When imagining the future of technology, sometimes all we need to do is look out the window — or into a microscope.
Our researchers take inspiration from nature to redefine what a computer can be, from data storage using synthetic DNA, to sensors modeled on insects and leaves. We also advance technologies to help solve biology’s biggest mysteries, such as computational approaches for understanding the mechanisms of disease and brain-computer interfaces that can restore or augment physical function and mobility.
Research Groups & Labs
Sensor Systems Laboratory
The Sensor Systems Laboratory invents new sensor systems, devises new ways to power and communicate with them, and develops algorithms for using them, with applications in the domains of bioelectronics, robotics, and ubiquitous computing.
Systems Neuroscience & AI Lab (SNAIL)
SNAIL develops computational models and algorithms for understanding how single-trial neural population activity drives our abilities to generate movements, make decisions, and learn from experience.
Allen School Faculty
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Centers & Initiatives
Society + Technology is a cross-campus, cross-disciplinary initiative and community at the University of Washington that is dedicated to research, teaching and learning focused on the social, societal and justice dimensions of technology.
The Community-Engaged Computing Initiative (CECI) is a joint initiative to support community-centered scholarship and research within the broad computing and information field. Co-led by the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, the Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering, and the Information School, the initiative was launched in 2025 through a gift from Google. CECI supports projects that bring UW faculty and graduate students together with community partners to bring sustainable, equitable, and inclusive technology into real-world contexts.
Highlights
American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Professor Magda Balazinska was honored for her influential contributions in data management and data science, while Professor Shwetak Patel was recognized for his groundbreaking work applying computing to health and sustainability.
GeekWire
Allen School undergraduate Prisha Hemani and teammates won the grand prize in the 2026 Hollomon Health Challenge for CPRight, a real-time CPR feedback device. The annual competition is hosted by the UW’s Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship in the Foster School of Business.
UW News
A team led by UW researchers created a system that uses a phone’s existing speaker and microphone to accurately estimate fetal heart rate by mimicking Doppler ultrasound.