Keynotes

We are pleased to have two keynote speakers:

Keynote 1: IoT goes sky: non-terrestrial connectivity for IoT

By Dr. Konstantin Mikhaylov 

The Internet of Things (IoT) now permeates everyday life, with devices ranging from tiny sensors to autonomous robots and vehicles, and the services built upon them becoming almost invisible yet indispensable. At the core of this ecosystem lies machine-type communication (MTC), which promises to bridge the digital divide by delivering resilient, ubiquitous connectivity and enabling equal access to opportunities and services. However, despite impressive progress, terrestrial MTC technologies alone cannot sustainably support all emerging use cases, particularly in remote, fragile, and offshore areas. This keynote explores RF-based non-terrestrial IoT and MTC connectivity as a promising way forward, presenting a classification of NTN MTC, examining the drivers behind its development, and offering insights into state-of-the-art research and standardization with a focus on satellite MTC and the direct-to-satellite paradigm. The talk will conclude by addressing the key challenges and highlighting research-driven approaches to overcoming them.

About the speaker:

Konstantin Mikhaylov is an Associate Professor (tenure track) of Convergent IoT Communications at the Centre for Wireless Communications, University of Oulu, Finland, and Finnish 6G Flagship. He also holds the Title of Docent. He received his PhD in communication engineering from the University of Oulu in 2018. His research focuses on radio access, beyond-access protocols, and IoT devices, systems, and applications.

He has held research visits across Europe and Asia, was an Academy of Finland Postdoctoral Fellow (2021–2024), and is ranked among the world’s top 2% of scholars (Stanford/Elsevier, 2019–2022). He has ~150 publications (h-index 38), edited the book Integration of MTC and Satellites for IoT toward 6G Era (2024), and co-edited multiple journal special issues.

Konstantin Mikhaylov has organized and chaired numerous international workshops and conference tracks, serves on TPCs of flagship IEEE conferences, and reviews for 20+ IEEE journals. He is a Senior Member of IEEE, MC member for COST CA20120 “INTERACT,” and a licensed drone pilot.

Keynote 2:  Towards Reliable and Intelligent IoT: Trust Management and Beyond

By Dr. Youssef Iraqi

The Internet of Things (IoT) is becoming an integral part of critical infrastructures, enabling smart cities, healthcare, transportation, and industrial systems. However, the pervasive integration of IoT introduces fundamental challenges in trust management, scalability, security, and resource efficiency. In this talk, I will highlight recent advances in trust and reputation systems, secure crowdsensing, and federated intelligence for IoT. Drawing on ongoing projects and case studies, I will also explore how agentic AI can strengthen resilience and decision-making in distributed IoT environments. The presentation will conclude with a discussion of future research directions at the intersection of IoT, machine learning, and sustainable digital infrastructures.

About the speaker:

Dr. Youssef Iraqi is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at the College of Computing, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), Morocco. He received his Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Computer Science from the University of Montreal, Canada, and an Engineering degree in Computer Engineering from ENSIAS, Mohamed V University, Rabat. 

Dr. Iraqi has published over 150 research papers in international journals and conference proceedings. His research interests span wireless networking, Internet of Things, trust and reputation management, recommender systems, speaker identification, cloud computing, and digital forensics. He serves on the editorial boards of IEEE Network, Vehicular Communications, Computer Communications, and Annals of Telecommunications. In 2008, he received the prestigious IEEE Communications Society Fred W. Ellersick Prize Paper Award in the Field of Communications Systems. Dr. Iraqi is a Senior Member of IEEE and a member of ACM, with extensive international academic experience in Canada, the UAE, and Oman.