Math in Industry Symposium

Join us for the second annual Math in Industry Symposium, where mathematicians from varied industries will engage in discussions on the intersection of their mathematical expertise and professional endeavors. The two-day symposium will feature four talks from industry experts and accomplished FSU Department of Mathematics alumni. A jobs panel at the end of the symposium will provide networking opportunities for graduate students. All talks will be in the Love Building, Room 101. The Friday reception and Saturday breakfast are in the Love Building, Room 204B.

Event Schedule

Friday, Feb. 27, 2026

Talk 1

3:05-4 p.m.

“The Erdős Institute: A Multi-University Approach to Helping Ph.D.s Get Jobs”

Roman Holowinsky

Founded in 2017, the Erdős Institute is a multi-university collaboration dedicated to helping Ph.D.s secure fulfilling jobs at every stage of their career. To date, the institute has supported over 5,000 graduate students, postdocs, and Ph.D. alumni, providing career exploration, training, and industry connections to a diverse community of academics. The FSU Department of Mathematics has been participating since 2021 through an initial introduction thanks to Thomas Needham. We'll discuss the historical development of the institute, its current programs, services and Ph.D. alumni network, as well as our collaborative model designed to address the universal problem of Ph.D. professional development.

Roman Holowinsky is the co-founder and managing director of the Erdős Institute, an associate professor of mathematics at Ohio State University, and a sponsored affiliate at the University of Michigan Department of Mathematics.

Reception

4:15 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026

Breakfast

8:30-9:30 a.m.

Talk 2

9:30-10 a.m.

“AI/ML in Systematic Investment Management”

Petter Kolm

In this talk, I examine how artificial intelligence and machine learning reshape tools and methods in quantitative finance. I provide an accessible overview of how modern AI/ML techniques integrate into systematic investment workflows — spanning data engineering, signal discovery, portfolio construction and execution. I highlight several real-world applications from my research, including deep-learning models for high-frequency order-book data, statistical jump models for regime inference, and Large Language Model tools for text processing and portfolio analytics. I aim to show how mathematical and computational methods combine to drive innovation in financial markets and why these developments matter for students and practitioners connecting mathematics with industry.

Petter Kolm is a clinical professor at New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, where he directs the Mathematics in Finance Master of Science Program. He was named Buy-side Quant of the Year in 2026 by Risk.net and Quant of the Year in 2021 by Portfolio Management Research and the Journal of Portfolio Management. He has authored numerous publications in quantitative finance and financial data science and serves on advisory and editorial boards across academia and industry. Previously, he worked in Quantitative Investment Strategies at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. Kolm’s consulting and expert-witness work focuses on machine learning, portfolio and risk management, and systematic trading.

Talk 3

10:10-10:40 a.m.

“The Economics of Bitcoin Mining: Exploring Incentives, Costs, and the Future of Cryptocurrency Mining”

Derar Islim

Bitcoin mining is not only a technical endeavor but also a complex economic activity influenced by various factors. In this presentation, we will explore the key components that shape the economics of Bitcoin mining, including incentives for miners, operational costs, market dynamics and future trends.

Derar Islim, Ph.D. is the chief operating officer and chief executive officer for the Americas and Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, or EMEA, at Antalpha Platform Holding Company. He is responsible for overseeing Antalpha’s global operations, driving regional strategy, and expanding its business footprint across key international markets. Islim has over 15 years of experience in global financial services and digital assets. Prior to joining Antalpha, he served as interim chief executive officer and chief operating officer of Genesis, where he managed the company through significant operational and financial challenges. Earlier in his career, he was head of risk at Hard Yaka and held senior trading positions at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he co-managed the Funding Valuation Adjustment trading desk and focused on modeling, pricing, and hedging credit structured products. Islim holds a doctorate in financial mathematics from Florida State University and is a Fulbright Scholar.

Coffee

10:45-11:15 a.m.

Talk 4

11:15-11:45 a.m.

“Proofs, Protocols, and Possibilities: Exploring the Math at the Crossroads of AI and Cybersecurity”

John Emanuello

The computer networks essential to the functioning of our society, including those that support our financial system and critical infrastructure, are constantly under attack by malicious cyber actors who are capable of perpetrating their operations at speeds, scales, and levels of complexity that are increasingly alarming. As artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming an essential component of modern cybersecurity systems, mathematics, which is already the bedrock of AI, must continue to advance to ensure the resiliency of these security solutions and the systems they protect. In this mostly expository talk, I will describe the challenges in cybersecurity, the dangers and opportunities presented by incorporating AI into cyber systems, and how I think mathematics can be used to make it all work better. I will include insights from the growing body of literature in this space and language and concepts familiar to a general mathematical audience to aid in a gentle introduction to issues at the intersection of AI and cybersecurity.

John Emanuello, Ph.D. is a researcher at the National Security Agency’s Laboratory for Advanced Cybersecurity Research. He earned a doctorate in pure mathematics from Florida State University in 2015 with a focus on complex analysis. Since joining the NSA, his research interests have shifted toward the intersection of mathematics, statistics, AI/machine learning and cybersecurity, with a specific focus on applying AI for autonomous discovery and response to cyber threats. He also collaborates with numerous colleagues across government, academia, and industry on various research activities. Emanuello has also organized numerous sessions, workshops, and seminars at various conferences. Most recently, he served as a workshop chair for “AI/ML for Cybersecurity: Challenges, Solutions, and Novel Ideas” at the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics International Conference on Data Mining 2021 and “Applications of Topological Data Analysis to Data Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning” at the SIAM International Conference on Data Mining 2022.

Job Panel

12-12:30 p.m.

Mini-Course Event

2-4:30 p.m.

"Modern Portfolio Construction: Foundations, Practical Methods, and New Results"

Petter Kolm

This short course provides a focused introduction to modern portfolio construction, starting from the classical Markowitz framework and leading to recent advances in theory and practice. After reviewing the quantitative investment process, mean–variance optimization, and the challenges posed by estimation error and constraints, we introduce Bayesian and Black–Litterman approaches and discuss how they improve robustness in real investment settings. The session then highlights several new results in the field, including a general characterization of mean–variance equivalent distributions, which establishes when expected-utility maximizers can be solved exactly through a mean–variance formulation. We also outline recent progress on multi-period portfolio optimization — such as hidden Markov model formulations and fast solvers that reduce multi-asset problems to tractable single-asset paths. The session is designed to give students both conceptual intuition and exposure to current research directions.