Blockchain Security and Applications

Funded in part by an industry research grant

Aron Laszka

Taha Eghtesad

This project studies the following research topics:

Security of blockchain-based consensus protocols
Secure smart contracts
Applications of blockchains

Blockchains Cybersecurity

Team

Aron Laszka

Associate Professor

Aron Laszka is an Associate Professor in the College of Information Sciences and Technology at the Pennsylvania State University. Previously, he was an Assistant Professor at the University of Houston, a Research Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University, and a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley.

His research interests revolve around artificial intelligence and cyber-physical systems, focusing on machine learning for decision making and optimization, with applications in smart and connected communities, critical infrastructure, and cybersecurity.

His research is funded by the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the Department of Transportation, and other agencies.

Taha Eghtesad

Ph.D. 2026

Taha Eghtesad joined the Applied Artificial Intelligence Lab as a Ph.D. student in Fall 2018 and received his Ph.D. in 2026 under the supervision of Dr. Aron Laszka. He received a B.S. degree in Computer Engineering, with a minor in Software Engineering, from Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran. His research lies at the intersection of machine learning, game theory, cyber-physical systems, and systems security. In particular, his Ph.D. research focused on using artificial intelligence and machine learning to make cyber-physical systems more secure.