Join Professor Juan P. Hinestroza, PhD (Rebecca Q. Morgan '60 Professor of Fiber Science & Apparel Design at Cornell University) for an exploration into how AI can transform fashion and wearables design. With expertise in nanotechnology, fiber science, and global research, Professor Hinestroza will showcase how AI enables designers, especially those without a traditional research background, to tackle real-world challenges.
This lecture explores how AI empowers designers like you to create human-centered solutions with medical and wellness applications. Discover how these tools can revolutionize fashion through iterative, solution-oriented approaches. Learn to harness AI for research, brainstorm with chatbots, and generate imagery to develop both product designs and innovative materials.
Presented by the BFA Fashion Design program at Parsons School of Fashion.
Juan P. Hinestroza, a U.S. Fulbright Scholar and a PMP®, is the Rebecca Q. Morgan ’60 Professor of Fiber Science & Apparel Design, and directs The Textiles Nanotechnology Laboratory in the College of Human Ecology at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.
Professor Hinestroza has extensive experience in a variety of research environments, including academia, the military, non-profit organizations, start-ups, and large corporations. He has worked in institutions across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and well as North and South America. Professor Hinestroza's main research efforts aim at understanding fundamental phenomena at the nanoscale that are of relevance to Fiber and Polymer Science.
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Hinestroza is an inventor of more than 61 granted international patents, an author of over 111 peer-reviewed articles and 7 book chapters, as well as an editor of a book on cellulose-based green composites. Professor Hinestroza's innovative work has given rise to three start-up companies, and he has served as a consultant to some of the largest Fortune 500 corporations and investment banks in the field of smart and interactive textiles and fibers.
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Professor Hinestroza obtained a Ph.D. from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Tulane University and B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering from Universidad Industrial de Santander. Prior to pursuing doctoral studies, Professor Hinestroza worked as a process control engineer for The Dow Chemical Company. Hinestroza has received over 9.1 MM USD in funding (Federal and State agencies as well as Industrial Consortiums) for his research in understanding and exploring new pathways for creating multifunctional fibers via manipulation of nanoscale phenomena.
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Professor Hinestroza has been the recipient of a myriad of awards including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the Young Investigator Award from NYSTAR, the Educator of the Year Award from the Society of Professional Hispanic Engineers, The Humanitarian Award from the National Textile Center, the Academic Innovation Award from Cornell Class of 72, and the 2024 Teaching Innovation Award for creative use of AI tools. Â
Professor Hinestroza’s scientific work has been featured in Nature Nanotechnology, MRS Bulletin, Materials Today, C&E News, National Geographic, ASEE Prism as well as mainstream media outlets such as CNN, Wired, TechReview, The Guardian, Popular Science, ABC News, NY Times, Reuters, PBS, NPR and BBC.   In addition to his scientific endeavors, Professor Hinestroza and his research group are actively involved in community outreach activities aimed at increasing the number of members from underrepresented minority groups in science, technology, engineering and mathematics as well as engaging senior citizens in collaborative and inter-generational learning experiences.
