Professor Aggelos Kiayias FRSE is a distinguished computer scientist and internationally recognized authority in cryptography and blockchain technologies. He currently serves as Chair in Cyber Security and Privacy at the University of Edinburgh and directs the institution's Blockchain Technology Laboratory within the Bayes Centre. Additionally, he holds the position of Chief Scientist at Input Output Global, where he provides critical theoretical foundations for the Cardano blockchain platform. Having earned his PhD from the City University of New York following undergraduate studies in mathematics at the University of Athens, Kiayias has established himself as a preeminent figure in cryptographic research and secure distributed systems. His leadership in establishing one of Europe's first comprehensive blockchain courses at the University of Edinburgh in 2017 positioned the institution as a pioneering academic center in this emerging field according to the Financial Times.
Professor Kiayias's groundbreaking research has fundamentally shaped the theoretical foundations of blockchain technology, most notably through his leadership in developing the Ouroboros proof-of-stake consensus protocol published in 2016, which represents the first provably secure proof-of-stake blockchain protocol. His work on Ouroboros has been instrumental in establishing Cardano as a scientifically rigorous blockchain platform with formal security guarantees, distinguishing it from contemporaneous systems that lacked rigorous cryptographic foundations. Kiayias has also made significant contributions to electronic voting systems, privacy-preserving technologies, and the application of game theory to maintain Nash equilibrium in decentralized networks. His innovative research on governance models, scalability solutions, and systemic risk in blockchain technology has transformed theoretical cryptographic concepts into practical, secure distributed systems that address real-world challenges.
Beyond his technical contributions, Kiayias has played a pivotal role in building the academic foundations for blockchain research, mentoring numerous PhD students and early-career researchers through the University of Edinburgh's Blockchain Technology Laboratory which by 2021 had grown to include nine staff members and 21 researchers. His election as Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2021 and subsequent receipt of the prestigious BCS Lovelace Medal in 2024 underscore the profound impact of his work on both theoretical and applied computer science. Kiayias continues to advance the frontiers of secure distributed systems through ongoing research in economically sustainable, privacy-preserving mixnets and blockchain security. His current work focuses on developing robust governance models and addressing systemic risks in decentralized systems, ensuring his continued influence on the evolution of secure cryptographic infrastructure for years to come.
