Ph.D. Candidate Robin Guohuibin Li Awarded 2024 NASPAA Staats Emerging Scholars Award for Pioneering Research on AI, Cybersecurity, and Technology Policy

Robin Guohuibin Li, a distinguished Ph.D. candidate (ABD) and instructor at Arizona State University’s Center on Technology, Data, and Society (CTDS), has been honored with the 2024 NASPAA Staats Emerging Scholars Award. This prestigious accolade is a testament to Li’s cutting-edge research in AI-enabled technologies and cybersecurity, with a particular focus on the societal and policy implications of biometrics and digital surveillance in public spaces.

Li’s scholarly contributions center on the ethical and responsible use of technologies like Facial Recognition Technology (FRT), with a three-essay dissertation offering a comprehensive analysis of FRT’s growing role in smart cities, US local law enforcement, and digital tax systems. Li's research delves into how these technologies impact trust, privacy, justice, and equity, emphasizing the need for thoughtful governance and policy frameworks that protect the public while fostering innovation.

Published as a single author in top-tier journals like Government Information Quarterly, Li has co-authored additional papers in Regional Studies and Economics of Innovation and New Technology while contributing as a reviewer for journals such as American Review of Public Administration, Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, and Public Administration Review. Li’s interdisciplinary approach, combining public administration, technology policy, and urban governance, sets them apart as a leading scholar in this evolving field.

Li’s recognition through the NASPAA Staats Emerging Scholars Award highlights not only his academic excellence but also their commitment to advancing research that bridges technology, society, and policy, making significant contributions to the discourse on emerging technologies in public service.

Li is expected to defend and graduate by the Summer of 2025. Li is on the job market.