Zaid Almahmoud

About

Zaid Almahmoud received his bachelor’s degree in software engineering from Khalifa University in 2013 and his master’s degree in computing and information science from Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in 2016, through a collaboration with MIT. His master's research introduced optimization heuristics and algorithms in the Smart Grid. In 2024, Zaid earned his Ph.D. from Birkbeck, University of London (UK), specializing in applied machine learning for cybersecurity. In his doctoral research, Zaid proposed the proactive approach of leveraging big data and machine learning to forecast the trend of cyber-attacks and the pertinent mitigation technologies, providing insights for future investment and strategic defense planning.

Zaid is proficient in Python, Java, and Android development and has received several awards in programming competitions. He was awarded second place in the Gulf Programming Contest (UAE) in 2013 and first place in Khalifa University’s programming contest (UAE) in 2011.

In 2025, Zaid joined the AI and Media Lab (AIM Lab) at Northwestern University in Qatar as a postdoctoral scholar. His research focuses on harnessing AI and the vast availability of data, including social media data, to alleviate human suffering across various domains. These include online harms such as hate speech, as well as challenges in healthcare, including rare diseases, mental health disorders, and addiction. His goal is to leverage machine learning to forecast trends in these areas and assess the long-term impact and sustainability of intervention technologies and therapies, providing insights to guide future investments and policy decisions.