Published: December 19, 2025
In this episode, we’re continuing our special relaunch series by welcoming one of this year’s INFORMS Annual Meeting plenary speakers – a pioneer in the fusion of machine learning and optimization, and a leader in advancing AI for real-world engineering challenges.
Pascal Van Hentenryck is a Fellow of INFORMS and AAAI, and has made groundbreaking contributions to constraint programming and optimization systems that are still used in industry decades later. His current research focuses on integrating AI with mathematical optimization to solve incredibly complex and large-scale problems in energy, transportation, supply chains, and more.
At the 2025 INFORMS Annual Meeting, he delivered a plenary address titled “Learning to Optimize: Foundations and Industrial Impact,” exploring how machine learning and optimization can work hand-in-hand to meet real-time demands in today’s dynamic systems.
When I think about the great ideas that some of my groups came up with, I think that what happens is you are putting different ideas together. It’s like you meet the right person at the right time, or you meet someone and that someone says something and that triggers something in your mind and it’s like, this is what I needed! I think most of the interesting research topics that we have studied and that we have made some contributions to have come from putting different things together and getting ideas from different people.
Interviewed this episode:
Pascal Van Hentenryck
Georgia Tech
Pascal Van Hentenryck is the director of the NSF AI Institute for Advances in Optimization (AI4OPT), the director of Tech AI (the AI Hub at Georgia Tech), and the A. Russell Chandler III Chair and Professor in ISyE at Georgia Tech. He was a professor of Computer Science at Brown University for over 20 years and led the optimization research group at the National ICT Research in Australia. His current research focuses on AI for Engineering with applications in energy systems, supply chains and manufacturing, health care, corporate systems, and mobility. Van Hentenryck is a pioneer of constraint programming, and he designed several innovative optimization systems that have been in commercial use for over 20 years. He is a fellow of AAAI and INFORMS.
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Episode Transcript
Transcript pending.
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Pasal Van Hentenryck, 2025 INFORMS Annual Meeting plenary speaker
Ultimate Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt
Ingredients (makes ~24 cookies)
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (at room temp)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 8 oz chopped high-quality chocolate (mix of dark and semi-sweet is ideal)
- Flaky sea salt (for topping)
Step 1: Brown the Butter
- In a light-colored saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Once melted, swirl occasionally. The butter will foam, then the milk solids will turn golden brown and smell nutty (about 5–8 minutes).
- Immediately pour into a heatproof bowl and let it cool 10–15 minutes.
Why this matters: Browning intensifies flavor and gives the cookies a subtle toffee/caramel undertone.
Step 2: Whisk the Dry Ingredients
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and kosher salt. Set aside.
Step 3: Mix the Sugars & Wet Ingredients
- In a large bowl, combine the slightly cooled brown butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
- Beat until well combined and glossy (about 1–2 minutes).
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each, then stir in the vanilla.
Step 4: Combine & Fold
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until combined — don’t overmix.
- Fold in chopped chocolate pieces. (Using chopped chocolate instead of chips gives you those gorgeous “rivers” of melted chocolate.)
Step 5: Chill the Dough
- Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour, but overnight is even better.
Chilling helps hydrate the flour and develop deeper flavor. It also gives you that chewy center with crisp edges.
Step 6: Bake
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Scoop out ~2 tbsp portions (a medium cookie scoop works great) and space about 2 inches apart.
- Sprinkle each with a pinch of flaky sea salt.
- Bake 10–12 minutes, until edges are golden but centers are still soft and slightly underbaked.
- Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack.
Pro Tips
- Chocolate quality matters: Use bars you’d enjoy eating on their own (like Valrhona, Ghirardelli, or Lindt), not just bagged chips.
- Freeze extra dough balls: Bake them straight from frozen — just add 1–2 minutes.
- For bakery-style puddle tops: Gently bang the tray on the counter halfway through baking to flatten the centers and spread the chocolate.
The Result
Thick, golden-brown cookies with crisp edges, gooey chocolate pools, nutty brown-butter depth, and a finishing sparkle of salt. Every bite hits sweet, salty, buttery, and chocolatey notes at once.