Dr. Shakhzod Takhirov has been working in emerging technologies for more than two decades. One of the research topics he is working on focuses on predicting the structural performance of infrastructure using advanced testing, innovative monitoring, and detailed finite-element modeling. His expertise includes both theoretical and practical approaches. He has extensive knowledge of various sensing technologies for laboratory studies, field in situ measurements, and other practical applications. The main idea of this approach, with the addition of AI components, is to develop customized software packages for real-time decision-making. With 30+ years of expertise in structural and nonstructural testing, he has helped develop testing and monitoring laboratories worldwide. He is a key expert in developing the laboratory for the Center for Smart Infrastructure at the University of California, Berkeley (California, USA), which he manages. He also manages another laboratory at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the same university. He was also actively involved in developing experimental capabilities at the State University of San Francisco (USA) and the University of California at Merced (USA). He was a key expert in developing two structural testing laboratories in Uzbekistan. In the latter cases, he custom-selected all testing and monitoring equipment and has provided a few training courses on its use. As a recent example, at the request of the government of Uzbekistan, he provided extensive 160-hour training on modern testing and monitoring technologies in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in the fall of 2025. Dr. Takhirov authored and co-authored more than 210 publications highlighting the results of his research.