Paul Mockapetris revolutionized the Internet by inventing the Domain Name System (DNS) at USC’s Information Sciences Institute in the 1980s. As Director of ISI’s High Performance Computing and Communications Division, he played a pivotal role in shaping the digital world we live in today.

Eve Schooler is acclaimed for her contributions to internet standards for distributed computing and multimedia over the net. Notably, she is one of the designers of the Session Initiation Protocol, which enables videoconferencing and other forms of real-time communication.

Recognized as one of the "Fathers of the Internet" and Presidential Medal of Freedom honoree, Vint Cerf co-designed TCP/IP, foundational to internet communications and governance.

Terry Benzel, a cybersecurity expert, has significantly enhanced digital infrastructure resilience through advanced cyber defense strategies, secure internet architectures, and large-scale network testing.

Deborah Estrin, one of the most-referenced computer scientists of all time, pioneered sensor networks, revolutionizing data access in modern science. She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for her wireless sensing systems for environmental monitoring.

Craig Knoblock is a computer scientist and AI expert known for his work in data integration and information extraction. He has advanced AI and data science with his innovations in knowledge graphs and semantic web technologies, transforming diverse data sources into actionable insights.

Wael Abd-Almageed is a leading expert in AI and multimedia forensics. His Visual Intelligence and Multimedia Analytics Lab has developed cutting-edge tools to detect deepfakes and combat misinformation.

Yolanda Gil has advanced AI applications by creating systems that streamline scientific workflows and improve data analysis, transforming how scientists collaborate to tackle large-scale problems.

Carl Kesselman is a pioneer of grid computing, connecting global computing resources as a single supercomputer. He co-developed this concept with Ian Foster co-authoring "The Grid: Blueprint for a New Computing Infrastructure."

Kevin Knight co-developed early technologies that paved the way for Google Translate and advanced AI systems. Knight's work in decoding ancient manuscripts pushed the limits of natural language processing and continues to bridge linguistic divides.

Ewa Deelman's work contributed to the Nobel Prize-winning discovery of gravitational waves. Her Pegasus software system has impacted astronomy, bioinformatics, and earthquake science, enabling researchers to process vast amounts of data efficiently and reliably.

Rajiv Maheswaran is bringing computer vision and machine learning to professional sports, making data analytics and real-time interaction more engaging for fans and professionals alike.