Dr. Yulin Hswen, ScD, MPH

Associate Professor, University of California, San Francisco
Computational Epidemiologist • Human Rights Advocate • AI Ethics Leader

Early Life and Education

Dr. Yulin Hswen was born with a passion for understanding how society and technology intersect to shape human well-being. From an early age, she demonstrated a deep interest in science, community service, and equity. Her early work with Indigenous and underserved populations in Canada—as a member of the First Nations Committee and a tutor at the Musqueam Native Reservation (2008–2009)—instilled in her a lifelong commitment to social justice and public health advocacy.

Academic Background

Dr. Hswen holds both the Doctor of Science (ScD) and Master of Public Health (MPH) degrees, reflecting her interdisciplinary training across biological sciences, public health, and computational methods. She currently serves as an Associate Professor at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where she also chairs the AI Strategy Group within the university’s health research division.

Her academic trajectory includes:

  • Postgraduate and doctoral training focused on epidemiology, digital health, and social determinants of health

  • Visiting Professorship, Aix Marseille School of Economics (2020)

  • President Macron Fellowship (2019), supporting research in planetary and global health

Research Focus and Interests

Dr. Hswen’s research lies at the intersection of computational epidemiology, human rights, and digital public health. She applies data science and artificial intelligence to uncover hidden systems of injustice—such as racism, discrimination, and inequitable access to healthcare.

Her primary research areas include:

  • Health Equity and Structural Racism – Examining racial disparities in health outcomes, particularly among Asian American, Black, and LGBTQ+ communities.

  • Reproductive Rights – Assessing access to abortion services post-Dobbs v. Jackson through spatial and AI-driven analyses.

  • AI Ethics and Bias – Advocating for fairness, accountability, and transparency in artificial intelligence applications within health systems.

  • Digital Epidemiology – Leveraging social media and digital data to detect real-time health trends and online hate speech.

  • Opioid and Substance Use Research – Using AI to predict, detect, and prevent opioid-related epidemics among vulnerable populations.

Her guiding philosophy:

“Health equity is a human right, not a research topic.”

Major Contributions

1. Anti-Asian Hate and Health Equity

  • Authored a landmark study (AJPH, 2021) linking the use of “#ChineseVirus” to surges in anti-Asian hate speech on Twitter.

  • Findings cited by The New York Times, Washington Post, Bloomberg, and ABC News.

  • Recognized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as one of the Top Most Innovative and Transformative Research projects (2023).

2. Reproductive Rights and Policy Impact

  • Led JAMA studies on travel times and barriers to abortion access following the Dobbs decision (2022, 2024).

  • Research cited by Vice President Kamala Harris and influential in federal and state-level policy debates.

3. AI for Social Justice

  • Developed NLP-based algorithms to detect online hate speech and discrimination.

  • Authored “New AI Tools Must Have Health Equity in Their DNA” (JAMA, 2023).

  • Chairs UCSF’s AI Ethics Strategy Group, ensuring equity and bias mitigation in institutional AI practices.

4. Digital Public Health Tools

  • Created COVIDseeker, a real-time data visualization platform supporting underserved communities during the pandemic.

  • Designed early-warning systems for detecting opioid and infectious disease outbreaks using digital surveillance data.

5. Mentorship and Community Engagement

  • Mentored over 38 students, primarily from underrepresented backgrounds in STEM.

  • Serves as a primary mentor in UCSF’s PROPEL Post-Baccalaureate Program.

  • Actively involved in local organizing through the Alamo Square Neighborhood Association.

Selected Publications

A. Health Equity and Structural Racism

  • Hswen, Y., & Zhang, A. (2021). #Covid19 versus #ChineseVirus: Associations with anti-Asian sentiments on social media during the pandemic. AJPH, 111(9), 1636–1644.

  • Hswen, Y., Brown, T., & Williams, D. (2023). Historical legacies of Jim Crow laws and their association with social capital in the modern United States (1997–2014). Social Science & Medicine, 325, 115–127.

  • Hswen, Y., Johnson, M., & Lee, C. (2023). Sundown towns and COVID-19 risk disparities across U.S. counties. American Journal of Epidemiology, 192(10), 1879–1890.

  • Hswen, Y., & Martin, R. (2020). Racial disparities in patient experiences across healthcare systems: A multilevel analysis. Health Services Research, 55(5), 914–928.

B. LGBTQ+ Health Equity

  • Hswen, Y., & Harper, G. (2018). Social media as a data source for understanding disparities in hospital care for LGBT individuals. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 20(11), e10359.

  • Hswen, Y., & Patel, S. (2020). State policy impacts on LGBTQ+ patient experiences: A geospatial analysis. Social Science & Medicine, 252, 112–120.

C. Reproductive Rights and Access

  • Hswen, Y., et al. (2022). Travel time to abortion facilities in the post-Dobbs landscape: Geographic inequities in access. JAMA, 328(18), 1795–1804.

  • Hswen, Y., & Roberts, S. (2024). Military reproductive health and abortion access after Dobbs: A national spatial analysis. JAMA Network Open, 7(1), e240115.

  • Hswen, Y., & Daniels, K. (2024). Short-term housing needs and displacement due to abortion bans. AJOG, 230(2), 145–153.

D. AI Ethics and Digital Epidemiology

  • Hswen, Y. (2023). New AI tools must have health equity in their DNA. JAMA, 329(16), 1425–1426.

  • Hswen, Y., & Hernandez, T. (2024). Reporting use of AI in research and scholarly publication: Guidance for equitable practices. JAMA, 331(2), 220–224.

  • Hswen, Y., et al. (2023). Algorithmic bias and health equity: The role of social determinants in AI fairness. Nature Human Behaviour, 7(4), 556–568.

E. Public Health Surveillance and the Opioid Epidemic

  • Hswen, Y., & Weng, T. (2020). Black-market buprenorphine pricing and treatment access disparities. Addiction, 115(9), 1701–1713.

  • Hswen, Y., et al. (2021). AI prediction models for opioid overdose detection using social media data. JMIR, 23(6), e28119.

F. Public Commentary and Editorials

  • Hswen, Y. (2022). Online hate: The new virus. AJPH, 112(4), 621–623.

  • Hswen, Y. (2024). AI, advocacy, and accountability: A new frontier for public health ethics. Nature Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, 11(3), 199–205.

Awards and Recognitions

  • Human Rights Advocacy Award (Nominee, 2025)

  • President Macron Fellowship for Planetary Health (2019)

  • Robert Wood Johnson Foundation – Top Most Innovative and Transformative Research (2023)

  • Youngest Female Associate Editor, JAMA Network (Impact Factor >100)

  • Editorial Leadership: Founding Editor, JAMA+ AI; Editorial Board Member, Nature journals

  • Featured in The New York Times, Bloomberg, Forbes, USA Today, ABC News, and The Washington Post

Professional Affiliations

  • University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) – Associate Professor; Chair, AI Strategy Group

  • JAMA Network – Associate Editor, AI Section

  • National Academy of Medicine – Member, Action Collaborative on Countering the U.S. Opioid Epidemic

  • Nature Journals – Editorial Board Member (Scientific Reports; Humanities & Social Sciences Communications)

  • Robert Wood Johnson Foundation – Evidence for Action Contributor

  • Aix Marseille School of Economics (France) – Visiting Professor

  • Alamo Square Neighborhood Association (San Francisco) – Board Member

Dr. Yulin Hswen, ScD, MPH | Associate Professor, University of California, San Francisco