Samer HassanView profile
Associate Professor
Samer Hassan is an Associate Professor at Complutense University of Madrid and Faculty Associate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, with a multidisciplinary background spanning Computer Science, Social Sciences, and Artificial Intelligence. His work bridges academic research with grassroots activism to advance community-driven technological solutions. His research centers on decentralized collaboration systems including blockchain, DAOs, and fediverse platforms, specifically examining how open-source decentralized architectures can sustain the Collaborative Economy through Commons-based models. Notable projects include ERC-funded research on Blockchain-based DAOs and development of practical infrastructure like SwellRT (adopted by Apache Foundation) and Decentralized Science's peer review system. Scientific recognition includes: ERC Starting Grant (1.5M€) for DAO research in the Collaborative Economy Hassan secures substantial project funding (300K€ for Decentralized Science) while applying participatory teaching methods in cyber-ethics courses. His activist work spans grassroots initiatives in Madrid and Beirut where he operates as an accredited facilitator, connecting technical development with community organizing principles. Key technical contributions include founding the interoperable open peer review system for Decentralized Science and creating SwellRT—a federated backend-as-a-service adopted by the Apache Foundation—demonstrating his commitment to building practical decentralized infrastructure.





