Education

Ph.D., University of Oregon
M.Ed., University of Oregon
M.A., Birmingham City University, U.K.

Background

Before joining the University of South Carolina, Karikarn (Kay) Chansiri was a senior researcher at Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, where she also co-chaired the Human-Computer Interaction and AI Affinity Group. Her research focuses on human–AI interaction, computational methods and the design and evaluation of intelligent systems that respond to human behavior and context. Previously, she was a postdoctoral research scientist at Temple University, where she worked at the intersection of health informatics, computational research and human-centered technology.

Research

As a computational scientist, technologist and designer, Chansiri examines how human behavior and cognition shape AI systems, how AI influences human judgment and behavior and how intelligent technologies can adapt to people and the contexts in which they live and interact. She is particularly interested in context-aware and embodied AI, adaptive intelligent systems, multimodal interaction, and conversational, environmental, and somatic signals that support human well-being. Her work combines computational methods, behavioral experiments, and human-centered design to envision and develop intelligent systems that bridge digital interaction, embodied experience and the physical environment.

Teaching

Chansiri's teaching philosophy centers on curiosity, creativity and learning through making. She encourage students to approach technology not only as something to use or analyze, but as something they can question, redesign and reimagine.  Chansiri combines conceptual foundations with experimentation, prototyping and interdisciplinary problem solving so students can connect research with real-world design challenges. She aims to create a learning environment where students feel comfortable exploring unconventional ideas, testing possibilities and learning from iteration. Her goal is to help students develop the technical confidence, creative judgment and human-centered perspective needed to design thoughtful and innovative technologies.

Personal

Having lived and worked across different cultural and disciplinary environments, Chansiri is naturally drawn to ideas that cross traditional boundaries. Outside of her formal research, she has a strong interest in design, aesthetics, somatics, well-being and the ways physical environments shape how people think, feel and experience technology. She enjoys exploring how spaces, sensory experiences and everyday technologies can be designed to support healthier and more meaningful ways of living. These interests continually inspire how she thinks about creativity, human experience,and the future relationship between people, intelligent technologies and their environments.