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Liberty Vittert, professor of practice in data science at Olin Business School, studies how big data is impacting society. Photo art created by Jennifer Wessler

Liberty Vittert

Professor of practice in data analytics

Contact Information

Liberty Vittert is a Professor of the Practice of Data Science at the Olin Business School at the Washington University in St. Louis. She is a graduate of MIT as well as Le Cordon Bleu Paris and the University of Glasgow. Liberty is a regular TV and Radio contributor to many news organizations including BBC, ITV, Channel 4, PBS, and FNC, as well as having her own TV series on STV (ITV). She is a regular opinion editorial contributor for the Fox News Channel, and has been featured in Popular Science, US News, Newsweek, Business Insider, International Business Times, CBS News, and The Conversation. As a Royal Statistical Society Ambassador, BBC Expert Woman, and an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute, Liberty is writing a popular science book on data science that will be published this fall 2019. She is also an Associate Editor for the Harvard Data Science Review and is on the board of USA for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) as well at the HIVE, a UN Refugee Agency data initiative for refugees.

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In the media

AI girlfriends are ruining an entire generation of men

While the concept of an AI girlfriend may seem like a joke, it really isn’t that funny. It is enabling a generation of lonely men to stay lonely and childless, which will have devastating effects on the U.S. economy in less than a decade, writes Liberty Vittert.
The Hill

So, what happened with the polling?

While the next president of the United States remains unknown, there is clearly one big loser: the pollsters, most of whom were touting the high likelihood of a Joe Biden blowout. So how did they get it so wrong? Several issues combined to throw off pollsters’ models again, writes Liberty Vittert.

Stories

AI is no match for Cyrano
Popular Culture

AI is no match for Cyrano

Dating apps make no secret of their use of artificial intelligence to help users find their perfect match. But now some users are employing it to strike up conversations and flirt with potential matches. Olin Business School’s Liberty Vittert, a data and cybersecurity expert, explains the limits of AI and how to know when you may be chatting with a bot.
Americans must prepare for cyber warfare
Operations & Strategy

Americans must prepare for cyber warfare

With the war in Ukraine only seeming to ramp up, instead of down, and Vladimir Putin’s aggression against those who defend the Ukrainian people increases, Liberty Vittert, a data science expert at Olin Business School, said it’s only a matter of time until the U.S. faces a cyber attack. But that begs the question: What constitutes an act of war against the United States?
The historic 2020 election, and what’s next

The historic 2020 election, and what’s next

After the contentious 2020 presidential election, Washington University in St. Louis faculty experts offer their predictions and perspectives on the legal battle ensuing, the election process, the transition of power and the future for both President-elect Joe Biden’s administration and President Donald Trump’s.
So, what happened with the polling?

So, what happened with the polling?

Pollsters don’t ask every American for their vote decision, but instead they ask a smaller portion of the population and infer from that what the entire population is going to do. That means there is inevitably plus or minus error in their predictions.
Your March Madness chances, or putting a quintillion into focus
Workplace

Your March Madness chances, or putting a quintillion into focus

You — as part of the 10 percent of the American population who participates in this form of technically illegal gambling — have a 1-in-9.2 quintillion chance of picking the perfect March Madness bracket, says a statistical expert from Washington University in St. Louis.