Keynote speakers
Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou
Prof. Dimitra Simeonidou OBE: is the Chief Scientific Advisor to the European Commission, the Director of Smart Internet Lab at the University of Bristol and the Founding Director of the Bristol Digital Futures Institute. Her research is focusing on the fields of high-performance networks, programmable networks, Future Internet, 5G/6G and smart city infrastructures. She has been the Technical Architect, and the CTO of the smart city project Bristol Is Open. In the past few years, she is increasingly working on cross-disciplinary topics addressing digital transformation for society and businesses. Dimitra has been a member of the UK Government Supply Chain Diversification Task Force and Advisory Council. She is a founding member of the UK Telecoms Innovation Network and member of the OFCOM Spectrum Advisory Board. She has led major research projects funded by UK Government and the EC. She is currently coordinating the DSIT REASON project developing blueprint architectures and technologies for 6G and the EPSRC JOINER project, establishing a UK-wide experimentation platform for 6G research and innovation. She is the author and co-author of over 700 publications, numerous patents and several contributions to standards. She has been co-founder of three spin-out companies developing solutions for connected smart infrastructures. Dimitra is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng), a Fellow of the IEEE (FIEEE), Fellow of WWRF and member of UKCRC. In 2025 she has been recognised with an OBE for service to communication technologies research and scientific policy.
Ashkan Seyedi, NVIDIA
Ashkan Seyedi received a dual bachelor's in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a Ph.D. from University of Southern California working on photonic crystal devices, high-speed nanowire photodetectors, efficient white LEDs, and solar cells. With a decade of industry experience at Intel, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and now NVidia, Dr. Seyedi has been working on developing high-bandwidth, efficient optical interconnects for AI and high-performance computing applications.
Elham Kashefi, NQCC/Uni Edinburgh/CNRS
Kashefi has pioneered transdisciplinary research on quantum computing technology, from formal foundations to industrial use-case delivery. She co-founded the fields of secure quantum cloud computing and quantum verification. Her research integrates software (simulation, modelling, verification) across diverse hardware platforms, delivering certifiable impact in quantum computing (machine learning, cryptanalysis) and quantum networks (quantum cryptography). As NQCC Chief Scientist, she provides academic leadership to the UK quantum program. A global community leader, she champions the quantum application ecosystem through roles in UK Hubs and conference steering committees (QIP, QCTiP), and numerous advisory positions. She is committed to talent development, EDI, and responsible innovation. Recipient of EPSRC Advanced and Established Career Fellowships, the French Margaret Intrapreneur Award (2021), and elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (2024).
Xi (Vivian) Chen, Nokia Bell Labs
Xi (Vivian) Chen is the Department Head for the Opto-Electronic Subsystems Department at Nokia Bell Labs. She received her Ph.D. degree in optical fiber communication in 2012 from the University of Melbourne in Australia. Her research interests include fiber transmission, modulation format, digital signal processing, ultra-high symbol rate signal generation and detection, etc. She is a senior member of IEEE and a recipient of the Young Investigator Award (2021) from the IEEE Photonics Society.
Speakers
Hanaa Abumarshoud
Dr Hanaa Abumarshoud is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in the James Watt School of Engineering at the University of Glasgow, UK. Prior to this, she was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the LiFi Research and Development Centre at the University of Strathclyde (2020–2022) and the University of Edinburgh (2017–2020). She received her MSc and PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Khalifa University, UAE, in 2013 and 2017, respectively. Her research focuses on the design of intelligent LiFi systems, applying information theory and signal processing techniques to address fundamental challenges in visible light communications. Her work aims to develop energy-efficient, scalable, and cost-effective light-based connectivity solutions that transform the way humans and intelligent environments interact through light. She was awarded the highly competitive EPSRC New Investigator Award (NIA), securing over £550K to pioneer the next generation of intelligent LiFi systems. Dr Abumarshoud was endorsed as a “Global Talent” by the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK in 2022 and was named among the “100 Brilliant and Inspiring Women in 6G” by the Women in 6G community in both 2024 and 2025 for her contributions to the field. She is a Senior Member of IEEE and served as an Associate Editor for IEEE Communications Letters (2022-2024). She regularly contributes as an Organising Committee Member for flagship conferences, organises and chairs technical workshops, and serves as a reviewer for leading international journals and conferences within IEEE, the Royal Society, and the Optical Society. She received the IEEE TAOS Best Paper Award in 2022.
Abdallah Ali
Abdallah Ali is a Senior Cloud Network Engineer at Microsoft (UK), where he specializes in hollow-core fiber (HCF) technology and advanced optical transmission systems. His work focuses on designing energy-efficient, high-capacity communication links using next-generation photonic technologies. Before joining Microsoft, Abdallah completed his PhD in Optical Communications and subsequently worked as a postdoctoral researcher, developing low-power, high-performance data-transmission solutions. He has authored more than 40 publications and conference papers, including a book chapter, and continues to advance sustainable, high-efficiency optical networking through both research and industry innovation.
Liam Barry
Liam Barry received his BE (Electronic Engineering) and MEngSc (Optical Communications) degrees from University College Dublin in 1991 and 1993 respectively. He was then employed as a Research Engineer in the Optical Systems Department of France Telecom's Research Laboratories (now known as Orange Labs) in Lannion, France, and based on his research on high capacity optical networks he obtained his PhD Degree from the University of Rennes in France. In 1996 he joined the Applied Optics Centre in Auckland University, New Zealand, as a Research Fellow and in 1998 he took up a lecturing position in the School of Electronic Engineering at Dublin City University, and established the Radio and Optical Communications Laboratory. He is currently a Full Professor in the School of Electronic Engineering, a Principal Investigator for Science Foundation Ireland, and Director of the Radio and Optical Communications Laboratory. His main research interests are; all-optical signal processing, optical signal characterization, hybrid radio/fibre systems, novel optical sources including frequency combs and tunable lasers for future networks. He has been a TPC member for the European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC) intermittently from 2004 and served as ECOC Co-Chair for ECOC2019 in Dublin. He has also been a TPC member for the Optical Fibre Communication Conference (OFC) serving as Chair of the Optoelectronic Devices sub-committee for OFC 2010.
Kasia Balakier
Optical & Quantum Communication Technology Manager Directorate of Connectivity and Secure Communications
Alejandra Beghelli
Alejandra Beghelli is a Research Scientist at the Optics & Quantum Centre of Excellence at BT Group, where her research focuses on future optical and quantum networks. She also holds an Honorary Associate Professor position at the Electronic & Electrical Engineering Department at UCL.
Nigel Davis
Nigel Davis is a Systems Design Architect at Ciena and a key innovator in multi-layer information modeling. He was recognized as a Ciena Distinguished Engineer in 2014 and Ciena Fellow in 2015. He was highly active in the TeleManagement Forum, where is recognized as a Distinguished Fellow. Nigel had major involvement in Open Networking Foundation where he formed and co-led the Open Information Model & Tooling project and was the editor of and key contributor to the Core Information Model (reproduced as ITU-T G.7711). Within Ciena Nigel was deeply involved in development of the Self Optimizing Fabric architecture pattern and has a long-term ongoing engagement in Management-Control product architecture working closely with the design teams. Nigel is currently the editor of and a key contributor to the Linux Foundation Transport API specifications adopted by many operators as the interface for optical network controllers. He is engaged in development of several IETF drafts aiming for advancements in the modeling of control solutions and for convergence of control models and architectures. As part of the work in IETF Nigel is developing a method for representation of component capabilities in the context of AI Ops and digital twins. Nigel has many patents on management and control.
Eleni Diamanti
Prof. Eleni Diamanti is CNRS research director at the LIP6 laboratory of Sorbonne University in Paris. She received her PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University in 2006 and was a Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Optics Graduate School in Palaiseau before joining the CNRS in 2009. Her research focuses on experimental quantum cryptography and communication, and on the development of photonic resources and applications for quantum networks. She is a recepient of a European Research Council Grant, director of the Paris Centre for Quantum Technologies, and was awarded the CNRS Silver and Innovation Medals in 2024. She also serves as vice chair of the European Quantum Technologies Flagship Strategic Advisory Board and is cofounder and scientific advisor of the start-up company Welinq that specializes in quantum interconnect technology.
Michael Doherty
Michael is a PhD student in the Optical Networks Group at UCL, researching reinforcement learning for optimized operation of fibre optic networks. In 2025, Michael was an Enrichment Scholar at The Alan Turing Institute and worked on AI for quantum circuit design at Quantinuum. His research has been presented at ONG, ECOC, and ONDM conferences. Michael holds an MSci in Physics from Imperial College London.
Thalia Dominguez Bucio
Thalia Dominguez Bucio holds a BS in Electronic and Computer Engineering from the Monterrey Institute of Technology, and an MSc in Photonic Technologies and a PhD in Optoelectronics from the University of Southampton. She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), where she leads the development of CMOS compatible platforms for visible and near infrared integrated photonics. Her work enables high performance device technologies for emerging applications in sensing, communications, and quantum systems. She collaborates closely with partners across industry and academia to advance next generation photonic components and has been recognised with the ORC Advanced Fellowship and the Optica Paul F. Forman Team Engineering Excellence Award.
James Edmunds
James Edmunds is a senior optical systems engineer at G&H in Torquay, Devon. His work is focused on the design, development and commercialization of optical fibre systems for space. He is currently leading the European Space Agency, Scylight-funded programme, EPOS (Extremely Powerful Optical Sources) which is targeting the development of WDM fibre optical amplifier systems for next generation, Tbps optical satellite communication.
Jörg-Peter Elbers
Jörg-Peter Elbers is VP of Advanced Technology, Standards & IPR at Atran, responsible for global technology strategy, applied research, standardization, and intellectual property. He has over 25 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, with previous technical leadership roles at ADVA, Ericsson, Marconi, and Siemens. Jörg holds a Dr.-Ing. (PhD) degree in Electrical Engineering from the Technical University of Dortmund, Germany.
Alessandro Fedrizzi
Alessandro Fedrizzi is a professor of physics at Heriot-Watt University. He has been involved in quantum technology research for nearly twenty years, focusing on the development of pioneering quantum light sources and their application in quantum communication, sensing, and computing. Alessandro is an assistant director of the UK Integrated Quantum Networks (IQN) Hub, where he leads the entanglement networking work-package and the UK-QEYSSat collaboration.
Ana González
Dr. Ana González is currently VP of Business Development at iPRONICS. Former R&D Manager at EPIC (European Photonics Industry Consortium), she has a solid network at photonic industry with a large experience reaching out commercial partners and new adopters of PIC technologies. Her expertise lies in the development of optical systems for telecom and datacom. She received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University Autonomous of Barcelona (UAB) and her PhD degree from the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2).
Dave Grimm
David Grimm is a Partner at AlbionVC, where he focuses on deeptech investments across quantum computing, machine learning and AI, and hardware. He brings over a decade of experience investing in early-stage, IP rich companies, including four years at Spark Ventures. David began his career at Detica, before moving to China to work in an FMCG startup, a shift that sparked his move into venture investing driven by impact through high-growth businesses. He holds an M.Sci in Natural Sciences (Mathematics and Chemistry).
Abdeslem Ben Hamida
Abdeslem Ben Hamida is a Ph.D.-qualified senior sales and business development executive with over 20 years of experience in semiconductors, photonics, lasers, and high-tech industries. He specializes in photonics packaging, GaN lasers, industrial sensors, and optoelectronics, driving market penetration and revenue growth across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and beyond. Recent roles include Senior European Business Development & Sales Manager at Ficontec and KYOCERA SLD Laser (focused on white and blue lasers for automotive applications). He currently serves as Global Sales Manager at Vanguard Automation GmbH. Founded LED Innovation Consulting (2012–2020), advising high-tech firms such as Ficontec, Linxens, and Soraa on sales growth and market entry strategies. Delivered multimillion-euro sales pipelines at Ficontec, Optoga, Soraa, Xicato, Hyundai LED, and GE Lighting, securing strategic clients and fostering long-term partnerships. Began his career at Applied Materials and Alchimer, focusing on microelectronics and MEMS innovation, contributing to several patents. Expert in automotive lighting, medical lasers, hydrogen sensors, and photonics-related applications. Consistently achieved exceptional sales performance—such as 60% growth at Soraa—through strategic planning, client acquisition, and product optimization.
Charlie Johnson
Charlie Johnson is a senior applications engineer at COMSOL UK, specialising in electromagnetics simulations. She holds an MPhys from the University of Edinburgh and a PhD from the University of Bristol, with both focused on computational and mathematical physics.
Tongyun Li
Dr Tongyun Li is an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, specialising in next-generation radio-frequency and photonic communication systems, including Radio-over-Fibre, optical fronthaul architectures, photonic switching and integrated photonic circuits. He contributes to major UK and EU programmes developing flexible, energy-efficient and cost-effective network infrastructures, and has strong industry engagement through technology-transfer initiatives and start-up activities in the communications and IoT sectors. His collaborations with partners in telecoms, optical networking and semiconductor technologies support the translation of advanced RF and photonic research into practical, deployable systems that underpin emerging 6G，AI，and converged optical-wireless networks.
Dougal Main
Originally from Edinburgh, Dougal completed an MPhys degree at St Anne’s College, University of Oxford. They went on to pursue a DPhil in Physics with the Oxford Ion Trap Group, under the supervision of David Lucas, continuing their affiliation with St Anne’s College. Currently, Dougal works as a Quantum Scientist at Oxford Ionics.
Dan Marom
Dan M. Marom (1989 B.Sc. in Mech. Eng. and 1995 M.Sc. in Elec. Eng. from Tel Aviv University, Israel) received the Ph.D. degree in Elec. Eng. from the University of California at San Diego, USA, in 2000, with a focus on instantaneous signal processing of ultrafast waveforms with nonlinear wave mixing. He is a Professor of Applied Physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel, where he heads the Photonic Devices Group. After his Ph.D. degree, he joined the Advanced Photonics Research Department, Bell Laboratories, Lucent Technologies, Holmdel, NJ, USA, as a Member of the Technical Staff, where he developed wavelength-selective switches and other filtering and switching components. Since 2005, he has been with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Over more than 25-year research career in optical communications, he has been involved in the development of various optical switches for WDM and SDM telecommunications applications, utilizing free-space and guided-wave optics and different switching mechanisms, including micro-electromechanical systems, liquid crystals, and nonlinear media. Prof. Marom is a Senior Member of the IEEE Photonics Society and a Fellow of Optica (formerly, Optical Society of America). He was awarded the IEEE Photonics Society Distinguished Lecturer Award in 2014 and 2015. He was an elected member of the Society’s Board of Governors for the 2017–2019 term, served as the Secretary-Treasurer for the IEEE Photonics Society for the 2020–2022 term, and currently serves on the Society’s Publication Council.
Sarah Masaad
Sarah Masaad is a postdoctoral researcher at the Photonics Research Group of Ghent University and imec. She completed her PhD in Photonics Engineering at the same group as part of the Marie Curie project PostDigital., where her work focused on integrated photonic reservoir computing for signal equalization. Her current research investigates optical-domain processing architectures as energy-efficient and scalable alternatives to conventional digital signal processing.
Annalisa Morea
Annalisa Morea is a telecommunications expert with over two decades of experience in optical networking and software architecture. Since 2024, she has been serving as a Consulting Engineer in Nokia’s Pre-Sales team, where she provides technical leadership and strategic support to customers, helping design and optimize advanced optical transport solutions tailored to business needs. Prior to this role, she worked as a Software Architect/Engineer at Nokia (2015–2023), leading the development of multilayer network planning tools, with a focus on optical line design, OTN/WDM integration, and GMPLS-based algorithms. Earlier in her career, she was a Research Engineer at Bell Labs, contributing to next-generation optical network architectures, routing algorithms, and collaborative European projects. Annalisa holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Networks from Télécom Paris and France Telecom R&D, and an Engineering Diploma in Electronics from Politecnico di Torino and Télécom Paris. She has authored over 50 scientific publications, filed 20 patents, and served as Associate Editor for OSA JOCN and member of several Internaltional telecommunication conferences (e..g., OFC). Her achievements include the Nokia DMTS recognition (2017) and the Fabio Neri Best Paper Award (2016).
Carlos Natalino
Carlos Natalino is a Researcher with the Optical Networks Unit, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden. His research focuses on the design and automation of resilient, energy-efficient, and cost-effective communication infrastructures for 5G and 6G, with a special interest on the trustworthy and responsible adoption and use of AI/ML to achieve advanced levels of network automation. Dr. Natalino has been involved in several national and international projects funded by research bodies in EU and Brazil, in the capacity of co-PI, WP leader, task leader, and technical contributor. He is an enthusiast and recurrent contributor to open research, publishing the implementation of several of his papers, and open-source projects such as the Optical Networking Gym. He is a member of the ETSI TeraFlowSDN Technical Steering Committee. He has devoted substantial efforts in education, being involved in teaching computer programming and networking courses in Brazil and Sweden, and leading the Demystifying: Machine Learning events at Optica’s Advanced Photonics Congress in 2024 and 2025. He is an Optica Member, and an IEEE Senior Member.
Michele Natrella
Michele Natrella is Head of Research & Development at Lumino Technologies Ltd, where he leads technical innovation in optical and quantum communication technologies. He has 19 years of experience across academia, defence, and industry, specialising in photonics, electromagnetics, quantum communications, and system development. Previously, he was Head of the Antenna Team and Lead Photonics Engineer on the UK Ministry of Defence’s Tempest programme at Leonardo UK, and Subject Matter Expert in Electro-Optical Systems at Arqit Ltd, supporting ESA’s QKDSat mission. Dr Natrella holds an MSc in Electronic Engineering from Politecnico di Bari and a PhD in Photonics from University College London. He is a Chartered Engineer and will complete an Executive MBA in March 2026.
Robert Starkwood
Robert is a leader and photonics engineer with a proven record of translating quantum technologies into commercial products. With more than 13 years deep technical experience in photonics systems engineering and quantum information science, Robert’s early career research pioneered single-photon counting technology and later drove standards and assurance development at the intersection of emerging technology, metrology, and quantum-secure communications. Currently Head of Performance at KETS Quantum Security, he is translating the science into a scale-up business context; tackling the challenges of maturing their innovative chip-based products whilst cultivating strategic relationships across a growing industrial ecosystem.
Matt Sysak
Matt Sysak is the Global Chief Technology Officer at Lumentum. He has more than 20 years of experience with Silicon Photonics, IIIV optical components and systems, along with CMOS validation, test, and packaging. Previously, Matt was the VP of laser and Platform Engineering at Ayar Labs where he was responsible for leading laser strategy, customer engagements, and backend engineering. Prior to Ayar Labs, Matt held several senior positions at Intel, where his graduate research on Hybrid Silicon Lasers was commercialized and has now shipped millions of units. Matt holds an MS and PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a BS in Chemical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University.
Giuseppe Talli
Dr. Giuseppe Talli has led the optical access networks research team in Huawei's Optical Technology Laboratory in Munich since 2020. His career spans the full spectrum of innovation, from foundational academic research at the Tyndall National Institute and University College Cork and startup development at Intune Networks, to his current leadership role in a major global company. His research has consistently focused on optical fiber access and short-reach networks, specializing in integrated photonic components and burst-mode transmission technologies for passive optical and transport systems.
Iman Tavakkolnia
Iman Tavakkolnia is an Assistant Professor in Electrical Engineering at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Selwyn College in Cambridge. He received his PhD from the University of Edinburgh in 2018 and has subsequently held research and academic roles focused on optical and wireless communication systems. Currently his research centres on optical wireless communication, with applications ranging from indoor LiFi communication and sensing to inter-satellite optical links. He has co-authored widely cited papers and is involved in several major UK research projects including TITAN Telecoms Hub funded by EPSRC. He is recently awarded a grant by European Space Agency.
Ioannis Tomkos
Dr. Ioannis Tomkos is Professor of Communications Networks at the ECE Department of University of Patras. His research group activity is focusing on optical communications systems and 6G mobile networks. He has participated in and led numerous R&D projects on the relevant fields, while the outcomes of his work resulted in over 650 co-authored scientific archival articles, with over 425 entries at IEEEXplore, that have received about 14.500 citations (h-factor=56) at Google Scholar & over 200.000 reads at ResearchGate. For his scientific achievements, he has been elected as Fellow of all 3 major ECE societies (IET-2010, OSA - 2012 and IEEE - 2018).
Mike Wale
Michael (Mike) Wale is Professor of Integrated Photonics at University College London, Full Professor Emeritus at Eindhoven University of Technology in The Netherlands, where he was previously part-time Professor of Photonic Integration - Industrial Aspects, and Honorary Professor of Photonic Communications at the University of Nottingham. Mike received his B.A., M.A. and D. Phil. degrees in physics from the University of Oxford, where he worked on the development of instrumentation for remote sensing of the earth’s atmosphere from space. He subsequently spent more than 35 years in industry, most recently as Director Active Products Research at Oclaro (now Lumentum), a major supplier of photonic components for optical communications. His experience encompasses many different aspects of research, development and manufacturing of photonic devices and systems, with emphasis on semiconductor devices and photonic integrated circuits, as well as applications in diverse fields including communications, data networks, RF/microwave systems and sensors. Professor Wale is a member of the Executive Board of the European Technology Platform, Photonics21, and chair of its Core Photonics Working Group, responsible for activities and technologies that underpin multiple application areas. As one of the pioneers of the generic Photonic Integrated Circuit (PIC) foundry concept, Mike helped to create the Joint European Platform for Photonic Integration of Components and Circuits (JePPIX) and continues to serve on its steering committee. Mike is an active member of advisory boards for university activities and research programmes in the UK and internationally. He is a Member of Optica and a Life Member of IEEE.
Tianhua Xu
Dr. Xu received his Ph.D. degree from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden. He previously worked as a Senior Research Fellow at University College London and is currently a Reader in the School of Engineering at the University of Warwick. His research interests include optical communication, optical sensing, intelligent signal processing, and machine learning techniques. He serves as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Communications and has served as Chair of the Optics in Digital Systems Technical Group of the Optical Society of America (Optica). He has also been a TPC Co-Chair or member for more than 20 IEEE conferences, including GLOBECOM and ICC. He is currently the Coordinator of an EU Horizon Europe Project, Project Manager for an EU Horizon 2020 Grant, and Principal Investigator of a UK National Grid Project. He has published over 175 journal and conference papers and two invited book chapters.
Yuki Yoshida
Yuki Yoshida received the Ph.D. degree in informatics from Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan in 2009. Since 2016, he has been with Network Research Institute, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) of Japan, where he is currently a Research Manager. His research interests include digital signal processing for optical/wireless communications, optical/wireless access, and optical- wireless convergence. He has published over 350 journals and conference papers. He received the Maejima Hisoka Award in 2022. He is a Member of IEEE and IEICE of Japan.
Ning Zhang
Ning is a Principal Engineer in the Future Telecoms division at CSA Catapult. She holds a PhD in Electronic Engineering from the University of Bristol, UK, and has built her career in the UK photonics sector since completing her doctoral studies. Her industry experience spans leading research institutions, plasma equipment manufacturers, and early-stage startups, giving her a broad perspective across the photonics ecosystem. At CSA Catapult, Ning leads the design and prototyping of photonic integrated circuits (PICs). She works closely with academic partners and innovative SMEs to accelerate the commercialisation of integrated photonic hardware and strengthen the UK’s integrated photonics supply chain.