Summary
Ben Gras is a security researcher and system software expert with 21 years of experience building and hardening low-level software across operating systems, device drivers, filesystems, compilers and toolchains. Currently at Intel, he bridges academic rigor (PhD-level systems security work at VU Amsterdam) with long-standing open-source practice, including significant RTEMS contributions enabling Beagle board support and MMU/timer integrations. Known for tenacious debugging and performance optimization, he has a track record of modernizing legacy OSes (notably MINIX) and shipping multi-architecture support. Comfortable at every software abstraction layer, he pairs deep technical craftsmanship with clear communication across engineering and organizational levels. Colleagues describe him as goal-oriented and people-focused, able to translate complex systems research into practical, deployable fixes. An unusual strength: he frequently operates where research meets production, turning academic findings into concrete platform improvements.
21 years of coding experience
13 years of employment as a software developer
Master's degree, Computer Science, Master's degree, Computer Science at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Computer Science, Cum laude, Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Computer Science, Cum laude at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam)
Dutch, English