D animations.

Andy Liu -Director of Projects

Andy is a senior at Harvey Mudd College studying Computer Science and Mathematics, with a concentration in Science, Technology, and Society. He’s interested in large language models, the intersection of natural language processing and cognitive science, and AI safety. In his free time, Andy enjoys cooking, creative writing, and curating Spotify playlists.

Alex Ker - Founder, Managing DirectorAlex is a student at Pomona College interested in the intersection of philosophy and computer science. He currently works on the ML team at Neurable, a series-A Brain Computer Interface startup in decoding neural…

Alex Ker - Founder

Alex is a student at Pomona College interested in the intersection of philosophy and computer science. He currently works on the ML team at Neurable, a series-A Brain Computer Interface startup in decoding neural signals. He is also interested in investing, currently serving as a venture partner for Nodes Advisors, a firm based in Zurich, and scouting for a few VCs in the future of work, while advising 3 on-campus startups in fundraising and AI/ML. Apart from AI, Alex loves to dive into fiction from the New Yorker and occasionally freestyles in a virtual cypher.

Tai Xiang - Project Manager - p-yum: Quantifying the Culinary side of YouTube

Tai is a sophomore at Pomona College studying physics and computer science. He is interested in the implementation of AI in fields that are traditionally qualitative, such as literature. In his free time, Tai is an avid climber, creative writer, and reader of all things science fiction.

Jacob Zimmerman - P-sync - Project Manager

Jacob is a sophomore at Pomona College majoring in Cognitive Science. He's passionate about integrating psychology, computer science, math, anthropology, and philosophy to grapple with what it means to be human. With experience in software engineering and data science, he hopes to help create mindful technology that advances how we treat ourselves and others. In his free time, he enjoys producing music, creative writing, and trail biking.

Nikolas Papastavrou

Nikolas Papastavrou

Marcos Acosta - Director of Projects & P-ASL Project Manager

Marcos is a sophomore at Harvey Mudd College pursuing Computer Science and Music. He is interested in machine learning applied to the social sciences and artificial creativity. His past and current projects include studying the dissemination of anti-vax rhetoric on the internet, artificially generated text, and computer-generated jazz. Outside of class, Marcos enjoys attending jam sessions and adding pointless accessories to his bike.

Michael Lee - P-agent - Project Manager

Michael is a student at Claremont Mckenna College majoring in economics and engineering. He is interested in the application of AI in robotics as a way to train adaptive and intelligent behavior in dynamic environments. Outside of P-AI, he works at the Keck Science Center as part of a team researching the applications of reservoir computing. In his spare time, he enjoys open water swimming and printing out neat gadgets from Thingiverse.

Sophia Epstein - p-PET - Project Manager

Sophia is a junior at Claremont McKenna College pursuing a dual degree in Applied Mathematics and Neuroscience with a Computer Science sequence. She's passionate about the intersection of Computational Neuroscience and AI to understand human conditions and function better. Outside of P-AI, she is currently working on a research project mapping the endocrine system's oscillation cycles and stability. Her past co-authored research paper is set to appear in AAAI-21. In her free time, she likes to remain active by hiking and working out and enjoys tutoring in mathematics.

Varun Bopardikar - Managing Director

Varun is a junior at Pitzer College studying statistics and data science. He is interested in discovering how data science and machine learning can be used for social good. This past summer, he was part of a research group at KGI studying the evolving discourse around the risks and benefits of vaccines. Outside of P-ai, he leads a club which teaches environmentalism to underprivileged elementary school students in Ontario. In his free time, he enjoys reading, working out, and watching sports.

Marwan Bit (HM ‘25) - Project Manager - p-music: AI-Generated Album Ratings

Zac Davis (CM ‘24) - Project Manager - p-okémon: Pokémon Battle Engine

Director of Events -Rachel Yang

Saatvik Kher - Project Manager - p-recommender: Interactive Course Recommender for 5C Students - PO ‘24

Taylor Venenciano - Project Manager - p-laying_soccer: UEFA Soccer Match Prediction , PO ‘23

Arjun Govind - Project Manager - p-stocks: Predicting Stock Behavior from Google Searches - PO ‘25

Guy Thampakkul - Project Manager - p-laying_soccer: UEFA Soccer Match Prediction - PO ‘23

Hannah Zucker

Hannah Zucker

Winnie is a sophomore pursuing Computer Science and Economics at Pomona College. She is interested in applying her interests in AI and entrepreneurship to help drive social change. This past summer, she interned as a marketing and strategy intern for two early-stage internet startups. Outside of P-ai, she enjoys diving, pole-vaulting, playing poker, and baking desserts.

Elizabeth Song - Director of Operations & Finance Elizabeth is a junior majoring in Computer Science and Economics at Claremont McKenna College. She's interested in finance and AI, having completed her internship in Asset Management at Fidelity …

Elizabeth Song - Director of Operations & Finance Elizabeth is a junior majoring in Computer Science and Economics at Claremont McKenna College. She's interested in finance and AI, having completed her internship in Asset Management at Fidelity Investments this summer. Outside of P-AI, she's also the Resident and Lab Technology Assistant, in addition to being a research associate at Kravis Leadership Institute. She's curious about fintech and social impact. In her free time, she enjoys hiking and finding new TV shows to watch.

Aaron Xie - p-TCM Project Manager

CMC ‘24

Danica Du - p-deepfake Project Manager

HMC ‘23