Yumi Omori (NYUAD ‘2025) loves playing video games and calls it her way of exploring the world, just as others might watch movies or read books. It is her love of video games that inspired Omori to pursue a career in computer science.
At NYU Abu Dhabi, while she majored in computer science during her bachelor's with two minors in math and psychology, she also took some courses in interactive media.
For Omori, interactive media helps create a platform, a medium for people to connect with different kinds of alternative realities. From a virtual reality course running cognitive science experiments on how embodying a digital self affects identity, to a parametric design course, using software to build architectural models and generative artworks, Omori learned and discovered a lot about herself.
The breadth of her undergraduate days at NYUAD reflected that interdisciplinary spirit.
"I love that, after finishing a batch of experiments, I could drop by my roommate's film set to help arrange the scene. Then, I’d return to the art studio to carve my coins from clay. At night, I’d relax in a lounge with friends watching wildlife documentaries," she said.
Research at NYUAD
Working as a researcher at NYUAD, Omori is focused on self-supervised reinforcement learning, a branch of artificial intelligence that trains agents to make decisions by maximizing long-term rewards.
"You try to train an agent that whenever it makes desirable actions, it will get the rewards,” she explained.
Omori had turned down offers from consulting firms and finance positions to get here, as her interest lay in research. After two years in this role, she is now preparing to apply for a PhD.
Appreciation of the NYUAD community
Omori recalls the sense of community among students during her undergraduate years. During finals week, students often filled the whiteboard outside the library with words of encouragement in their native languages. The last time Omori counted, there were 18 languages on a single whiteboard.
"I think it is an absolutely unique view that hardly exists in any other university," she said. "The dream and the picture of a shared world village, at least, partially, temporarily, exists on this campus."
"On this campus, an ideal of equality was created for us… what NYUAD grants us is a privilege, and I am deeply grateful for this chance.”
Advice to juniors
In addition to being curious about the world, Omori hopes others will also stay curious about people, carrying forward a sense of passion, gratitude, and wonder, while embracing every opportunity for growth and connection that life offers.
