AI as a Research Partner: Enhancing Workflows from Literature Review to Manuscript Outline

Join us for the February RCMAR CHIME Methods Seminar on AI as a Research Partner: Enhancing Workflows from Literature Review to Manuscript Outline with Dave Baiocchi, PhD, Adjunct Researcher, RAND, and Professor of Policy Analysis, RAND School of Public Policy.

Speaker Bio:

Dave Baiocchi (bye-OH-key) helps researchers and leaders use AI as a systematic partner to accelerate their work. He applies an engineer's mindset to deconstruct and improve complex knowledge workflows, focusing on how generative AI can enhance processes from literature synthesis to manuscript development.

This work is grounded in direct experience. At the RAND Corporation, Dave co-led the "Everyday AI for Researchers" initiative, designing and delivering training for over 1000 staff on how to integrate AI tools into their research practices. In his own consultancy, Spark & Compass, he has rebuilt his personal workflows around AI, using it as a thought partner to deliver strategic insights for clients faster and more effectively. This hands-on application informs the practical methods he teaches.

Prior to his current work, Dave was an optical engineer at Sandia National Laboratories, where he designed sensors for space-based systems. He holds a Ph.D. in Optical Sciences from the University of Arizona and is a professor at the RAND School of Public Policy. His goal is to help professionals offload the mechanical tasks of research and analysis so they can dedicate their energy to the high-value work of critical thinking and discovery.

Selected publications:

Dave Baiocchi and Steven Fox, Surprise! From CEOs to Navy SEALs: How a Select Group of Professionals Prepare for and Respond to the Unexpected, RAND (RR-341), 2013

Dave Baiocchi and William Welser IV, Confronting Space Debris, RAND (MG-1042), 2010

Tim Bonds, Dave Baiocchi, and Laurie McDonald, Army Deployments to OIF and OEF, RAND (DB-587), 2009