Luis Fabiano de Assis, Ph.D.

Bio

Dr. Luis Fabiano de Assis is a Brazilian Federal Prosecutor and data scientist whose work bridges law, public policy, and computational science. He is a Research Fellow at Stanford University's Center for Human Rights and International Justice, a founding member of the Stanford Human Trafficking Data Lab, and the founder of the SmartLab Initiative in Brazil - a public-interest platform that turns open data and knowledge-management tools into evidence for stronger labor rights and public policy.

For more than two decades, his work has centered on a single question: how can public institutions convert scattered administrative data into intelligence that actually changes outcomes on the ground? In his hands, the answer has taken the form of compliance strategies, enforcement plans, and frontline interventions targeting forced labor, human trafficking, child labor, occupational health risks, and workplace inequality.

He is internationally recognized as an expert on data technologies for decent work and human rights, and has advised United Nations University, the International Labour Organization (in Brazil, across Latin America, and in Geneva), and the World Bank (Washington/DC). As an expert member of the Alliance 8.7 Knowledge Platform Reference Group, hosted by United Nations University in New York, he contributes to global efforts aligned with SDG Target 8.7: ending modern slavery, forced labor, child labor, and human trafficking.

As Chief Research and Data Officer at the Brazilian Federal Labor Prosecution Office, Dr. Assis led the development of SmartLab in partnership with the ILO and a wide network of public and private collaborators. Since 2016, the platform has grown into a national public-good infrastructure for evidence-based labor policy, serving all 5,570 Brazilian municipalities through digital observatories that support policymaking, monitoring, evaluation, and enforcement. In its first decade, SmartLab drew more than two million page views from users in 95 countries, generated over 60,000 media references, and was cited in 854 academic works, including doctoral dissertations and master's theses. He also coordinates Monitora 8.7, a regional network supporting projects across Latin America and the Caribbean in cooperation with the ILO.

Dr. Assis has helped design and deploy human-centered AI tools for frontline anti-trafficking work, such as decision support tools with satellite imagery, machine learning, geospatial intelligence, administrative records, and user-centered design to prioritize trafficking tips and flag high-risk labor sites, helping task forces plan smarter, intervene earlier, and operate more effectively in remote, resource-constrained areas.

At the National School of Public Prosecutors in Brazil, he teaches law and public policy, with courses spanning AI, big data, evidence-based programs, behavioral science, accountability systems, data-driven investigations, collective litigation, and data protection law. His current research examines human trafficking, forced labor, social protection and health outcomes among trafficking survivors, supply-chain due diligence, AI-based risk prediction, vulnerability mapping, and decision-support systems.

From 2019 to 2022 he was a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University, working with the Center for Human Rights and International Justice, the Center for Health Policy, the King Center on Global Development, and the Graduate School of Business.

Education and Affiliations

LL.B., University of São Paulo, 2002
LL.M., University of São Paulo, 2008
Ph.D. in Law, University of São Paulo, 2011
Research Fellow, Stanford University, 2018–present
Visiting Scholar, Stanford University, 2019–2022
Founding Member, Stanford Human Trafficking Data Lab
Professor, National School of Public Prosecutors, Brazil
Federal Prosecutor, Brazilian Federal Labor Prosecution Office