Dr. Yi Shi a Research Associate Professor at the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative (CCI), a Research Associate Professor (by Courtesy) in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and an Affiliate Faculty in Intelligent Systems Division at the National Security Institute, Virginia Tech. He is an IEEE Fellow.
 

Before joining Virginia Tech, Dr. Shi was a Senior Lead Scientist at Intelligent Automation, a BlueHalo company. He led/participated in more than 70 projects funded by DARPA, AFRL, ONR, ARL, and MDA, with a total funding amount exceeding $30M. He also led/participated in the transition efforts of these projects and developed commercial products, including Scraawl® and RFnestTM. He holds three patents on wireless communications and social networks.
 

Dr. Shi's research focuses on machine learning, algorithm design, and optimization for 5G and NextG networks, cognitive radio networks, MIMO and cooperative communication networks, sensor networks, ad hoc networks, satellite networks, and social networks. His research has been funded by NSF, CCI, MDA, and AFRL. His work has been published in leading IEEE and ACM journals and presented at top-tier international conferences. He received the National Spectrum Consortium Dr. Vanu Bose Best Paper Award at IEEE MILCOM 2024, the Test of Time Paper Award at IEEE INFOCOM 2023, the Best Paper Award at IEEE HST 2018, the Best Student Paper Award at ACM WUWNet 2014, the only Best Paper Award Runner-Up at IEEE INFOCOM 2011, and the Best Paper Award at IEEE INFOCOM 2008.
 

Dr. Shi was recognized as a Distinguished TPC member for IEEE INFOCOM 2025 and 2021, an Exemplary Editor for IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking in 2023, and an Exemplary Editor for IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials in 2014.
Dr. Shi currently serves as an Editor for IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials and IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking. He has also served as a Co-Chair for various IEEE and ACM Workshops, Conference Tracks, and Symposia, as well as a TPC member for many major international conferences.