I'm a Technical Researcher with the AI on the Ground team at Data & Society Research Institute. My work focuses on auditing and accountability in algorithmic systems—particularly at the intersection of social justice, participatory design, and policy. More recently, I’ve turned my attention to the social and psychological dimensions of large language models (LLMs), exploring how they are used for mental health support, therapy-like interactions, and other emotionally charged contexts.

I hold a Ph.D. in Information Science from Cornell University and a B.S. in Computer Science from Pace University. My work has been supported by Google, Facebook, Microsoft, the National Science Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, the Mozilla Foundation, and the Notre Dame-IBM Tech Ethics Lab.

Publications

Red-Teaming in the Public Interest
Ranjit Singh, Borhane Blili-Hamelin, Carol Anderson, Emnet Tafesse, Briana Vecchione, Beth Duckles, Jacob Metcalf
Data & Society. 2025.

Towards AI Accountability Infrastructure: Gaps and Opportunities in AI Audit Tooling
Victor Ojewale, Ryan Steed, Briana Vecchione, Abeba Birhane, Inioluwa Deborah Raji
CHI 2025.

Algorithm auditing: The Broken Bus on the Road to Algorithm Accountability
Abeba Birhane, Ryan Steed, Victor Ojewale, Briana Vecchione, Inioluwa Deborah Raji
SaTML 2024.

Auditing Work: Exploring the New York City algorithmic bias audit regime
Lara Groves, Jacob Metcalf, Alayna Kennedy, Briana Vecchione, Andrew Strait
FAccT 2024. Best Paper Award

Null Compliance: NYC Local Law 144 and the Challenges of Algorithm Accountability
Lucas Wright, Roxana Muenster, Briana Vecchione, Tianyao Qu, Pika (Senhuang) Cai, Alan Smith, COMM/INFO 2450 Student Investigators, Jacob Metcalf, J. Nathan Matias
FAccT 2024.

Navigating the Complexities of Algorithmic Auditing: Challenges and Considerations
Briana Vecchione
Cornell University. 2023.

Algorithmic Auditing and Social Justice: Lessons from the History of Audit Studies
Briana Vecchione, Solon Barocas, Karen Levy
EAAMO 2021.

Datasheets for Datasets
Timnit Gebru, Jamie Morgenstern, Briana Vecchione, Jennifer Wortman Vaughan, Hanna Wallach, Hal Daumé III, Kate Crawford
CACM 2021. (Short version: FAccT 2018)

Recommending Podcasts for Cold-Start Users Based on Music Listening and Taste
Zahra Nazari, Christophe Charbuillet, Johan Pages, Martin Laurent, Denis Charrier, Briana Vecchione, Benjamin Carterette
SIGIR 2020.

Public Writing & Policy

What Happens When People Turn to Chatbots for Therapy?
Briana Vecchione
Data & Society Points. 2025.

Chatbots in Disguise: How Participants Use GenAI to Hack Qualitative Research
Ranjit Singh, Livia Garofalo, Briana Vecchione, Emnet Tafesse
Data & Society Points. 2025.

The Algorithmic Impact Methods Lab: Methods from the Field
Tamara Kneese, Briana Vecchione, Ranjit Singh, Emnet Tafesse, Meg Young, Jacob Metcalf
Data & Society Points. 2024.

Defining Public Interest Technology: Key Questions to Consider
Briana Vecchione
Cornell Tech Digital Life Initiative. 2022. (Workshopped at CSCW 2022)

Addressing Economic Inequality in NYC through Social Impact Tech Research at Blue Ridge Labs
Briana Vecchione
Cornell Tech Public Interest Technology Initiative. 2021.

Select Talks, Workshops, & Engagements

Mind, Machine, and Me: Mental Health Chatbots and Techno-selfhood
Livia Garofalo, Briana Vecchione
STS Italia. 2025.

Databite No. 161: Red-Teaming Generative AI Harm
Lama Ahmad, Camille François, Tarleton Gillespie, Briana Vecchione, Borhane Blili-Hamelin
Data & Society. 2025.