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About Me

Richard Shan portrait

Hi! I'm Richard Shan, a Fab Academy 2024 alumnus. I am currently studying Computer Science and Linguistics as part of Yale University's class of 2030. I attended Charlotte Latin school until 2024, and graduated class of 2026 at NCSSM Durham (Rank 1/354).

I have significant experience both in academia and industry. My current research areas include mechanistic interpretability, LLM reasoning, edge AI, and AI alignment. I recently won Regeneron ISEF 2026’s 3rd Grand Award and Special Award for my work on mechanistic optimization of LLM reasoning. I currently work on NLP research for The MITRE Corporation.

I have learned a lot about digital fabrication during Fab Academy, and have applied my CS skills in the engineering space. At NCSSM's annual hackathon, I won first place building an integrated environmental sensing station. I also won HackDuke’s Owala Sponsor Award for building a real-time IV detection device.

In my free time, I enjoy playing ultimate frisbee and studying philology. Feel free to reach out at my LinkedIn.

Many thanks to Charlotte Latin, Fab Foundation, 1517 Fund, and Bowman-Brockman Endowment for support on my final project.

Student Agreement

The Fab Academy is responsible for:

  • Teaching principles and practices of digital fabrication
  • Arranging lectures, recitations, meetings, and events for the class
  • Evaluating and providing feedback on student work
  • Offering clear standards for completing assignments
  • Certifying and archiving student progress
  • Supervising class preparation
  • Reviewing prospective students, instructors, and labs
  • Providing central staff and infrastructure for students, instructors, and labs
  • Fund-raising for costs not covered by student tuition
  • Managing and reporting on the program's finances, results, and impacts
  • Publicizing the program
  • Promoting a respectful environment free of harassment and discrimination
  • Encourage a diverse, accessible, and equitable community

I am a Fab Academy student, responsible for:

  • Attending class lectures and participating in reviews
  • Developing and documenting projects assigned to introduce and demonstrate skills
  • Allowing the Fab Academy to share my work (with attribution) in the class for purposes compatible with its mission
  • Honestly reporting on my work, and appropriately attributing the work of others (both human and machine)
  • Working safely
  • Leaving workspaces in the same (or better) condition than I found them
  • Participating in the upkeep of my lab
  • Ensuring that my tuition for local and central class costs is covered
  • Following locally applicable health and safety guidance
  • Promoting a respectful environment free of harassment and discrimination

Signed by committing this file in my repository,
Richard Shan