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About

Kory W. Mathewson is a researcher working at the dynamic intersection of human-robot interaction, reinforcement learning, and AI-driven creativity. His work spans foundational machine learning theory and its applied expression in live, embodied human contexts — a rare and compelling combination. Mathewson's early contributions focused on reinforcement learning in real-world settings, most notably his work on reactive RL in asynchronous environments (2018, 22 citations) and pioneering frameworks for incorporating simultaneous human control and feedback into robotic training (2016–2017). These studies laid important groundwork for more naturalistic human-machine cooperation. His most-cited work, "Imitating Interactive Intelligence" (2020, 43 citations), articulates a vision for agents that communicate naturally with humans — bridging science fiction and practical AI design. This paper has become a touchstone for researchers in interactive and embodied AI. Perhaps most distinctively, Mathewson has brought AI research into the performing arts, conducting workshops with professional comedians at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and deploying LLMs in live improvisational theatre. His 2024 study on AI and comedy (33 citations) reflects both methodological creativity and genuine public engagement. Across his career, he has championed the idea that the truest test of intelligent systems is how well they collaborate with humans in messy, creative, real-world contexts.