# John L. Hennessy and Eric Horvitz to headline Rice's Ken Kennedy Institute 40th anniversary

Digest AI · Research · published 2026-10-21T17:00:00Z

Canonical: https://digestai.news/story/john-l-hennessy-and-eric-horvitz-to-headline-rice-s-ken-kennedy-instit

## Summary

John L. Hennessy, Turing Award winner and Stanford University president emeritus, and Eric Horvitz, Microsoft chief scientific officer, will deliver keynote addresses at Rice University’s Ken Kennedy Institute 40th anniversary celebration on Monday, Nov. 9. The daylong program, co‑hosted with the Baker Institute for Public Policy’s Civic Scientist Lecture Series, also includes poster sessions, panels on cutting‑edge AI and computing research, and an evening reception. Registration is open to the public but must be completed by Nov. 2.

David V. Pynadath, the institute’s executive director for research initiatives, said the event marks both a celebration of four decades of interdisciplinary work and a commitment to shaping future AI breakthroughs responsibly. Media inquiries can be directed to Jamie Groh at jamie.groh@rice.edu.

## Key points

- John L. Hennessy and Eric Horvitz will keynote Rice's Ken Kennedy Institute 40th anniversary on Nov 9.
- The event includes poster sessions, panels, and an evening reception; registration required by Nov 2.
- David V. Pynadath highlighted the focus on responsible AI development and deployment.

## Why it matters

Bringing top AI scholars and industry leaders together spotlights responsible AI, influencing research directions and policy as AI reshapes commerce, security, and society.

## Sources

1. [Stanford’s Hennessy and Microsoft’s Horvitz to headline Rice’s Ken Kennedy Institute 40th anniversary](https://news.rice.edu/news/2026/stanfords-hennessy-and-microsofts-horvitz-headline-rices-ken-kennedy-institute-40th) (news.rice.edu, 2026-10-21)

## Cite

Digest AI, "John L. Hennessy and Eric Horvitz to headline Rice's Ken Kennedy Institute 40th anniversary", 21 October 2026, https://digestai.news/story/john-l-hennessy-and-eric-horvitz-to-headline-rice-s-ken-kennedy-instit

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