Rafael Ferreira da Silva
Section Head (interim) ยท Senior Research Scientist
I am a Senior Research Scientist and Section Head (Interim) for Data and AI Systems research in the Computer Science and Mathematics division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), leading research and development in AI, data and agentic workflows, and advanced computing systems.
Leadership & Strategic Programs
In this section head role, I provide strategic and operational leadership for the organization, which includes 45+ researchers across five groups specializing in AI/ML, visualization, data workflows, engineering, and performance systems. I also lead program development and proposal efforts, securing $65M+ in funded awards across 21 competitively reviewed proposals, advancing work in autonomous laboratories, scientific workflow systems, cyberinfrastructure, and AI-driven data analytics.
I am a co-PI for the Transformational AI model consortium (ModCon), a cornerstone of the U.S. DOE Genesis Mission's AI models and data efforts that will build and deploy self-improving AI models to advance science, engineering, and energy missions. I am also the PI of a DOE-funded project on robotics, automated laboratories, and autonomous control of large-scale experiments in support of Genesis, leveraging embodied AI, advanced automation, and robotics to transform laboratory environments and experimental workflows.
Systems Research & Community
My research sits at the intersection of advanced distributed systems and scientific innovation, spanning scientific workflows, agentic workflows and provenance capture, autonomous science, and hybrid quantum-classical systems. I provide strategic direction and leadership for scheduling, modeling, and optimization methods that scale across cloud, edge, and HPC environments, accelerating discovery and ensuring robust, trustworthy computational pipelines.
Additionally, as the Founder and Executive Director of the Workflows Community Initiative , I foster collaboration and advancement in workflows research and development, connecting researchers and practitioners to share knowledge and drive innovation. I am also a co-Founder of the Autonomous Science Network . Previously, I led the Workflow and Ecosystem Services (WES) group within the National Center for Computational Sciences (NCCS). I am a Senior Member of IEEE and ACM.
Professional Facts
A snapshot of scholarship, service, and funded impact.
Research Projects
Flagship initiatives with measurable impact across the workflows and cyberinfrastructure communities.
Get in Touch
Open to collaborations, invited talks, and research partnerships.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
P.O. Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN, USA 37831
silvarf@ornl.gov
+1 865-341-1894 (Office)