Marco Cusumano-Towner

Email / GitHub / Google Scholar / LinkedIn

I am currently a research scientist at Databricks.

Previously, I was a research scientist at Apple in Vladlen Koltun's research org, where I worked on reinforcement learning for LLM agents and multi-agent deep RL for autonomous driving. My PhD research focused on generative models that include stochastic structure and black box code execution, probabilistic inference in these models (e.g. sequential Monte Carlo, variational), and the compositionality of inference processes. I completed my PhD in EECS at MIT, where I was advised by Vikash Mansinghka and Josh Tenenbaum. During my PhD I created the Gen probabilistic programming system. My thesis is here. Prior to MIT, I was a technical lead at an early-stage molecular diagnostics startup backed by Sequoia Capital. I completed my MS in computer science at Stanford, where I researched machine learning for genomics. I completed my BS in EECS at UC Berkeley, where I worked with Pieter Abbeel on household robotics. My academic research has been funded by the NSF GRFP and the NDSEG fellowship.

Selected Papers

In submission, 2025

In submission, 2025

Robust Autonomy Emerges from Self-Play

Marco Cusumano-Towner*, David Hafner*, Alex Hertzberg*, Brody Huval*, Aleksei Petrenko*, Eugene Vinitsky*, Erik Wijmans*, Taylor Killian, Stuart Bowers, Ozan Sener, Philipp Krähenbühl, Vladlen Koltun

ICML 2025

UAI 2022

AISTATS 2022

NeurIPS 2021

arXiv 2020

POPL 2020

PLDI 2019

POPL 2019

NeurIPS Workshop 2019

PLDI 2018

arXiv 2018

NeurIPS 2017

arXiv 2017

arXiv 2017

JAMIA 2013

ICRA 2011

ICRA 2010