Information School Professor Chirag Shah was among the 2025 cohort elected to the SIGIR Academy, a prestigious honor that recognizes leaders who have significantly shaped the field of information retrieval.  

SIGIR is the Association for Computing Machinery’s Special Interest Group on Information Retrieval. They promote the research and development of search and other information access technologies. Each year, SIGIR selects three to five nominees to join its academy based on the criteria of cumulative contributions, research impact, innovation and service. This year’s inductees were celebrated at the SIGIR conference in Italy earlier this month. 

“Receiving this award has been incredibly humbling,” said Shah. “This award is meant to recognize lifetime achievements and when I look at previous honorees, they’ve been in this field for decades and are people I grew up admiring. Especially since I’m still mid-career, it was all a little bit of a shock. It’s quite a privilege to be in the company of people I look up to.” 

Shah has been working on information access for over a decade. His research focuses on intelligent information systems and engages with generative AI, studying how to make such systems transparent, fair and free of biases. Over the years, Shah has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles, authored seven books and received several notable awards for his research. He is also the founding director of the InfoSeeking Lab and founding co-director of the Center for Responsibility in AI Systems & Experiences at the University of Washington. 

Looking back on his career so far, Shah said he especially cherishes the time he gave a lecture at his alma mater, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he first entered the world of information retrieval. 

“I really appreciated being able to talk to students about concepts that no one ever taught me, like being critical of technology and asking whether these systems are equitable and fair,” said Shah. “It’s easy to get excited about what technology could do, but we often don’t ask what technology should do.” 

One of Shah’s Ph.D. students, Mouly Dewan, said, “Chirag is an exceptional and supportive mentor who thoughtfully guides his students based on their individual goals and strengths. His contributions to the field of information retrieval are truly influential, and the SIGIR Academy award is a well-deserved recognition of his impact on the community.”

Shah’s passion for educating future generations is especially evident in his various UW appointments. In addition to his role with the UW iSchool, Shah is an adjunct professor with the Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering and the Department of Human-Centered Design and Engineering. He collaborates with students across disciplines to research bias and fairness in information access systems.

“A lot of my work would not be possible without the incredible students in my lab who are both challenging and executing my ideas,” said Shah. “It really takes a village. When I think of this award, I can’t help but owe it all to the community that’s supported me along the way.”