From Lab to Industry: IITB Trust Lab's First Alumni
Four alumni with four different paths. Discover how IITB Trust Lab’s first batch of alumni is applying their expertise at leading tech companies.
The first cohort of IITB Trust Lab alumni has successfully transitioned into industry, leveraging their research expertise to tackle real-world challenges. Their work spans vital areas of Digital Trust—including blockchain, network security, and microarchitecture—meeting the evolving needs of today’s technology landscape.
In this article, we spotlight several alumni whose unique research focuses have paved the way for impactful careers. Their journeys from graduate researchers to industry propgessionals highlight both the vast opportunities in Digital Trust and the diverse career paths within this rapidly growing field.
Nikhil Sharma
Nikhil Sharma, now interning as a Group Control and Cloud Service Engineer at Honda R&D Japan, earned his M.Tech in Computer Science from IIT Bombay’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering. His thesis, “Incentivizing Low Latency in a P2P Network,” was completed under the mentorship of Prof. Vinay J. Ribeiro, a faculty member at IITB Trust Lab. Nikhil attributes much of his professional growth to Prof. Vinay Ribeiro’s mentorship, which helped him navigate the challenges of this rapidly evolving field.
While at IITB Trust Lab, Nikhil’s research focused on networks, blockchain, and security, and these skills have become crucial in his current role.
He reflects on how the experience of working at the lab provided him with the tools to analyze research papers and approach problem-solving in a structured way, skills he uses in his day-to-day work.
A highlight of his time at the lab was winning the Best Poster Presentation Award at Research and Innovation Symposium in Computing (RISC) 2023 hosted by IITB CSE Department.
Reflecting on his experience, Nikhil shared, “Prof. Ribeiro played a crucial role in my professional development. He was supportive throughout my research and made the journey enjoyable.”
Saksham Agarwal
Saksham Agarwal, now a blockchain specialist, earned his MS by Research in Computer Science and Engineering from IIT Bombay. During his time at IITB Trust Lab, Saksham conducted research on mitigating front-running and bribery attacks in blockchain systems under the mentorship of Prof. Vinay Ribeiro.
He worked on developing a protocol using time-lock encryption to address these critical blockchain vulnerabilities. Reflecting on his research journey, he shared, “Front-running and bribery attacks pose serious challenges in blockchain. My work focused on creating solutions to mitigate these risks.”
Saksham credits Prof. Vinay Ribeiro for his invaluable support, noting, “Prof. Ribeiro was instrumental in guiding me through every phase of my research, helping me grow both professionally and personally.”
One of his achievements at the IITB Trust Lab was winning the Best Poster Award at the Research and Innovation Symposium in Computing. He also cherishes numerous memorable experiences at the lab, which have had a lasting impact on his career.
Sumon Nath
After completing his MS by Research in Computer Science from the CSE Department at IIT Bombay Sumon Nath transitioned into a Senior Engineer role at Samsung Research.
During his time at IIT Bombay, he was connected to the IITB Trust Lab through his mentor Prof. Biswabandan Panda, an associate faculty member at IITB Trust Lab whose research focuses on Digital Trust, particularly in microarchitecture security and performance.
One of Sumon’s major achievements was presenting his research, “Secure Prefetching for Secure Cache Systems,” presenting his paper titled “Secure Prefetching for Secure Cache Systems” at the 57th IEEE/ACM International Symposium on Microarchitecture (MICRO), the premier conference in Computer Architecture. This research, supported by IITB Trust Lab, addresses the challenges between secure caches and hardware prefetching, and it offers a pioneering approach to mitigating transient execution attacks through hardware prefetchers without sacrificing performance. Notably, it’s the first MICRO paper from an IIT M.Tech./MS student since 2007.
Reflecting on his journey, he expressed deep appreciation for Prof. Panda’s guidance, saying, “Prof. Biswabandan Panda played a huge role in my academic and research growth. He taught me valuable lessons in professionalism and time management, and his expertise in microarchitecture was key to the success of my research.”
Tejas Rathod
Tejas Rathod, another distinguished alumnus, earned his M.Tech in Computer Science from IIT Bombay in 2024 and is now a Full Stack Developer at DSP Mutual Fund.
For his thesis, Tejas focused on “Randomized Deadline: Safeguarding GASPER in Ethereum,” under the supervision of Prof. Ribeiro.
Reflecting on his time at the IITB Trust Lab, Tejas expressed gratitude for Prof. Ribeiro’s guidance, saying, “His insights were critical, especially when I faced roadblocks in my research.” Tejas worked extensively in the blockchain domain, developing protocols to enhance the security of Ethereum.
He also fondly recalls the collaborative atmosphere of the lab and the learning opportunities that came from events like the Trust Summit. “The bi-weekly lunches and discussions with peers were great for fostering a strong sense of community,” he added.
