Student Spotlight: Devesh Narayanan
September 26, 2023
Meet Devesh Narayanan, an incoming PhD student in MS&E.
HOMETOWN
Pune, India
WHERE I LIVED PRIOR TO STANFORD
Singapore
ALMA MATER
National University of Singapore
DEGREE & MAJOR
B.Eng in Mechanical Engineering
MA in Philosophy
RESEARCH THEMES MY WORK REPRESENTS
The Future of Organizing
Academic and work experience
During my undergraduate studies in engineering, I came to deeply concerned with how we might better align technological innovation to the pursuit of socially progressive causes. After graduating, in a bid to sharpen my thinking about these concerns, I pursued a master’s degree in philosophy, and took up research assistantships in organizational behavior and urban policy. These experiences have helped clarify my research interests, and better appreciate what researchers can do for social justice. Joining M&E has been the perfect next step in these interdisciplinary efforts to critically interrogate the impact of technology, especially AI, on organizations and society. I’m particularly excited to affiliate with the Center for Work, Technology, and Organization, to conduct rigorous field research into how AI shapes—and is shaped by—work.
Impact I hope to have in my field and the world
Modern computational technologies have the potential to be genuinely emancipatory for organizations and workers—they can play an important role in making work more fulfilling and joyful, and helping organizations to be more effective and socially responsible. Realizing this potential, however, requires us to think critically about broader organizational, social, and economic forces that shape how these technologies are produced and used. By researching into such issues, I hope to illuminate pathways for moving us towards desirable futures of work.
Interests and hobbies
I love music! I’m trained as a classical violinist, but I listen to just about anything and enjoy learning new instruments. I also frequently organize and participate in book clubs, especially around technology and labor.