Alanson is an Associate Professor in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department at the University of Michigan. His research interests lie broadly in the areas of human computer interaction, embedded systems, and wireless technology. Prior to joining the UM, he was the Lab Director of Disney Research, Los Angeles where he led a lab focused on delivering scientific & technological innovation to The Walt Disney Company. He was also a Principal Research Scientist at Disney Research in Pittsburgh where he led the Wireless Systems Group. Prior to Disney, Alanson was a Research Scientist at Intel Labs in Hillsboro working on energy harvesting for wearable and Internet of Things applications. He also held a postdoctoral research position in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington. Alanson received his Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering in 2011 from the University of Washington. Throughout his graduate studies, he worked full-time at Intel Research, Seattle.