October 12, 2023
Alex Conway is an assistant professor of computer science at Cornell Tech and in the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science. He comes to Cornell from the research arm of VMware, a cloud computing and virtualization technology company, where his work spanned every aspect, from theory to systems to product. Conway received his Ph.D. in computer science from Rutgers University.
What is your academic focus?
My academic focus is randomized data structures and their application to systems.
Could you briefly summarize your research?
My research is based around the idea that systems can achieve cutting-edge performance by leveraging algorithms and data structures that come with strong theoretical guarantees. My ideal research project presents a new algorithm for a problem, then builds that algorithm into a system, and hardens that system, so that it can be used in practice.
Why Cornell?
I’m excited about Cornell, because I’m certain I will find many awesome collaborations across areas and disciplines. Also, because I like to look beyond research into practice, I appreciate Cornell Tech’s entrepreneurial and industrial focus.
What past professional work are you most proud of?
The past professional work I’m most proud of is SplinterDB, a key-value store, which is a type of database where data can be retrieved using a unique key. SplinterDB derives its performance from a new theoretically optimal data structure, and has been integrated into vSAN 8.0, a shipping VMware product.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
When I’m not working, I love to play squash and tennis, as well as to travel.