Dr. Roberto Di Pietro, a professor at Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s (HBKU) College of Science and Engineering (CSE), has been named the Association for Computing Machinery’s (ACM) Distinguished Scientist "for his outstanding scientific contributions to computing". Dr. Roberto is among only other 50 scientists, and the only one in the Middle East and North Africa region, to be selected for the honor by the world’s largest educational and scientific computing society in 2019.

“In everything we do, our overarching goal is to build a community wherein computing professionals can grow professionally and, in turn, contribute to the field and the broader society,” said ACM President Cherri M. Pancake. Dr. Roberto joined HBKU in the summer of 2017, and his past professional experience includes an academic appointment at University of Padova in Italy. He also served as Global Head of Cybersecurity Research for Nokia Bell Labs. “I am honored and thankful for this recognition, which clearly reflects HBKU’s role as a leading computing research hub in the region,” he said.