Nir Bitansky

Nir Bitansky is an associate professor of computer science at New York University's Courant Institute, part of the Theory Group and Cryptography Group. He previously held a faculty position at Tel Aviv University (now on leave) and was a postdoctoral researcher at MIT CSAIL, advised by Vinod Vaikuntanathan. His Ph.D. from Tel Aviv University was under Ran Canetti. His research focuses on foundational aspects of cryptography and computational complexity, including zero-knowledge proofs, obfuscation, and post-quantum security.

Research Interests: His work bridges theoretical computer science and cryptography, addressing topics such as secure computation, cryptographic hardness assumptions (e.g., LWE, PPAD), privacy-preserving protocols, and quantum-resistant cryptography. Key areas include randomized encodings, succinct arguments, and the interplay between complexity theory and cryptographic primitives.

Publications: His recent work emphasizes post-quantum cryptography (e.g., zero-knowledge protocols, commitment schemes) and foundational results in obfuscation. Notable contributions include advancements in batch proofs, non-interactive arguments, and the cryptographic hardness of local search problems.

Students and Postdocs: Advised Ph.D. students include Sapir Freizeit, Nathan Geier, and Omri Shmueli (co-advised with Zvika Brakerski). Hosted postdocs such as James Bartusek (now at Columbia) and Rachit Garg. Collaborates widely, co-authoring papers with figures like Vinod Vaikuntanathan and Omer Paneth.

Affiliations: Serves on program committees for top venues (e.g., CRYPTO, EUROCRYPT, FOCS). Taught courses on cryptography fundamentals, advanced topics, and lattices at TAU and NYU.