Prof. Joon-Seok Kim

Joon-Seok Kim is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Emory University and the Director of the AI and Simulation Lab. His research integrates artificial intelligence, spatial computing, simulation science, and human mobility analytics to develop computational frameworks for understanding complex human, urban, and environmental systems. By combining AI, geospatial data, and large-scale simulation, he seeks to create intelligent systems that support scientific discovery and data-driven decision making.

Dr. Kim's current research focuses on Human Mobility Intelligence, an emerging area that combines mobility data science, agent-based modeling, geospatial artificial intelligence (GeoAI), and behavioral simulation. His work explores how human movement, activities, and interactions can be modeled, simulated, and analyzed using large-scale spatial data, synthetic populations, and machine learning techniques. Recent projects include realistic human mobility generation, mobility prediction, activity-based interventions, geospatial anomaly detection, and AI-driven simulation frameworks for complex socio-technical systems.

A central theme of his research is the development of next-generation simulation environments that integrate artificial intelligence with human behavior modeling. His recent work investigates how large language models, foundation models, and generative AI can enhance simulation design, generate realistic mobility behaviors, identify anomalous patterns, and support adaptive decision-making. These efforts aim to bridge the gap between data-driven learning and mechanistic simulation, enabling more realistic and scalable representations of human systems.

Dr. Kim's research has broad applications in public health, disaster resilience, transportation, urban analytics, climate adaptation, and national security. His work has contributed to the modeling of disease spread, mobility interventions, synthetic social networks, transportation systems, and disaster response scenarios. Through interdisciplinary collaborations, he develops computational tools that help researchers and policymakers better understand population dynamics, evaluate interventions, and improve resilience in rapidly changing environments.

Before joining Emory University, Dr. Kim served as an R&D Scientist in the Geospatial Science and Human Security Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and held research appointments at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), George Mason University, and Pusan National University. He also worked with the United Nations Global Service Centre (UNGSC) as a geospatial expert and continues to contribute to international research communities in geospatial computing, simulation, and spatial data science.

His broader research interests include artificial intelligence, human mobility intelligence, agent-based modeling and simulation, GeoAI, spatial data science, large language model-enabled simulation, geospatial anomaly detection, urban analytics, public health informatics, disaster resilience, and spatiotemporal data management. Through the AI and Simulation Lab, he leads interdisciplinary efforts to advance AI-powered simulation technologies that support a deeper understanding of human behavior and complex spatial systems.