Founding Leadership

Building a multidisciplinary founding team

V-SENSE is recruiting researchers, engineers, students, and operational staff. Confirmed appointments are shown below; open opportunities are detailed throughout this page.

Founding Scientific Leadership
Khaled Nabil Salama, Founding Chief Scientific Officer

Khaled Nabil Salama

Founding Chief Scientific Officer
Researcher

Leads V-SENSE

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at KAUST since 2009 (founding Program Chair 2009–2011). Senior member of IEEE. Authored 450+ peer-reviewed articles and holds 50+ patents on low-power circuits for intelligent sensors. Recipient of the Stanford-Berkeley Innovators Challenge Award in Biological Science.

"The next generation of IoT and smart infrastructure doesn't need more sensors. It needs smarter sensors—devices that understand their own limitations and report confidence alongside measurement."

Career Highlights
  • IoT Thrust Leader and Associate Director, KAUST Semiconductor Initiative (2022–2025)
  • Associate Dean for Students, KAUST (2020–2023)
  • Director, KAUST Sensors Initiative (2017–2022)
  • Assistant Professor, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY (2005–2009)
Founding Leadership

Join our founding initiative

V-SENSE is recruiting researchers, engineers, students, and operational staff across sensing hardware, embedded systems, validation, human factors, and translation. Below is an overview of our recruitment categories.

Faculty Positions

Sensing Hardware & Embedded Systems • Validation & Trust Methodologies • Translation & Business Models. Ideal candidates bring expertise in low-power circuit design, embedded systems, sensor validation, human factors, or commercialization pathways.

Status: Accepting applications

Postdoctoral Researchers

Hardware-focused postdocs in analog/mixed-signal design, signal processing, and embedded diagnostics. Validation protocol development and experimental design.

Status: Accepting applications

Research Scientists & Engineers

Signal processing specialists and embedded systems engineers to develop hardware platforms, diagnostic software, and pilot-readiness assessment tools.

Status: Accepting applications

Graduate Research Opportunities

Master's and PhD students in sensing research, embedded systems, validation science, and responsible AI. Thesis research with access to operational infrastructure and real-world validation sites.

Status: Accepting applications

Administrative & Laboratory Staff

Laboratory operations, research coordination, project management, and administrative support to establish and sustain the institute.

Status: Accepting applications

View the Careers page →
Leadership Research Areas

Research Pillars

Research Pillar 01

Embedded Hardware & Software Systems

Design, integration, and optimization of sensor systems for real-world deployment and practical applications.

Explore this pillar →
Research Pillar 02

Validation & Trust Methodologies

Rigorous validation frameworks and trust metrics to ensure reliable performance in safety-critical applications.

Explore this pillar →
Research Pillar 03

Translation & Business Models

Pathways from research to real-world impact through scalable business models and practical deployment strategies.

Explore this pillar →

Full Research Program

Discover all our active research areas and pilot projects in action.

View All Research →