PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Chris Peikert

Chris Peikert is a cryptographer whose work spans lattice-based cryptography, post-quantum security, and private machine learning. He earned a computer science PhD from MIT in 2006, researched at SRI, joined Georgia Tech in 2009, and moved to the University of Michigan in 2015. His Ring-LWE paper advanced efficient lattice cryptography, while F1 enabled real-time private deep learning; he received Test-of-Time Awards from TCC and Eurocrypt and an IACR Fellowship. Since March 2026, he is Chief Scientific Officer at the Algorand Foundation and continues its post-quantum security work.

Now at
University of Michigan and Algorand Foundation
Works
166
Citations
19,987
h-index
50

Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 22 October 2026.

Timeline

  1. 2006–2009

    MIT, SRI and Georgia Tech

    He completes a computer science PhD at MIT in 2006. After three years as a researcher at SRI, he joins Georgia Tech in 2009.

  2. 2010

    Ring-LWE at Eurocrypt

    With Vadim Lyubashevsky and Oded Regev, he publishes “On Ideal Lattices and Learning with Errors over Rings” at Eurocrypt in 2010. The paper introduces Ring-LWE and lays a theoretical and practical foundation for efficient lattice-based cryptography.

  3. 2015

    Joining the University of Michigan

    In 2015, he joins the University of Michigan from Georgia Tech’s College of Computing, where he holds an associate professor rank.

  4. 2017

    A TCC Test-of-Time Award

    He and Alon Rosen receive the TCC Test-of-Time Award in 2017 for their 2006 paper on collision-resistant hashing from cyclic lattices. The award recognizes work advancing hard algebraic lattice problems in cryptography.

  5. 2021

    F1 for private deep learning

    He coauthors F1, a programmable fully homomorphic encryption accelerator, in 2021. Its speedups enable real-time private deep learning in the cloud.

  6. 2024

    An IACR Fellowship

    In 2024, he becomes an IACR Fellow for fundamental contributions to the functionality, efficiency, and security of lattice-based cryptography, and for service to the association.

  7. April 2025

    A Eurocrypt Test-of-Time Award

    In April 2025, IACR gives the Eurocrypt 2010 paper “On Ideal Lattices and Learning with Errors over Rings” a Test-of-Time Award. The award recognizes the paper for introducing Ring-LWE and laying the theoretical and practical foundation for efficient lattice-based cryptography.

  8. Since March 2026

    Chief Scientific Officer at Algorand

    Since March 2026, he serves as Chief Scientific Officer at the Algorand Foundation, after serving as Head of Cryptography at Algorand Technologies. At the time of the appointment, he is also the Arthur W. Burks Collegiate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Michigan, and continues Algorand’s post-quantum security implementation work. In August 2026, he speaks at CLAW, Crypto 2026, and Selected Areas in Cryptography.

Career

  1. Since 2026Algorand FoundationChief Scientific Officer
  2. Since 2015University of MichiganArthur W. Burks Collegiate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
  3. 2008–2015Georgia Institute of TechnologyAssociate Professor
  4. 2006–2009SRI InternationalResearcher
  5. 2004–2006MIT CSAIL
  6. AlgorandHead of Cryptography

Education

  1. 2006Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyPhD

From the biography and OpenAlex affiliations (the years of papers that list the organization), so some years are approximate.

  1. Universities had a net outflow of 2,068 moves in AI careersIncludes University of Michigan. Our estimates of career flows and median h-index across universities and companies in AI, including the role of joint appointments and earlier academic jobs.
  2. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes University of Michigan. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and 5+ year employment links, career timing and current workplaces for 187 major-prize and 1,111 best-paper winners.
  3. Universities keep AI researchers for a median of 6 years, compared with 2 years at frontier labsIncludes University of Michigan. Across 15,811 dated work stays (6,529 people), median role tenure runs from 6 years at universities to 2 years at frontier labs. We compare all five organization types, starting decades from the 1970s to the 2020s, and the organizations that keep people longest.
  4. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes Massachusetts Institute of Technology. We estimate where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led. Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads with 467 former students, including 291 recorded doctorates.

Colleagues

People named in this biography, and people with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

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  1. Chris Peikert simons.berkeley.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  2. Announcing the 2025 IACR Test-of-Time Award for Eurocrypt iacr.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  3. Michigan Engineering Update October 5, 2015 michengupdates.engin.umich.edu. Checked 22 October 2026.
  4. TCC Test of Time Award iacr.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  5. F1: A Fast and Programmable Accelerator for Fully Homomorphic Encryption (Extended Version) arxiv.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  6. Chris Peikert, 2024 IACR Fellow iacr.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  7. Algorand Foundation expands Protocol Engineering Team with key hires from Algorand Technologies algorand.co. Checked 22 October 2026.
  8. August 2026 Algo Insights Report algorand.co. Checked 22 October 2026.