About Me

I am Minghan Gao, a senior at Cornell University studying Information Science and Communication, with minors in Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science. My work sits at the intersection of human-computer interaction, ubiquitous computing, and AI-mediated communication, where I explore how technology can both reshape and amplify human experience.

Much of my research centers on the voice—as a marker of identity, a channel for emotion, and a bridge across difference. At the MIT Media Lab, I worked on VoiceMorph, a project probing the perceptual boundaries of self-voice recognition through deep learning and real-time experimental systems. At Cornell, I studied how emotional voice integration in ASL translation can enhance accessibility, revealing how technologies can support richer and more inclusive communication across communities.

Beyond voice, I am deeply interested in wearable and ubiquitous technologies that embed computation into everyday life. From building whisper recognition systems on custom smartwatch prototypes to investigating large-scale reading behaviors on arXiv, my projects blend quantitative data analysis with human-centered design methods to understand both patterns and people.

My broader vision is to design and study technologies that do not simply replace human capacities, but instead deepen identity, broaden inclusion, and transform connection. I believe the future of computing lies not in automation alone, but in creating interfaces that amplify the human—helping us see, hear, and understand one another in new ways.