Matteo Acclavio is an Assistant Professor in Computer Science at the School of Engineering and Informatics, University of Sussex, affiliated with the Foundations of Software Systems (FoSS) research group. A logician specializing in proof theory and its applications to computer science, his work bridges mathematical logic with concurrency theory and process calculi. Education: PhD in Mathematics, Aix-Marseille University, France Master in Discrete Mathematics and Foundations of Theoretical Computer Science, Aix-Marseille University Master in Mathematics, Roma Tre University, Italy Bachelor in Mathematics, Roma Tre University His research focuses on graphical proof systems, linear logic, modal logic, and concurrency theory. Publications highlight contributions to deep inference, sequent calculus, and the intersection of logic with distributed systems. Recent work explores logical frameworks for concurrency, such as choreographic programming, and graphical models for proof systems. He teaches courses like Operating Systems and maintains active collaborations in theoretical computer science.
Manuel Wimmer is a Full Professor and Head of the Department of Business Informatics – Software Engineering at Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria. He also serves as the Program Director for the Business Informatics master's program since 2019. His academic leadership extends to representing JKU Linz in the AutomationML society and leading significant research initiatives. Dr. Wimmer received his Ph.D. and Habilitation from TU Wien. His academic journey includes: Research associate at the University of Malaga, Spain Visiting professor at the University of Marburg, Germany Visiting professor at TU Munich, Germany Assistant professor at the Business Informatics Group (BIG), TU Wien, Austria Professor Wimmer's research focuses on Model-Driven Software Engineering and its applications, particularly in the emerging field of Digital Twins . His work bridges theoretical foundations with practical industrial applications, with special emphasis on model transformations, runtime modeling, and the integration of artificial intelligence techniques into model-driven approaches. More recently, he has been exploring the intersection of model-driven engineering with quantum computing, investigating how modeling principles can be applied to quantum software development. His recent publications reveal a strong trend toward Digital Twin engineering, with approximately 40% of his 2023-2025 publications focusing on various aspects of Digital Twin technology. Another significant strand of his work involves the application of AI and machine learning techniques to enhance model-driven engineering processes. The emergence of quantum software engineering as a research direction is also notable in his most recent publications, demonstrating his ability to identify and explore cutting-edge research frontiers. From 2017-2023, Professor Wimmer led the Christian Doppler Laboratory on Model-Integrated Smart Production (CDL-MINT), where he developed engineering approaches for digital twins. He is also the co-author of the influential book "Model-driven Software Engineering in Practice" (2nd edition, 2017). Professor Wimmer is actively involved in the organization of major scientific events including the IEEE International Conference on Quantum Software (QSW) and the International Conference on Engineering Digital Twins (EDTconf), demonstrating his leadership in these emerging research communities. His research has practical applications across various domains including smart cities, industrial automation, tunneling/construction, and quantum computing. The MATISSE project represents a significant multi-partner effort to develop a framework for federated digital twins of industrial systems.
Yves Blaquière is a Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at École de Technologie Supérieure. He is affiliated with the Communications and Microelectronic Integration Laboratory (LaCIME), focusing on microelectronics, integrated circuit design, and power integrity in advanced electronic systems. His research spans VLSI/ASIC design, FPGA-based reconfigurable computing, MEMS for avionics, and radiation effects on electronics. Aeronautics and Aerospace Intelligent and Autonomous Systems Microelectronics and VLSI Power Integrity Modeling MEMS Switch Design Radiation-Resilient Circuits His recent publications highlight innovations in GHz-range power integrity for SiP, FPGA-based SHEPWM inverters, and MEMS switches for avionic power systems. Collaborations with researchers like Frédéric Nabki and Nicolas Constantin reflect his focus on industrial applications and technology transfer. Professor Blaquière co-supervises PhD candidates including Hachem Bensalem, Gabriel Nobert, and Abdurrashid Hassan Shuaibu, covering topics such as heterogeneous optimization, power converter modeling, and MEMS switch development. His work contributes to wafer-scale prototyping platforms like WaferBoard and advanced tools for radiation testing in FPGAs. LaCIME, under his involvement, emphasizes equity, diversity, and inclusion, offering students opportunities to engage in cutting-edge projects from materials to communication protocols. The lab's expertise includes micro/nanofabrication, photonic microsystems, and signal processing.
Khalil Esper is a Researcher at the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU), where he works at the Chair of Computer Science 12 (Hardware-Software Co-Design). His research focuses on verification, energy optimization, and runtime requirement enforcement in embedded systems and MPSoCs. His educational background includes: Informatics Engineering from Aleppo University, Syria (2010-2015) European Master in Embedded Computing Systems (EMECS) from Rhineland-Palatinate University of Technology Kaiserslautern-Landau (Germany) and Norwegian University of Science and Technology (Norway) (2017-2019) Esper's research interests center around verification and model checking, energy optimization on MPSoC, real-time systems and embedded systems, and autonomic computing. His work particularly focuses on runtime requirement enforcement mechanisms for non-functional properties in multi-processor systems-on-chip, with applications extending to medical devices and human-robot interaction systems. He has developed approaches using finite state machines, reinforcement learning, and evolutionary algorithms to ensure system properties are maintained during execution. His publication record shows a strong trend toward applying formal methods and runtime enforcement techniques to increasingly complex systems, with recent work expanding into safety-critical applications like orthoses and human-robot interaction. The interdisciplinary nature of his research bridges computer science, embedded systems engineering, and biomedical applications. Esper has supervised multiple theses including: Sascha H.: Runtime Requirement Enforcement of Non-Functional Requirements on MPSoCs Using Fuzzy Logic (2022) Iana S.: Feedback-Based Control of Non-functional Program Execution Properties on Linux (2023) Philipp L.: Runtime Requirement Enforcement of Functional and Non-Functional Requirements of a Knee Orthosis Based on a Digital Twin (2024) Avinash N.: Runtime Requirement Enforcement of Safety Properties of an Ankle Orthosis Based on a Digital Twin (2024) Zhiyi T.: Generation of Environment FSMs Using Machine Learning Techniques (2025) Moustafa A.: Runtime Requirement Enforcement of Safety Properties of Human-Robot Interaction Based on a Digital Twin (2025) Florian K.: Runtime Requirement Enforcement of Safety Properties of Human-Robot Interaction (2025) He has been actively teaching courses on Approximate Computing and Embedded Systems since the 2021/2022 academic year, demonstrating his commitment to academic instruction alongside his research activities. Esper is involved in the InvasIC research project, part of the DFG Transregional Collaborative Research Center 89 on Invasive Computing, which explores novel approaches to resource management in parallel computing systems.
Aleksander Essex is an Associate Professor of Software Engineering in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Western University's Faculty of Engineering. He runs Whisper Lab, the Western Information Security and Privacy Research Laboratory, where he conducts research in cybersecurity, cryptography, and secure computation with the goal of making the world a safer, more private place. Dr. Essex's educational background includes: Ph.D. in Computer Science (2012) from the University of Waterloo M.A.Sc. in Electrical Engineering (2008) from the University of Ottawa B.E.Sc. in Computer Engineering (2004) from Western University His research focuses on both offensive and defensive aspects of information security and data privacy. In offensive research, he investigates cryptographic protocol and implementation vulnerabilities in TLS and related web security technologies. In defensive research, he specializes in secure multi-party computation with applications to trustworthy electronic voting and secure health informatics. His work aims to secure democratic institutions in the digital age through the development and standardization of trustworthy, publicly accountable election practices and technology. Dr. Essex's recent publications show a strong focus on election security, privacy-preserving technologies, and cryptographic protocols. His work spans multiple domains including election technology, health informatics, and general cybersecurity applications. Many of his recent papers examine verifiable online voting systems, genomic data privacy, and secure computation techniques. His scientific achievements include: Recipient of the Best Paper Award for "Online Voting in Ontario Municipal Elections: A Conflict of Legal Principles and Technology?" (2019) NSERC Alexander Graham Bell Canada Graduate Scholar during his Ph.D. studies Dr. Essex actively advises graduate students, with several current and completed Ph.D. and Master's students. He serves on multiple university committees including CyberSmart and the Working Group on Information Security (WIGIS). His research bridges theoretical cryptography with practical applications that address real-world security and privacy challenges.
Dr. Alastair Kay is a Lecturer in the Department of Mathematics at Royal Holloway, University of London. His research focuses on theoretical quantum computation, quantum information theory, and quantum cryptography, particularly addressing challenges in quantum state transfer, error correction, and networked quantum systems. He holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge under Prof. Artur Ekert and a physics degree from Keble College, University of Oxford. His research spans topics such as Quantum state transfer protocols using engineered Hamiltonians Quantum error correction mechanisms for experimental systems Entanglement properties in graph states and spin networks Applications of quantum computing in cryptography and information theory The articles listed reflect his work in quantum information science, computational physics, and theoretical cryptography. Key trends include advancements in fault-tolerant quantum communication, optimization of spin chain dynamics, and foundational studies in quantum correlations and nonlocality. Alastair actively develops software tools like quantikz for quantum circuit diagrams and ConTeXi for LaTeX equation integration in Microsoft Office. He also emphasizes open science principles and reproducibility in quantum research through personal commentary and collaboration with his fiancée, a Panton Fellow in open research practices.
Heidi Hastedt is a Researcher at the Institute of Photogrammetry and GeoInformation (IAPG) , part of Jade University of Applied Sciences . Her work spans photogrammetry , optical 3D metrology , and remote sensing , with a focus on camera calibration , Structure from Motion (SfM) , and software development in C++/C# and ESRI ArcObjects . Education : Diploma in Surveying (Dipl.-Ing. (FH)) from University of Applied Sciences Oldenburg/Ostfriesland/Wilhelmshaven (2001). Master of Engineering (M.Eng.) in Geoinformation Systems from Anhalt University of Applied Sciences (2015). Research Interests : Heidi's expertise lies in optical 3D measurement systems for applications like cultural heritage preservation and dynamic process monitoring . She specializes in camera modeling , system development , and quality control in SFM workflows. Her 15 most recent articles (2005–2022) highlight advancements in 3D reconstruction , cultural heritage digitization , and high-dynamic process capture using photogrammetric methods. Projects & Grants : Heidi has led research on geometric monitoring of the Bremen Cog (2017–present, funded by the German Maritime Museum) and accuracy evaluation of SFM methods (2003–2005, AGIP). Earlier work (2000–2002) focused on optical 3D system verification, and she contributed to Lower Saxony Advance initiatives (2005–2010) for dynamic 3D metrology. Laboratory Involvement : Heidi co-manages the Laboratory for Optical 3D Metrology , where she develops and tests photogrammetric tools for large-volume measurements and real-time monitoring of historical and dynamic objects.
Alexey Gotsman is a tenured Research Professor at the IMDEA Software Institute in Madrid, Spain, where he leads research at the intersection of software verification and distributed computing. He also works part-time as a visiting academic at Amazon Web Services. His educational background includes a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, where he was previously a postdoctoral fellow. His research spans theoretical foundations and practical implementations of distributed systems, with particular emphasis on fault tolerance, consensus algorithms, and consistency models. His research interests focus on the theoretical and practical aspects of distributed systems, including Byzantine fault tolerance, state machine replication, distributed transactions, and consistency models. His work bridges the gap between formal verification techniques and real-world distributed systems implementations, with numerous publications in top-tier venues like PODC, DISC, and NSDI. His recent publications show a clear progression from theoretical foundations to practical implementations, with increasing focus on real-world applications, performance considerations, and fault tolerance in large-scale distributed systems. The research demonstrates strong connections between formal methods and practical system design, particularly in the areas of consensus protocols, replication strategies, and transaction processing. Best paper award at OPODIS'23 Best paper award at DISC'18 Best paper award at CONCUR'12 EAPLS Best Dissertation Award Runner-up prize in the BCS Distinguished Dissertation Competition ERC Starting Grant 'RACCOON: A Rigorous Approach to Consistency in Cloud Databases' (2017-2022) Ramón y Cajal Fellowship (2017-2022) Alexey actively mentors PhD students including Alejandro Naser Pastoriza, Fedor Ryabinin, and Antonio José Fernández Pinto, while his alumni have gone on to faculty positions at institutions like University of Paris 7 and University of Colorado Boulder, as well as industry roles at companies like ARM and Informal Systems. He has received significant funding including an ERC Starting Grant and served on program committees for numerous top conferences including POPL, DISC, and PODC. He currently co-organizes the International Symposium on Distributed Computing (DISC) and has been instrumental in organizing workshops focused on consistency in distributed systems. His research group at IMDEA Software Institute focuses on developing rigorous approaches to consistency in cloud databases and distributed systems, with active projects spanning theoretical analysis, protocol design, and practical implementation of fault-tolerant distributed systems.
Brigitte Pientka is a Full Professor in the School of Computer Science at McGill University, where she leads the Computation and Logic group. She received her PhD from Carnegie Mellon University in 2003, and previously studied at the University of Edinburgh and Technical University of Darmstadt. Her educational background includes: PhD from Carnegie Mellon University (2003) Studies at the University of Edinburgh Studies at Technical University of Darmstadt Dr. Pientka's research focuses on developing theoretical and practical foundations for building and reasoning about reliable, safe software systems. She combines theoretical research on logical foundations of computer science in programming languages and verification with system building. Her work spans logics (classical and non-classical), type theory, theorem proving, logic and functional programming, and logical frameworks. She has made significant contributions to the field of contextual types and mechanized metatheory. Her recent publications demonstrate a strong trend toward modal type theory, contextual types, and session types, with applications to functional programming, verification, and meta-programming. She has made significant contributions to the Beluga system, which explores how to combine functional programming with dependently-typed, higher-order data specified in the logical framework LF. Her work often bridges theoretical foundations with practical implementations for mechanized reasoning. Dr. Pientka has received several notable awards: Humboldt Fellowship Test of Time Award @ PPDP'18 for 'Programming with proofs and explicit contexts' Best student paper award at ICLP'03 She is actively involved in mentoring and academic service, having served as PC Chair for ICFP'24, CPP'23 and CPP'24, and as General Chair for POPL'20. She is an Executive Editor of Logical Methods in Computer Science and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Functional Programming and ACM Transactions of Computational Logic. She leads the Computation and Logic group at McGill University, which focuses on developing theoretical and practical foundations for reliable software systems through research in logical frameworks, type theory, and programming language design.
Frédéric Blanqui is a Research Professor at Inria, leading the Deducteam, Chair of EuroProofNet (a European COST action with 578 participants across 47 countries), and Assistant director of the Paris-Saclay doctoral school of computer science. He also serves on the scientific committee of Inria Paris-Saclay and the steering committee of ISR. His research focuses on: Proof system interoperability Proof assistants Rewriting theory Type theory λ-calculus Termination His recent work includes proof verification techniques accepted at FLAIRS'25. He developed key software tools like Lambdapi, CoLoR, and HOT, which dominated the higher-order rewriting category in the 2012 international termination competition. Scientific awards: 2012 international termination competition winner in higher-order rewriting category He has advised 19 PhD students and postdocs, including Thiago Felicissimo, Mohamed Yacine El Haddad, and Guillaume Genestier, and supervised numerous interns on projects involving proof translation, type theory, and automated verification. Labs/teams: LMF (Laboratoire Méthodes Formelles) Deducteam Contributor to SimSoC-Cert and other proof assistant projects
Sarah Neuwirth is a tenured Professor for Computer Science at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and a Visiting Researcher at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre. She manages JGU's High Performance Computing (HPC) division, coordinates regional/national HPC activities, and represents JGU in NHR, Gauss-Allianz, and HPC committees. Education : PhD (Dr. rer. nat.) in Computer Science (2018), Heidelberg University Diplom in Computer Science (2012), University of Mannheim Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (2010), University of Mannheim Research Interests : Parallel File and Storage Systems Modular Supercomputing (resource disaggregation/virtualization) Performance Engineering High Performance Computing Networking Reproducible Benchmarking Parallel I/O Publications Trends : Her work focuses on HPC performance modeling, parallel I/O optimization, modular supercomputing, network characterization, and reproducible benchmarks. Key themes include resource disaggregation, automated workflows, and data-intensive distributed applications. Scientific Awards : 2023 PRACE Ada Lovelace Award for HPC ZONTA Science Award 2019 Grants & Leadership : She leads the High Performance Computing division at JGU, participated in European DEEP projects, and serves on SC conference committees.
Mario Piattini is a Full Professor at the School of Computer Science of the University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) in Spain, where he has served since 2002. He is the founder of the Alarcos research group and has held leadership roles including Director of the Mixed Center for Software Research and Development UCLM-Indra and Director of the Institute of Technologies and Information Systems (ITSI) at UCLM. He has also served as an associate professor at Universidad Complutense and Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. His educational background includes a PhD and degree in Computer Science from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, a Psychology degree from UNED, and a Doctor Honoris Causa from Universidad de La Plata (Argentina). He holds multiple master's degrees in IT Audit, Human Resources Management, and Project Management, along with professional certifications including CISA, CISM, CRISC, CGEIT, PMP, and data governance certifications from DAMA. Professor Piattini is a leading expert in software quality, information systems, and security, with a recent strong focus on quantum computing and quantum software engineering. His research spans software engineering methodologies, data quality, AI systems, and the emerging field of quantum software development. He has been recognized as one of the top 15 scholars in systems and software engineering (2004-2008) and among the most active software engineering researchers (2010-2017). His recent publications reveal a significant shift toward quantum computing, with numerous articles on quantum software engineering, quantum-classical hybrid systems, quantum testing frameworks, and quantum software architecture. His work bridges theoretical foundations with practical engineering approaches for the emerging quantum computing paradigm. His scientific recognition includes multiple prestigious awards: Premio Nacional a la Trayectoria Profesional del Ingeniero Informático Premio Gabriel Alonso Herrera from JCCM for research trajectory Premio Grace Hooper from COIICLM Premio Aritmel from SCIE Premio FIUM from Universidad de Murcia Premio a la Trayectoria Profesional de ISACA Madrid As an academic leader, Piattini has founded several spinoff companies including Cronos Ibérica (now Alten), Kybele Consulting, Lucentia Lab, DQTeam, AQCLab (the first ENAC-accredited laboratory for software product quality and data evaluation), and I2SC. He serves as secretary of CTN71/SC7 and is a member of various ISO/IEC and UNE standardization committees, contributing significantly to software quality standards development. His research group has established AQCLab, which has been evaluating software quality for 25 years, demonstrating his long-term commitment to practical applications of software engineering research. Through his leadership in both academic and industrial contexts, Piattini has created a robust ecosystem connecting theoretical research with real-world software quality practices.
Ramon Canal is a Professor at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), affiliated with the Barcelona School of Informatics and the Computer Architecture Department. He has served as Vice Dean of postgraduate studies and leads the VirtuOS (Virtualization and Operating Systems) research group. His academic background includes BSc, MSc, and PhD from UPC, with thesis supervision by Antonio González (UPC) and James E. Smith (University of Wisconsin-Madison). He completed sabbaticals at Harvard University (2006-2007) and University of Cyprus (2019-2020). Education: PhD, MSc, BSc in Computer Engineering (UPC) Research focus: Microarchitecture security, reliability across circuit/system levels, cloud optimization Recent publications address privacy in IoT, secure hardware accelerators, and safety-critical systems. His work contributes to the DRAC project (2019-2022), Red-RISCV network, and Horizon's Vitamin-V project. Awards include HiPEAC Paper Awards, IEEE Senior Member status, Fulbright recognition, and multiple education excellence accolades. Scientific Honors HiPEAC Paper Award (ISCA-44, 2017) IEEE Senior Member (2016) Best Paper Nominee (ICCD-32, 2014) UPC Outstanding PhD Award supervision (2011) He advises current MSc students and has mentored multiple PhD graduates. Professional activities span academic leadership, research collaborations with Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), and technical contributions to reliability analysis frameworks like RECIPE and FRACTAL.
Ajitha Rajan is a Professor (Personal Chair of Software Testing and Verification) at the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh. Previously, she was a post-doctoral researcher at Oxford University's Computer Science Department and Laboratoire d'Informatique de Grenoble (LIG) in France. She earned her PhD in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota in August 2009 under the supervision of Prof. Mats Heimdahl. Her research spans two main directions: Automated Software Testing Techniques covering test input generation, test oracles, and coverage metrics; and Biomedical Artificial Intelligence focusing on cancer survival models, interpretability for biological sequences, and medical images. Her work bridges software engineering and biomedical applications, particularly in the development of trustworthy AI systems for healthcare. Professor Rajan leads several significant research projects including a Royal Society Industry Fellowship (2022-2025) on AutoTest for autonomous vehicle perception safety, the H2020 European Project KATY (2021-2025) on AI for genomics and personalized medicine where she serves as Edinburgh Lead PI, and an EPSRC Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Node project (2020-2024). Her recent publications demonstrate strong activity across software testing, explainable AI, and biomedical applications, with numerous papers accepted to top conferences in 2025 including ML for Healthcare, IJCAI, and ESEM. Among her scientific recognitions, she received the Best Reviewer Award at ISSTA'25. Her work has been consistently published in leading venues including ICSE, ICASSP, and Communications Biology. Professor Rajan actively mentors PhD students working on diverse topics from automated testing of speech recognition systems to explainable AI for medical image analysis and cancer immunotherapy. She teaches undergraduate courses in Software Testing, Computer Programming, and Embedded Systems, and has been instrumental in establishing several fully funded PhD positions through Centres for Doctoral Training at the University of Edinburgh.
Victor Vianu is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at University of California, San Diego. His work bridges database systems, computational logic, and verification of data-driven workflows. Co-author of the influential book Foundations of Databases (1995) PI of NSF grant III 1815247: Views of Data-Driven Business Processes: Foundations and Applications Research Focus He studies verification of database-driven systems, workflow views, and query language theory. His NSF-funded project explores view-based abstraction mechanisms for business processes, integrating logic, automata theory, and infinite-state system analysis. Teaching Victor teaches courses in database systems, logic for computer science, and database theory, including CSE 132A, CSE 205A, and CSE 233. Labs & Collaborations Active member of the UCSD Database Laboratory , collaborating with institutions like INRIA, ENS-Paris, and University of Lille. Leads research seminars in database theory.
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