A young woman with shoulder-length gray hair, smiling, holding a green drink in a plastic cup, standing on a sidewalk amidst autumn trees with colorful leaves, carrying a tote bag with a blue floral design, wearing a black jacket and jeans.

Hello again! Thank you for wanting to get to know me better. :)

My first name Meziah Ruby, but I go by Meziah (mee-sha) in casual conversations. For formal/professional contexts, please use my full first name wherever applicable (e.g., for shortened citations, please use M. R. Cristobal).

I’m a proud Filipino American: born in the Philippines and naturalized as a US citizen through the hard work of my father and grandfather.

My research is informed by my upbringing as an immigrant and years as a software engineer: I believe technology can create positive social impact, but I am skeptical of Silicon Valley-isms, as those tend to undermine humans and human abilities. As such, I am broadly interested in human-computer interaction. More specifically, my research projects tend to ask: (1) how do generative AI tools affect human values (such as agency, creativity, and identity), and (2) what rearrangements are happening due to the integration of AI in everyday life.

In my spare time, I make YouTube videos and wonky pottery.

I consider everything I do as a love letter dedicated to humanity at large, with special notes to my family, friends, and Poppy.

Dec 2025

  • Submitted the revision of [redacted] to CHI 2026

Sep 2025

  • Submitted [redacted] to CHI 2026

  • Day 1 of my HCDE PhD program

I’m in the first year of my PhD!

I’m advised by Dr. Gary Hsieh and part of the Prosocial Computing Group.

My PhD is supported by the NSF Computer and Information Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship (CSGrad4US), through which I had the fortune to be advised by Dr. Colin M. Gray (Indiana University Bloomington).

I also contine to be part of the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at Santa Clara University, directed by Dr. Kai Lukoff. Together with the Focus Mode project team, we study how LLM-enabled adaptive interfaces may support digital wellbeing.

I have a BS in Computer Science with a minor in Communications from UC Davis,

(September 2013 to June 2017)

Between classes and homework, I practiced design thinking with Design for America and co-created HackDavis (UC Davis’ first hackathon and one of the first in the nation to be dedicated to social good).

During undergrad, I also studied Japanese and human-centered design thinking. I practice both as much as I possibly can.

and an MS in Integrated Design, Business, and Technology from USC.

(August 2021 to August 2023)

I loved cross-disciplinary thinking and collaboration so much that I pursued a graduate program to pave the way for more of these in my future.

Working full-time and attending school part-time was exhausting, but it was well worth it. I was able to flex my entrepreneurial spirit and product design skills through industry projects while working with some of the most talented people I know. (Shoutout to the BOLDR project team: Edward Fu, Justin Ivey, and Minh Ton!)