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The most widely deployed mobile virtualization solution
Gernot Heiser
Consulting Scientist & Founder
A pioneer in the field of operating systems with over two decades of experience, Dr. Gernot Heiser co-founded Open Kernel Labs and served as the Chief Technology Officer before taking on the role of Consulting Scientist. As the company’s key technologist, Heiser sets the direction of the company's research and development efforts to maintain OK Labs leadership position in mobile virtualization and embedded systems software development.
Before co-founding OK Labs, Heiser created and led the Embedded Real-Time Operating Systems (ERTOS) research group at NICTA, Australia’s Information and Communications Technology Centre of Excellence. With his help, NICTA has become recognized as a world leader in embedded operating systems technology. Heiser continues to hold this position on a part-time basis, allowing for a symbiotic relationship between OK Labs and NICTA. This unique connection ensures the strategic alignment of OK Labs and NICTA, enabling the smooth transfer of NICTA research outcomes for commercialization by OK Labs.
As a full-time faculty member at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Dr. Heiser designed a suite of world-class OS courses, led the development of several research operating systems and founded the group that provided the basis for NICTA's OS group and eventually, OK Labs. He was recently awarded the prestigious John Lions Chair of Operating Systems at UNSW, where he continues to teach advanced-level courses and supervise Ph.D. students.
Heiser holds a doctorate in Computer Engineering from ETH Zurich and a Master of Science in Computer Science from Brock University. In addition to being a member of the ACM and USENIX, Heiser is a senior member of the IEEE, the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology.