Profiles

Ahmed M. Eltawil is the Associate Dean for Research at the CEMSE Division and a professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Program at KAUST. He joined the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering (CEMSE) Division in 2019. At KAUST, he founded and directs the Communication and Computing Systems Laboratory (CCSL). Previously, he was a faculty member in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), U.S., from 2005 to 2019.

His research at the CCSL at KAUST focuses on efficient architectures for computing and communications systems, with an emphasis on wireless systems. This research spans several application domains, including low-power mobile systems, machine learning platforms, sensor networks, body area networks, and critical infrastructure networks.

An active participant in the academic community, Eltawil has served on the technical program and steering committees for numerous workshops, symposia and conferences focused on low-power computing and wireless communication system design. He is a recipient of several prestigious awards and grants, including the NSF CAREER grant for his research in low-power computing and communication systems.

He is a Senior Member, Distinguished Lecturer (2023/24) of the IEEE, and a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors. In 2021, he was recognized as "Innovator of the Year" by the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at UCI and received two US Congressional Recognition Awards for his pioneering work in wireless systems. Committed to a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach, Professor Eltawil is passionate about translational research, aiming to move practical innovations from the lab to societal applications.

Professor Eltawil’s current research focuses on efficient architectures for computing and communications systems and wireless networks, encompassing low-power mobile systems, sensor networks, body-area networks, cyber-physical systems and critical infrastructure networks.

His research examines the larger context of smart and connected systems where devices seamlessly integrate into our daily lives. His approach to research combines rigorous analysis with a robust experimental background that leverages insights obtained through simulations and corroborated by experiments. By finding innovative solutions to research problems, he aspires to offer practical approaches that can be readily adopted, resulting in significant societal benefits.

Abdulkadir Celik received the first M.S. degree in electrical engineering in 2013, the second M.S. degree in computer engineering in 2015, and the Ph.D. degree in co-majors of electrical engineering and computer engineering from Iowa State University, Ames, IA, USA, in 2016. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, KSA, from 2016 to 2020, where he is currently a Senior Research Scientist with the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory. His research interests are in the broad areas of next-generation wireless communication systems and networks. Dr. Celik is a senior member of IEEE and currently serves as an editor for IEEE Communications Letters, IEEE Wireless Communication Letters, and Frontiers in Communications and  Networks.

Abdulkadir Celik's research focuses on next-generation wireless communication systems, including network design, optimization, and emerging wireless technologies.

Ahmed Nasser received his M.Sc. degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering from the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-JUST), New Borg El Arab, Egypt, in 2016. He earned a double Ph.D. degree from Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan, and E-JUST, Egypt, in 2020. He is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia. His research interests lie in the broad areas of next-generation wireless communication systems and networks.

Ahmed's research interests focus on both learning and non-learning based techniques for enhancing the performance of emerging technologies in 6G wireless networks.

Asmaa Abdallah received the B.S. degree (with High Distinction) and the M.S. degree in Computer and Communications Engineering from Rafik Hariri University (RHU), Lebanon, in 2013 and 2015, respectively. She earned her Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the American University of Beirut (AUB), Lebanon, in 2020.

From 2021 to 2024, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), where she is currently a Research Scientist in the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory.

Between 2016 and 2020, Dr. Abdallah served on the executive committee of the IEEE Young Professionals Lebanon Section. She was the recipient of the Academic Excellence Award at RHU in 2013 for graduating top of her class. She also received a scholarship from the Lebanese National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS-L/AUB) in support of her doctoral studies.

In 2023, Dr. Abdallah was named one of the 15 leading Innovators Under 35 in the MENA region by MIT Technology Review. Her research interests include machine learning, communication theory, stochastic geometry, and array signal processing, with a focus on energy- and spectrally-efficient algorithms for next-generation wireless communication systems.

Ms. Abdallah's research interests include communication theory, stochastic geometry for wireless communications, machine learning for wireless communications, array signal processing, with emphasis on energy and spectral efficient algorithms for emerging wireless communication technologies.

Abeer Alamoudi received her B.Sc. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Effat University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 2019. She earned her M.Sc. degree from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in 2021 and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. with the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory (CCSL) at KAUST.

Abeer Alamoudi’s research centers on Human Body Communications (HBC) and the Internet of Bodies (IoB). Her primary focus is on developing self-sustainable IoB sensor nodes by exploring various communication access schemes and energy harvesting techniques. The goal is to power these systems efficiently while meeting the diverse quality-of-service (QoS) requirements demanded at the application level.

Ahmed Hussain received his B.E. degree in Avionics Engineering from the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan, in 2014. He earned his M.S. degree in Avionics Engineering from the Aerospace and Aviation Campus, Kamra, Pakistan. During his undergraduate studies, he was awarded the President’s Gold Medal for achieving the highest GPA and the Rector’s Gold Medal for the best project. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. degree at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia.

His research interests include deep learning-enabled near-field communication, digital array signal processing, and wireless communications.

Amr N. Abdelrahman received his B.Sc. (Hons.) degree in Nanotechnology and Nanoelectronics Engineering from the University of Science and Technology, Zewail City, Egypt, in 2021, and his M.Sc. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, in 2023. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at KAUST. In 2024, he was a visiting scholar at Polytechnique Montréal, Canada.

His research focuses on the development of ultra-low-power transceivers for next-generation wearable devices using human body communication (HBC). His work aims to enable wire-free connectivity between low-power wearable sensor nodes without relying on traditional RF or wired links.

Amr's research interests include human body communication, analog and mixed-signal circuit design, and low-power electronics for biomedical applications.

Bumin K. Yildirim received his B.Sc. degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from TED University, Ankara, Türkiye, in 2020, and his M.Sc. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, in 2023. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory (CCSL) at KAUST.

Bumin's research focuses on exploring generative artificial intelligence-based solutions to address the challenges of future wireless communication networks.

Diego Augusto Silva is a Ph.D. candidate at the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory (CCSL) within the Computer, Electrical, and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering (CEMSE) Division at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia. His research focuses on event-based vision, object recognition, deep learning, and neuromorphic computing.

He received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Federal University of São João del-Rei (UFSJ), Brazil, in 2018, and his M.Sc. degree in Electronic Engineering and Computing from the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA), Brazil, in 2020, with a specialization in Electronic Devices and Systems.

Diego’s technical expertise spans both theoretical and practical aspects, with significant experience in FPGA prototyping and asynchronous logic design. His innovative work has been recognized through two hackathon awards in his research areas, highlighting his ability to translate advanced neuromorphic computing and event-based vision concepts into real-world solutions.

Diego's research interests include the digital logic design of algorithms and event-based cameras.

Jinane Bazzi received her Bachelor’s degree in Computer and Communications Engineering from the American University of Beirut (AUB) in 2021, graduating with High Distinction. She earned her Master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in 2023. During her graduate studies, she was also a visiting student at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering at KAUST.

Jinane's research lies at the intersection of hardware architecture and deep learning, with a focus on compute-in-memory (CIM) techniques for efficient AI acceleration.

Khalid Kanaan received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia, in 2022, graduating with First Honors. He was awarded first place in the 4th Boeing Engineering Student Competition for his capstone project. He is currently pursuing both M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia.

Madi Makin (Graduate Student Member, IEEE) received both his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.

His research interests include wireless communication systems, with a particular focus on reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), non-orthogonal multiple-access (NOMA) networks, and physical-layer security.

Madi's research interests include wireless communication systems, with a particular focus on reconfigurable intelligent surfaces, non-orthogonal multiple-access (NOMA) networks, and physical-layer security.

Mojtaba AlShams is a Ph.D. student in Electrical and Computer Engineering at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), specializing in distributed machine learning and hardware-aware inference. He holds a Master’s degree from KAUST and a Bachelor’s degree from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM).

Mojtaba has a strong academic foundation in computing systems, embedded design, and machine learning, complemented by hands-on experience in electrical engineering roles. He has also demonstrated impactful leadership through national educational initiatives, effectively combining deep technical expertise with strategic leadership capabilities.

His research interests focus on edge computing paradigms and distributed learning, with an emphasis on hardware-aware, energy-efficient inference across heterogeneous edge devices.

Rajat Kumar is a Ph.D. student at the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering (CEMSE) Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. He received the Bachelor of Technology degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Hamirpur, India, in 2019 and the Master of Technology degree in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi, India, in 2021.

His research interests encompass energy harvesting, nanoelectronics, beyond-CMOS devices, and VLSI design.

Ruochen Zhu received his B.S. degree in Information Engineering from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in 2024. He is currently pursuing M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) program at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), under the supervision of Prof. Ahmed Eltawil.

Yousef Awad received his B.Sc. degree in Communication and Networks Engineering from Prince Sultan University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2020, and his M.Sc. degree in Telecommunication Engineering from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in 2024. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.

His research interests span various areas of wireless communication systems, including Integrated Sensing and Communications (ISAC), Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) detection, and applications of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RISs). During his M.Sc. studies, he also worked as a Telecommunication Engineer at King Fahd International Airport (KFIA), Dammam, Saudi Arabia, with Enova by Veolia.

Yousef’s research interests span various topics in wireless communication systems, including Integrated Sensing and Communications (ISAC), Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) detection, and applications of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RISs).

Zhandos Zhakipov received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan, in 2022 and 2024, respectively. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the Communications and Computing Systems Laboratory (CCSL) at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), under the supervision of Prof. Ahmed Eltawil.

Zhandos Zhakipov's research interests include reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), millimeter-wave (mmWave) communication, the Internet of Things (IoT), and digital twins for wireless communication systems.