Yasith Samaradivakara

Graduate Student, MIT Media Lab · HCI & AI Researcher

I’m a graduate student in the Fluid Interfaces group at the MIT Media Lab, advised by Prof. Pattie Maes, with a background spanning Information and Embedded Systems, Computer Science, and Artificial Intelligence. My research focuses on reimagining personal AI agents as lifelong companions for human growth. By combining behavioral AI, user modeling, and proactive interactions, I explore how intelligent systems can move beyond assisting with immediate tasks to helping people learn, develop, and thrive over time.

For more than a decade, I have worked across research labs, startups, and large technology companies, building and deploying hardware, software, and AI systems. My research has been published at leading venues, including CHI, UIST, EMNLP, NeurIPS, IUI, and Augmented Humans, and has received recognition from Meta Reality Labs Research, Google Research, and Prototypes for Humanity.

Recent Projects

Before You Say It

Anticipating what a person is likely to say, and when, from months of everyday conversations captured by a wearable AI system and modeled with LLMs.

When and How to Help

Adapting AI assistance to moments of user struggle with multimodal AI glasses.

In review at CHI ’27

Mirai

Wearable AI system with an integrated camera, real-time speech processing, and personalized voice-cloning to provide proactive and contextual nudges for positive behavior change.

Mnemonic Tracing

Using eye gaze as a natural query to search through visual memories captured by always-on wearables.

Mind Mapper

Wearable AI system that models and predicts a person’s behavioral patterns from their everyday conversations using LLMs.

Music for Habit Learning

Can music tunes remind us of our intentions while learning new habits?

Ongoing research

AiSee

AI-powered companion for people with visual impairments to independently access visual information.

SeEar

A low-cost AR device with localized real-time captions tailored to enhance the educational experience of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) students.

Hatthini

Conversational companion for emotional regulation, using AI to assist users in managing emotions effectively.

Kavy

Conversational AI agent designed to foster language-speaking skills and build self-confidence.

ICOAE

Wristband and mobile app for health monitoring and emergency handling, designed for elderly individuals.

SpeechAssist

Mobile app designed to support advanced stammering treatments such as Delayed Auditory Feedback (DAF).

Publications

* denotes equal contribution. Full list on Google Scholar.

Before You Say It: Anticipating Verbal Behavior from Longitudinal Everyday Conversations with LLMs

UIST 2026 · ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology
Yasith Samaradivakara, Valdemar Danry, Paul Pu Liang, Pattie Maes

Paper

Mind Mapper: Modeling and Predicting Behavioral Patterns from Everyday Conversations with Wearable AI Systems and LLMs

IUI 2026 · ACM International Conference on Intelligent User Interfaces
Yasith Samaradivakara*, Valdemar Danry*, Jean Ghislain Billa*, Paul Pu Liang, Pattie Maes

Paper

Mirai: A Wearable Proactive AI “Inner-Voice” for Contextual Nudging

CHI 2025 · ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Extended Abstracts)
Cathy Mengying Fang, Yasith Samaradivakara, Pattie Maes, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

Mnemonic Tracing: Using Eye Gaze to Search for Visual Memories

CHI 2026 · ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Extended Abstracts)
Wazeer Zulfikar*, Yasith Samaradivakara*, Paul Pu Liang, Pattie Maes

Paper

AiSee++: An Open-Source Rapid Prototyping Platform for Screen-free Heads-Up Computing

CHI 2026 · ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Extended Abstracts)
Shaveen Silva, Ovindu Atukorala, Yasith Samaradivakara, Hussel Suriyaarachchi, Kian Peen Yeo, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

SeEar: Tailoring Real-time AR Caption Interfaces for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) Students in Specialized Educational Settings

CHI 2024 · ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Extended Abstracts)
Yasith Samaradivakara, Thavindu Ushan, Asela Pathirage, Prasanth Sasikumar, Kasun Karunanayaka, Chamath Keppitiyagama, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper Video

SIQ2-Long: Evaluating Evidence Retrieval for Long-Horizon Social Reasoning

NeurIPS 2026 · Workshop on VLMs for Real World Deployment
Tom Cohen, Sheer Karny, Yasith Samaradivakara

Code

Looks Fine to Me: Understanding Oversight in Agentic Interactions

arXiv preprint, 2026
Dinithi Dissanayake, Yasith Samaradivakara, Hyung Woon Lee, Yadeesha Weerasinghe, Sanjay Saha, Pattie Maes, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

Beyond Words: Understanding Sign Language Communication Technologies that Preserve Visual and Emotional Nuance

ACII 2026 · International Conference on Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction (Workshops and Demos)
Phoebe Chua, Cathy Mengying Fang, Yasith Samaradivakara, Pattie Maes, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper Preprint

RemiAssist: A Therapist-Supporting System for Photo-Based Reminiscence Therapy in Dementia Care

arXiv preprint, 2026
Shuchang Xu, Minglong Tang, Junyan Mao, Xiaofu Jin, Wazeer Zulfikar, Yasith Samaradivakara, Jiayi Zhou, Huamin Qu, Yuling Sun, Pattie Maes

Paper

Seeing Is Not Believing: Realistic AI Videos Disrupt Confidence in Authentic Videos and Perceived Reality

CHI 2026 · ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (Extended Abstracts)
Eitan Wolf*, Yasith Samaradivakara*, Om Gokhale*, Sally Ahmed*, Yuhan Wang*, Pat Pataranutaporn, Pattie Maes

Paper

AI-Wrapped: Participatory, Privacy-Preserving Measurement of Longitudinal LLM Use In-the-Wild

arXiv preprint, 2026
Cathy Mengying Fang, Sheer Karny, Chayapatr Archiwaranguprok, Yasith Samaradivakara, Pat Pataranutaporn, Pattie Maes

Paper

The Goldilocks Time Window for Proactive Interventions in Wearable AI Systems

arXiv preprint, 2025
Cathy Mengying Fang, Wazeer Zulfikar, Yasith Samaradivakara, Suranga Nanayakkara, Pattie Maes

Paper

Catch that Butterfly: A Multimodal Approach for Detecting and Simulating Gut Feelings

UIST 2024 · ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (Adjunct)
Mia Huong Nguyen, Kian Peen Yeo, Yasith Samaradivakara, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

Kavy: Fostering Language Speaking Skills and Self-Confidence Through Conversational AI

Augmented Humans 2024 · Augmented Humans International Conference
Sankha Cooray, Chathuranga Hettiarachchi, Vishaka Nanayakkara, Denys Matthies, Yasith Samaradivakara, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

EMO-KNOW: A Large Scale Dataset on Emotion-Cause

EMNLP 2023 · Findings of the Association for Computational Linguistics
Mia Huong Nguyen, Yasith Samaradivakara, Prasanth Sasikumar, Chitralekha Gupta, Suranga Nanayakkara

Paper

Tailored Real-time AR Captioning Interface for Enhancing Learning Experience of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) Students

arXiv preprint, 2025 · journal article in review
Yasith Samaradivakara, Asela Pathirage, Thavindu Ushan, Prasanth Sasikumar, Kasun Karunanayaka, Chamath Keppitiyagama, Suranga Nanayakkara

Preprint