Dr. Elham Dolatabadi is an Assistant Professor at York University, appointed in the Faculty of Health’s School of Health Policy and Management and cross-appointed with the Lassonde School of Engineering’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. She is also a Faculty Affiliate at the Vector Institute and Principal Investigator of the i4Health Research Lab.
With over a decade of experience leading AI initiatives, Dr. Dolatabadi’s work bridges scientific discovery, evidence-based decision-making, and healthcare innovation. Prior to joining York, she was a Scientist and Health Lead at the Vector Institute, where she directed seven large-scale projects in collaboration with over 50 scientists and 20+ public and private sector partners.
Her research focuses on the responsible integration of AI in healthcare—developing foundation models as dynamic, adaptive tools that complement and strengthen human-centered care. She emphasizes iterative learning, model alignment, and interpretability to ensure safe and meaningful adoption of AI in real-world health systems.
Dr. Dolatabadi’s contributions have been recognized through numerous grants and awards, including the NSERC Discovery Grant, CIHR Special Call from the Centre for Research on Pandemic Preparedness and Health Emergencies, the Long COVID Web Seed Grant, and the Connected Minds Seed Grant.