Dr Antonio Alberti

Profile

I am an Associate Professor in Software Engineering at the School of Computer Science, University of Leeds, UK. I have over 20 years of experience at the National Institute of Telecommunications (Inatel), Brazil. I completed my PhD at the State University of Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil, and I was a visiting researcher at the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), South Korea. I have leadership experience in coordinating research teams and securing research funding. I have published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers in high-impact journals and conferences and have delivered over 90 talks on technology and its disruptive impacts, including presentations at major Brazilian events in this field. I served as the Chief Architect of the NovaGenesis Future Internet project (2008–2024) and have contributed to Future Internet initiatives in South Korea and the initial discussions of the Brazilian National M2M/IoT Plan. Additionally, I played a key role in designing the architecture of the Brazil 6G Project. Beyond my academic and research achievements, I founded a social entrepreneurship network movement called Renascidade and authored a book titled Novos Renascimentos. I am also a proficient C/C++ developer.

Research interests

I have a keen interest in reimagining the foundational structures of information and communication technologies (ICT) in a convergent manner to enhance their efficiency, flexibility, autonomicity, security, robustness, and adaptability. This includes exploring physical world programmability, systems self-organisation, service orientation, immutability, and secure naming, among other key themes.

A significant portion of my research has been devoted to addressing the architectural limitations of current ICT and proposing novel solutions that incorporate emerging concepts such as name-based security, improved naming resolution, self-organisation, contract-based operation, physical world representation, immutable information storage and processing, distributed resource federation and slicing, digital monetisation, and opportunistic ICT.

In this context, I have contributed to advancements in distributed systems, service-oriented architectures, 5G/6G architectures, the Internet of Things (IoT), smart environments, blockchain- and tangle-based solutions for digital monetisation, cloud/edge computing architectures, cognitive radio, and platforms for ICT experimentation. My work on 5G and 6G technologies, including hybrid terrestrial-satellite architectures and the design of a disruptive 6G architecture, reflects a focus on advancing mobile communication technologies to meet emerging demands and applications.

The future of ICT is poised to be significantly influenced by advancements in AI/ML, the programmability of physical devices, digital twins of physical resources, in-network computing, decentralised computing paradigms, and the digital monetisation of assets. My involvement in projects related to smart cities and digital transformation underlines my interest in applying research to solve real-world problems, particularly those involving the integration of ICT in urban, industrial, and rural settings. 

Consequently, my primary interest lies in continuing to contribute to the evolution of convergent ICT. Across my research, there is a consistent theme of integrating diverse technologies—ranging from cloud/edge computing, IoT, AI, and digital twins to distributed ledger technology—to address complex challenges in various domains of society, such as supply chain management, spectrum resource management, Industry 5.0, content distribution, and smart environments.

Qualifications

• B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering (Federal University of Santa Maria) 1995
• M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering (FEEC/Unicamp) 1998
• Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (FEEC/Unicamp) 2003