Dr. Ali Mostafavi, professor in the Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been honored with the 2025 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize, one of the highest distinctions awarded by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He was recognized for his exceptional leadership and groundbreaking research that pioneers new theories, methods and practices for civil infrastructure resilience to extreme events through advanced AI modeling and data-driven methodologies.
“The Walter L. Huber Prize is an iconic recognition for civil engineering researchers,” said Mostafavi. “I am humbled and deeply honored to receive this prestigious award and join the esteemed community of past winners.”
Awarded by ASCE’s Committee on Technical Advancement, the Huber Prize acknowledges innovative work that demonstrates originality, significance and the potential to influence the future of civil engineering. Mostafavi’s research program exemplifies these criteria, integrating complex systems-based computational modeling with advanced machine learning to enhance infrastructure resilience. This interdisciplinary approach not only captures the intricate interdependencies among infrastructure systems during extreme events like wildfires, hurricanes or floods but also highlights human-infrastructure interactions—an essential factor in effective disaster management.
Throughout his career, Mostafavi has secured more than $38 million in external research funding in principal investigator (PI) and Co-PI roles, supporting a dynamic and highly productive research group. With a prolific publication record — 180 peer-reviewed journal articles and over 80 conference papers — his work has garnered more than 7,500 citations on Google Scholar, placing him in Elsevier’s top 2% of scholars worldwide.
A significant hallmark of Mostafavi’s contributions lies in his dedication to translating academic insights into practical applications and technologies. He founded a startup to commercialize AI-driven digital twin technologies for disaster resilience. The venture received a National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Innovation Research award along with an Innovation Award from the Texas A&M Office of Innovation, and has already seen deployment during Hurricanes Beryl, Helene and Milton.
Dr. Jean-Louis Briaud, a professor of civil and environmental engineering in the department and a former president of the ASCE, explained that this award was not exclusive to any one specialty or institution but open to any member under 40 years of age across the entire ASCE.
“The award is meant to recognize young talented members who demonstrate promise for much bigger things in the second half of their career; it is indeed a big deal,” said Briaud. “Several years ago, I was on the ASCE awards committee, and I know that the competition is fierce and this is a coveted award.”
In addition to his research, Mostafavi is highly regarded as a thought leader in civil infrastructure resilience. This latest honor adds to an impressive roster of accolades for Mostafavi, which include the ASCE Halpin Award, NSF CAREER Award, an Early Career Fellowship from the National Academies, and Engineering News-Record’s Top 20 Under 40 award.
Through his continued research and interdisciplinary collaborations, Mostafavi remains at the forefront of innovation in civil infrastructure resilience, driving scholarly advancements and the practical transformation of engineering practices worldwide.