Hello there!

I am Ankit Gupta, a PhD candidate in Computer Science and Engineering at Michigan State University, USA. I am also enrolled in MSU's Dual PhD program in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior (EEB). I work with Prof. Emily Dolson at the ECODE Lab, which is part of the BEACON research group at Michigan State.

I completed my undergraduate engineering degree in 2021 at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT-KGP), India, spending five of the most precious and memorable years of my life there. Following this, I pursued an MS degree in Cognitive Neuroscience on a full scholarship in Taipei City, graduating in May 2023.

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Ankit Gupta


I am broadly interested in using evolutionary computation to build open-ended AI systems. I am deeply captivated by how evolution, as an algorithm, can lead to emergent complexity in both natural and artificially intelligent systems. Specifically, I draw inspiration from the open-ended nature of natural evolution, which in a single, ongoing run has generated all life forms on Earth, achieving astronomical complexity and the human-level intelligence we strive to replicate. I believe this open-ended franework is key to building AI systems capable of artificial general or even superhuman intelligence.

Most recently, I have been working on an evolutionary algorithm to probe if some machine learning models can be tricked into making very confident but misleading predictions for image classification and the reasoning behind such occurences. In summer of 2024, I worked on an Auto-ML tool (TPOT2) optimizing ML pipelines using genetic programming.

I am humbled and honored to have my research published in the MIT Press Journal and Springer International Publishing. Recently, I presented my Google Summer of Code work at the International Conference on the Evolution of Language (Evolang XV), held in Madison, Wisconsin, in May 2024. I am excited about the opportunities ahead in evolution-inspired computing as I delve further into my Ph.D. journey.

I am grateful for the guidance and support of people in the picture below - my advisors, mentors, supervisors, and course instructors - on my academic journey until starting my current doctoral degree.

Also, I am grateful to these institutions that I have been integral part in my research journey.