Faculty Organizers: Andrew Caplin (New York University) and Michael Woodford (Columbia University)
Date: May 21-22, 2026
Schedule:
Thursday, May 21, 2026
8:30am – 9:00am: Light Breakfast (provided)
9:00am – 9:05am: Introductory remarks: Michael Woodford (Columbia University)
Theme 1: Consequences of Cognitive Noise
9:05am – 9:50am: Keynote Lecture – “Imprecise Minds: How Cognitive Noise Shapes Human Decisions Under Uncertainty” (Valentin Wyart, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Paris)
9:50am – 10:30am: Break
10:30am – 12:00pm: SESSION 1
“Reference Points as Information” (Mark Dean, Columbia University)
“Probability Distortions Arising from the Boundary Repulsions of Cognitive Noice” (Christian Ruff, University of Zürich)
“Learning Optimal Behavior Through Reasoning and Experiences” (Cosmin Ilut, Duke University)
12:00pm – 1:30pm: Lunch (provided)
Theme 2: Endogenous Imprecision
1:30pm – 2:15pm: Keynote Lecture – “Biological Correlates of Rational Inattention” (Colin Camerer, California Institute of Technology)
2:15pm – 2:45pm: Break
2:45pm – 3:45pm: SESSION 2
“History-Dependent Cognitive Defaults” (Cary Frydman, University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business)
“Cultural Evolution of Efficient Communication Systems in Humans and AI” (Noga Zaslavsky, New York University)
3:45pm – 4:30pm Break
4:30pm – 5:30pm: SESSION 3
“Resource Rationality and Generalization in Decision Making” (Chris Sims, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)
“Framing & Attention” (Ernst Fehr, University of Zürich)
6:00pm – 8:00pm: Dinner (by invitation-only)
Friday, May 22, 2026
8:30am – 9:00am: Light Breakfast (provided)
Theme 3: Human-AI Decision Making – Organized by Jennifer Trueblood
9:00am – 10:15am: SESSION 4
“AI Advice and Human Beliefs” (Daniel Martin, University of California, Santa Barbara)
“Doing as AI Says, Not as AI Does: Learning Calibration from Marchine Predictions” (Jennifer Trueblood, Indiana University)
Presentation Title Forthcoming (Jessica Hullman, Northwestern University)
10:15am – 11:00am Coffee Break
11:00am – 12:15pm: SESSION 5
“Artificial Intelligence Clones” (Annie Liang, Northwestern University)
“Uncertainty Communication in Human-AI Collaboration” (Mark Steyvers, University of California, Irvine)
“Recovering Economic Preferences under Behavioral Attenuation Bias” (Keyu Wu, University of Zurich)
12:15 pm – 2:00pm: Lunch (provided)
Theme 4: Consumer Understanding in the Age of AI – Organized by Stefan Bucher
2:00pm – 3:15pm: SESSION 6
“Optimal Use of Preferences in Artificial Intelligence Algorithms” (Joshua Gans, University of Toronto)
“Mecha-Nudging Machines” (Kawin Ethayarajh, University of Chicago Booth School of Business)
“Measuring and Predicting Clarity” (Stefan Bucher, University of Cambridge)
3:15pm – 4:00pm: Coffee Break
4:00pm – 5:15pm : SESSION 7
“Agentic AI and Consumers” (Karen Croxson, UK Competition and Markets Authority)
“Stickiness in Attention” (Olivia Natan, University of California, Berkeley)
“Planning Under AI: Modeling and Measuring Question-Driven Learning” (Andrew Caplin, New York University)
5:15pm – 5:30pm: Closing Remarks
6:00pm – 8:00pm: Dinner (by invitation-only)
The organizers of this Workshop would like to formally recognize and thank the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the NOMIS Foundation, whose funding and support have helped to make this research, dialogue, and collaboration possible.
