Dr. Mihaela Ulieru’s career story is one of consistent innovation. From early passions in creative arts to leading-edge work in Artificial Intelligence, her path reveals a steady commitment: using technology for the benefit of people. This dedication has shaped her successful academic life, recognized not only by awards and impactful mentorship, including Garrett Camp, a co-founder of Uber but also by a distinguished career as an AI Professor.

A pioneer in the field of multi-agent systems, Dr. Ulieru has also chaired several epic conferences, initiated and led by her. Her academic impact is further underscored by over 100 peer-reviewed publications.

Now, as the Chief AI Alchemist at SingularityNET, she is a key voice in a vital movement to make AI decentralized, ethically grounded, and focused on human needs.

From Creative Sparks to Technological Vision

Dr. Ulieru’s journey began with a natural curiosity and a drive to create. “Creativity drove me,” she says, looking back at her school and career beginnings. “I always wanted to see things differently, to find less obvious perspectives.” This creative spirit first found expression in poetry and music. She wrote poems as a child and started composing music at nine, after receiving a piano. Later, in high school, mathematics captured her imagination. This “mathematics bug,” as she fondly calls it, ultimately steered her towards robotics and computer science in university.

This shift to technology was not just about technical skills. It was about using systems and solutions to explore AI’s potential. Driven by a desire for deep knowledge, she pursued a PhD and further studies, specializing in AI and robotics.

Yet, amidst the complex equations and cutting-edge research, her “North Star” remained constant. “My passion for designing distributed systems that become ultimately technologies for empowerment which can enable ‘we the people’ to co-create collective thriving communities, was always my North Star,” says Dr. Ulieru.  

This guiding principle would ultimately shape her most ambitious endeavor – SingularityNET.

SingularityNET: Building a “Global Brain” for Humanity

Founded in 2017, SingularityNET was born out of a shared concern about the future of AI.

“SingularityNET was founded by my old-time friend, Father of AGI, Dr. Ben Goertzel,” Ulieru explains, “who was driven by a strong desire to ensure that AI develops as an open, decentralized force that benefits all of humanity rather than being monopolized, used and controlled by a few corporations and governments.”

Their answer was blockchain technology. They saw blockchain as the way to democratize AI, creating a platform for sharing, trading, and improving AI services globally through collaboration. SingularityNET’s goal is ambitious yet clear: to develop an open, decentralized Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that respects human values. This is not AI developed in secrecy. It is intended as a global, collaborative space where:

• AI developers and businesses work together openly, improving AI’s abilities.
• AI services are shared, work together smoothly, and adapt on their own, creating a flexible system.
• Users control their own data, preventing misuse by central organizations.
• AI’s operation is transparent, using blockchain to ensure fairness and prevent abuse.

In essence, SingularityNET is building the infrastructure for a decentralized AGI – a self-improving network that learns, grows, and collaborates independently. This “global brain” is intended to serve humanity as a whole. This project is not just about technology; it is about building ethics into AI’s core development.

The Alchemist of AI: Transforming Potential into Reality

Dr. Ulieru’s title, “Chief AI Alchemist,” reflects her talent for combining different elements to create valuable outcomes. She describes her “alchemy” as her “Superpower.” It is about “bringing the right skills together to create results that are much greater than just adding up the parts.”  Some call her an “Exponentiator,” highlighting her knack for amplifying impact through strategic connections.

Her approach is comprehensive, integrating ideas “from network science, cybersecurity, and AI modeling to build AI systems that are adaptable, reliable, and accessible to everyone, not just large tech companies or governments.”

Dr. Ulieru’s alchemy also involves “amalgamating various technologies into powerful solutions unthinkable before.” She envisions “binding AI, blockchain, IoT with the ‘glue’ of complex adaptive systems to deploy conscious cities that self-regulate consumption while monitoring vital signs to keep their citizens healthy and free from pollutants or poisonous foods.” 

Furthermore, Dr. Ulieru sees tokenization as a critical tool for democratizing the AI landscape. It involves“cryptoeconomics that free people from platform-controlled economies by embarking them onto peer-to-peer, tokenized ecosystems where users share in the value they create.” 

In the context of AI, this means “shifting from platform-owned AI models to community-driven, decentralized AI, ensuring equitable value distribution.”

Ultimately, for Dr. Ulieru, “my work aims to create value for people by making AGI decentralized, ethical, and collaborative, for the good of all.”

Towards Super Intelligence: A Cooperative Path

SingularityNET is focused on the long term, aiming to shape Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) and its future evolution into Artificial Superintelligence (ASI). The critical question, according to Dr. Ulieru, is not whether ASI will emerge, but rather, “Will ASI help humanity, or control it?” 

At SingularityNET, they are focused on building the very base for both AGI and ASI.

Today’s AI is limited to specific tasks. AGI will be different: “a self-improving, flexible intelligence” that can:

• Learn across many different fields, not just one.
• Understand context, reason, and plan like humans do.
• Organize itself into networks of intelligence, instead of being isolated systems.

SingularityNET’s role is vital in this development. They are working to “build a distributed AI network that can grow towards AGI while staying open and responsible.” 

Crucially, they aim to ensure “AGI’s values are developed through open, shared governance, not dictated by a select few.” They are creating “AI systems that adapt and grow naturally, instead of being rigid, top-down structures.” 

Dr. Ulieru stresses collaboration: “The future of intelligence must be collaborative and self-organizing, not controlled by a central authority. If we succeed, AGI and ASI will be a great benefit, not a threat to humanity.”

Merging Technologies: AI, Blockchain, and IoT for Empowerment

Dr. Ulieru sees the future in the convergence of technologies. “AI, blockchain, and IoT coming together,” she states, “is creating an era of ‘Technologies for Empowerment,’ moving us from old hierarchies to connected, intelligent networks.” She believes that combining these technologies is essential for a sustainable, smart future. They are not separate areas, but “building blocks for a self-organizing, decentralized digital world.” In this world:

• AI provides smartness and automation, making systems adaptable and responsive.
• Blockchain provides openness, trust, and decentralization, preventing monopolies.
• Robotics and IoT connect intelligence to the physical world, creating human-machine partnerships.

However, Dr. Ulieru also points out potential risks. Without ethical considerations, these powerful tools “could worsen inequalities and create systems that are both controlling and unfair.” She emphasizes the urgent need to “rethink how we govern digital systems,” warning against a future dominated by a few powerful companies controlling access to essential resources and power.

She contrasts two models: a “Centralized Model” where large platforms control data and infrastructure, and a “Decentralized Model” where users control their data and identity, and platforms serve their needs. She firmly advocates for the latter, pushing for a “truly decentralized, democratic digital economy.”

Decentralization: Reshaping Industries, Giving Power to People

For Dr. Ulieru, decentralization is a core principle with the power to transform industries and empower individuals. She explains, “Decentralization allows for flexible manufacturing and supply chains and increases opportunity by making it easier for anyone to participate, so the best ideas can always succeed.” Her vision is of a “self-organizing digital economy where AI manages industries autonomously, blockchain ensures trust, and robotics works with human creativity.”

These combined technologies can unlock remarkable possibilities. They can lead to “self-organizing systems, reducing waste and empowering people with control over their identities and contributions, enabling better governance, smarter transportation, automated logistics, and simpler payments – freeing people from routine tasks and red tape.” 

Decentralization, in Dr. Ulieru’s view, is key to a more efficient, fair, and human-focused future. This perspective is deeply informed by her pioneering work on organic governance systems and their application in critical real-world scenarios.

Notably, her research laid the groundwork for decentralizing the Incident Command System at FEMA and the Department of Defense through the Self-Organizing Security (SOS Network) initiative.

Sharing Knowledge: A Commitment to Education

Beyond her technical expertise and leadership, Dr. Ulieru is deeply committed to “sharing knowledge and discovery.” As an awarded academic and AI Professor, Over the years, she has worked with many “talented colleagues and students,” resulting in over 200 publications and 300 keynotes.

Many of her co-authors were once students inspired by her teaching, showing her ability to spark curiosity and encourage teamwork. Whether through research papers or public talks, her central motivation remains: “a passion for discovery, for creating new knowledge, and for making that knowledge accessible to the world.”

Further insights into Dr. Ulieru’s impactful career and pioneering work can be found at impactinstitute.org and in articles such as those featured in Corporate Investment Times.

Ethics First: Guiding AI’s Development Responsibly

As AI becomes more independent, ethical considerations take center stage. Dr. Ulieru calls for a shift in how we think about AI ethics, moving beyond simple rules. Instead of just “Controlling” AI, she advocates for “Guiding Superintelligence.” She uses an insightful comparison: “Think of AI as our children, who we hope will surpass us. We guide them with values, not just restrictions.”

She argues that “as AI becomes more autonomous, our ethical approach must move from strict rules to responsible guidance – like teaching children to exceed our abilities while upholding important values.” Instead of rigid limits that won’t work for super-intelligent systems, we must “build ethical principles into AI’s development, ensuring it grows with wisdom and respect for humanity.” Dr. Ulieru proposes a “shared governance model” for AI that is: Decentralized, Inclusive, and Transparent.

The ultimate goal is not just “ethical AI,” but “Wise AI” – an intelligence “that helps humanity make better choices, resolve conflicts, prevent wars, and build a flourishing future.” She encourages a shift “from ‘AI Safety’ to ‘AI Opportunity,’” arguing against regulations that might “limit AI’s huge potential to improve our lives and build a brighter future.” We must guide AI’s advancement, she urges, not be afraid of it.

A Lasting Impact: Shaping the Next Era of Intelligence

Dr. Ulieru’s asks us to imagine “a future where intelligence is not limited to human minds or machines, but becomes a planet-wide force – a living network of knowledge and understanding.” In this future:

• “We move past old ideas of scarcity and competition, as intelligence reorganizes around cooperation and shared growth, with knowledge flowing freely, unrestricted by power structures.”

• “Earth becomes the starting point in a vast, decentralized network of advanced intelligence, a civilization based on dynamic, evolving intelligence beyond human limitations.”

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