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Dr. A.D. (Andy) Gunawardena is a Professor, Data and AI Scientist, Innovator and an Entrepreneur. He served as a Professor of Computer Science at multiple institutions including Carnegie Mellon, Princeton and Rutgers Universities. He leads initiatives in data science and AI in education at New Jersey’s largest state university, which graduates over 800 computer science majors annually. He is also the co-chair of the NJ/AI Education and Workforce Development initiative, a collaboration between Princeton University and the State of New Jersey. From 2013 to 2018, he served as a faculty member at Princeton University and held the position of Associate Teaching Professor at Carnegie Mellon University from 1998 to 2013,where he continues as a courtesy faculty member. An advocate for integrating AI and technology into education, Dr. Gunawardena has co-authored four textbooks on computational linear algebra and AI published over 60 research articles. He co-founded TextCentric, Inc., whose publishing technology was acquired by Pearson in 2008, and Classroom Salon, a student engagement platform acquired by GTII in 2022. With over $3 million in funding from various foundations, he has earned numerous accolades, including HP's Leadership in Technology Award and the Sri Lanka Foundation's Exceptional Achievement Award. Dr. Gunawardena holds multiple patents as a principle inventor from Carnegie Mellon and Princeton. He co-founded CUbits.ai, a Princeton University startup focused on video indexing and search technology. He also leads CodeBench.us, a platform designed to scale AI and data science education for corporate and educational institutions. He currently serves as stream editor for learning analytics at the International Journal of Innovation in Online Education. His teaching portfolio includes courses in machine learning, data science, and algorithms, with research interests in AI in education and human-computer interaction. 

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Dr. Ananda Gunawardena is a computer science professor who has taught at Carnegie Mellon, Princeton, and Rutgers Universities. At Rutgers, he is the first Director of the new Data Science Undergraduate Program at Rutgers and leads initiatives in data science and AI education efforts throughout NJ and nationwide as part of a Computing Research Association advisory board.. He co-chairs the Education and Workforce Development group of the Princeton New Jersey AI Hub and founded Faculty Futures Studios, a NJ statewide initiative that helps educators and institutions transition into an AI-driven economy.

His current research focuses on applied machine learning, multi-agentic technologies, AI in education, and human-AI interaction. He holds multiple patents in machine learning based on his research work at Carnegie Mellon and Princeton, and has co-authored three textbooks published by Springer and Cengage publishing, and has published more than 80 peer-reviewed journal articles. He has lead and secured over $4 million in funding from the NSF, HP, and numerous foundations, and has served as senior personnel on NSF grants totaling $10 million.

An active entrepreneur, Dr. Gunawardena co-founded and sold two companies, TextCentric, sold to Pearson and Classroom Salon, acquired by GTII, a public company in 2022. He also co-founded the Princeton AI startup CUbits.ai and leads CodeBench.us, a comprehensive platform for AI and data science training and education.

His honors include the Exceptional Achievement Award from the Sri Lanka Foundation (2005), along with recognition from the Qatar Foundation, the HP Foundation, and others. In 2025, OpenAI highlighted him as a leader in AI in education, and he was among the first cohort of higher education leaders invited to OpenAI's headquarters in San Francisco.