PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Roberto Di Pietro

Roberto Di Pietro is a computer scientist whose research covers AI-driven cybersecurity and the protection of critical infrastructure. He studied computer science at the University of Pisa, served as a senior technical officer in the Italian Ministry of Defence from 1995 to 2006, and completed a Ph.D. at Sapienza University of Rome in 2004. After tenured posts at Roma Tre and Padua, he was Global Head of Security Research at Nokia Bell Labs from 2013 to 2017, then founded the Cyber-Security Research Innovation Lab at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar. He became an ACM Distinguished Scientist in 2019, shared the 2020 Jean-Claude Laprie Award for a 2008 paper on provable data possession, and became an IEEE Fellow and a member of Academia Europaea in 2023. Since June 2023, he is a professor of computer science at KAUST in Saudi Arabia, where he is principal investigator of the Cybersecurity Research and Innovation Laboratory.

Badges

Timeline

  1. 1990–2006

    From Pisa to the Defence Ministry

    While studying computer science at the University of Pisa in 1990, he first recognizes the fragility of emerging internet-based systems, and he earns an M.S. in Computer Science there in 1994. From 1995 to 2006, he serves as a senior technical officer, with the rank of Major, in the Italian Ministry of Defence, managing ICT projects focused on resiliency and security. He completes a Ph.D. in Computer Science at Sapienza University of Rome in 2004.

  2. 2006–2017

    Roma Tre, Bell Labs, Padua

    He becomes a tenured assistant professor of computer science at the University of Roma Tre in 2006. From December 2013 to July 2017, he is Global Head of Security Research at Nokia Bell Labs, where he manages three security research departments in Paris, Munich and Espoo, and from 2015 to 2017 he is also a tenured associate professor of computer science at the University of Padua.

  3. 2017–2023

    Founding the CRI-Lab in Doha

    In 2017, he joins the College of Science and Engineering at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Doha as a professor of cybersecurity and founds its Cyber-Security Research Innovation Lab (CRI-Lab). By 2019, the lab's research directions include avionics security, cryptojacking, virtualization security and wireless security.

  4. 2019

    An ACM Distinguished Scientist

    In 2019, the ACM names him a Distinguished Scientist for his outstanding scientific contributions to computing. He is one of about 50 scientists honored and the only one from the Middle East and North Africa region.

  5. 2020

    The Jean-Claude Laprie Award

    In 2020, IFIP Working Group 10.4 gives its Jean-Claude Laprie Award in Dependable Computing to "Scalable and Efficient Provable Data Possession", a 2008 SecureComm paper written with Giuseppe Ateniese, Luigi V. Mancini and Gene Tsudik. The award recognizes work that established the basis for provable data possession built on highly efficient symmetric key cryptography.

  6. 2023

    IEEE Fellow and Academia Europaea

    In 2023, he is elevated to IEEE Fellow for contributions to the security of distributed systems, a body of work that includes AI-driven cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection. He is also elected in 2023 to the Informatics section of Academia Europaea.

  7. June 2023

    Professor at KAUST

    In June 2023, he joins KAUST as a professor of computer science in the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division. He is affiliated with the Resilient Computing and Cybersecurity Center (RC3).

  8. As of October 2026

    AI-driven infrastructure security

    He is principal investigator of the Cybersecurity Research and Innovation Laboratory at KAUST. In 2026, his critical infrastructure work applies artificial intelligence to flag anomalous behavior such as spoofing attempts, unauthorized access and irregular communication patterns.

Career

  1. Since 2023King Abdullah University of Science and TechnologyProfessor of Computer Science
  2. 2017–2023Hamad bin Khalifa UniversityProfessor of Cybersecurity, Founder
  3. 2015–2017University of PaduaTenured Associate Professor of Computer Science
  4. 2013–2017Bell LabsGlobal Head of Security Research
  5. 2006–2017Roma Tre UniversityTenured Assistant Professor of Computer Science
  6. 1995–2006Ministry of Defence of ItalySenior Technical Officer

Education

  1. 2004Sapienza University of RomePhD
  2. 1994University of PisaM.S. in Computer Science

From the biography.

  1. The United States employs an estimated 48% of people shaping AIIncludes King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We estimate where the people shaping AI work today, how universities, companies and research institutes split across countries, and how country shares have changed since the 1960s.
  2. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes King Abdullah University of Science and 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.
  3. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  4. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.

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. Roberto Di Pietro | Professor, Computer Science | Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering cemse.kaust.edu.sa. Checked 22 October 2026.
  2. Academy of Europe: Di Pietro Roberto ae-info.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  3. CEMSE New Faculty: Professor Roberto Di Pietro cemse.kaust.edu.sa. Checked 22 October 2026.
  4. Protecting the systems that power modern life cemse.kaust.edu.sa. Checked 22 October 2026.
  5. Digital Security Department Talk - Cybersecurity Research and Innovation Lab: Research activities and Possible Collaborations | EURECOM eurecom.fr. Checked 22 October 2026.
  6. Roberto Di Pietro Named Distinguished Scientist by ACM hbku.edu.qa. Checked 22 October 2026.
  7. Ateniese, Di Pietro, Mancini, and Tsudik win the 2020 Jean-Claude Laprie Award dependability.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  8. CSE Professor Elevated to IEEE Fellow hbku.edu.qa. Checked 22 October 2026.
  9. Professor Roberto Di Pietro elected to the Academia Europaea cemse.kaust.edu.sa. Checked 22 October 2026.