caPP Lab — Computation and Algorithms for People and the Planet

Advancing computation and algorithms to sustain people and the planet, with emphasis on people and the planet.

Led by Prof. Lily Xu, our research group at Columbia University develops AI methods across machine learning, optimization, and causal inference to tackle planetary health challenges, from biodiversity conservation and restoration to public health and disaster relief. Our work bridges rigorous theory with real-world deployment in partnership with NGOs, industry, and intergovernmental organizations.

  • December 2026 PhD student Icey Ai will present ongoing work on online learning and mechanism design for invasive species management, at the MLxOR workshop at NeurIPS 2026 in Atlanta.
  • November 2026 PhD student Anson Shyu will attend EAAMO 2026 to present ongoing work on robust optimization for disaster relief.
  • October 2026 We are grateful to receive a $150,000 Innovation Award for research on AI and Society, with Dustin Rubenstein (E3B)!
  • September 2026 With Silvia Sellán and Eugene Wu, Lily launched the AI in the Public Interest initiative at Columbia. Join us Thursdays at 3pm in CSB 453!
  • July 2026 PhD student Icey Ai and undergrad Donovan Barcelona attend ICML 2026 presenting posters.
  • May 2026 Our group received a $150,000 grant through Columbia Global and Turkish Philanthropy Funds for work on disaster response in Türkiye, in collaboration with Burcu Balçık (Özyeğin), Nabila El-Bassel (Columbia), and Aras Selvi (UCL).
  • May 2026 Lily Xu named one of Columbia Global's 2026 Scholars-in-Residence for ongoing research in Kenya.
  • February 2026 We are grateful for support from Inversa to support ongoing work on invasive species management in Florida.
  • Fall 2025 Students join, projects are begun...
  • July 2025 Our group launched at Columbia!

Email

lily.x@columbia.edu

Please note that lily.xu@colum... is NOT me. I do not know who that person is, and any emails sent there will not get to me!

Office

Mudd Hall, office 312
500 W 120th St
New York, NY 10027