Rishabh Iyer

Rishabh Iyer is an Assistant Professor in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences department at the University of California, Berkeley. His research bridges computer systems, networking, and formal methods with a focus on performance predictability and reliability. Prior to Berkeley, he completed his PhD at EPFL and undergraduate studies at IIT Bombay.

His educational background includes:

• PhD in Computer Science from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
• Bachelor's degree from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay)

Iyer's research centers on performance interfaces for computer systems – creating succinct abstractions that allow engineers to reason about system performance without understanding implementation details. His work spans three major directions: (1) Extracting performance interfaces from implementations, (2) Designing systems with predictable performance, and (3) Formally verifying performance claims. This research combines operating systems, networking, computer architecture, and formal verification techniques to address performance unpredictability in modern systems. His group develops tools like PIX for network functions, KFlex for kernel extensions, and Software LPN for hardware accelerators.

His publications reveal strong focus on performance modeling for network functions, kernel extensions, and hardware accelerators, with recent work expanding into real-time systems and SD-WAN validation. The research consistently targets practical impact, with deployments at companies like Meta and Alibaba.

Scientific recognition includes:

• ACM SIGOPS Dennis M. Ritchie Award
• Eurosys Roger Needham PhD Award
• Dimitris N. Chorafas Award
• Best Paper at VDAT 2019

Iyer actively advises students at UC Berkeley and teaches courses including CS 294-262 (Performance Analysis) and CS 168 (Internet Architecture). Previously at EPFL, he taught Principles of Computer Systems, Software Engineering, and Vector Calculus. His group seeks talented students interested in building reliable, high-performance systems. Current research directions include performance interfaces for distributed applications, next-generation kernel extensions, and formally verified network systems.

He leads research within UC Berkeley's systems community and maintains strong connections with EPFL's Dependable Systems Lab where he completed his PhD.