Alex Alben teaches courses in Artificial Intelligence, Internet Law and Privacy at the UCLA School of Law.  He has previously taught Internet Law and Privacy courses at both UCLA and the University of Washington law school.  For most of his career, Alex served as a senior executive for pioneering Internet companies RealNetworks and Starwave Corporation, where he created digital media products that enabled the distribution of video and music on the Internet and worked with industry groups to devise new content distribution models. From 2015-19, he served as Washington State's first Chief Privacy Officer.

Alben is engaged in both research and policy development relating to the implementation of Artificial Intelligence and is the director of a non-profit group, The AI Forum. His research extends to data governance, IP and Antitrust issues relating to Big Tech companies.

Alben has represented the high-tech industry in national and global policy groups and testified before the U.S. House, Senate and Copyright Office on copyright and media issues resulting from the growth of the Internet and online networks. In 2004, he ran for the U.S. Congress from Washington's 8th district.

He has worked for an alternative energy company founded by Bill Gates, raised an early-stage venture fund for start-up companies emerging from the University of Washington and authored a study for the UW and City of Seattle on developing incubators and attracting start-up companies.

Alben received his A.B. with distinction from Stanford University, and his J.D. from Stanford Law School. His publications have appeared in the Stanford Law & Policy Review, UCLA Law and Technology Review, University of Washington Law Policy Law Journal, the Los Angeles Times, the Seattle Times, and the New York Times among others. He is the author of a book on the history of the technology industry, entitled, Analog Days: How Technology Rewrote Our Future.