Leadership
Dr. Sastry Kompella, CEO and President
Dr. Sastry Kompella is the CEO and President of Nexcepta. He has over 20 years of experience leading DoD R&D efforts as a PI or Co-PI on numerous key projects, and has overseen a wide range of responsibilities, including project planning, management, research, and systems engineering. Prior to co-founding Nexcepta, Dr. Kompella served as the head of the Wireless Networks Research Section at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), where he pioneered advancements in wireless communications, cognitive radio and networked systems, machine learning, information freshness in real-time systems. With more than 200 peer-reviewed publications in top-tier conferences and journals, he has made significant contributions to the field. Dr. Kompella has also provided consulting services for DARPA, OSD, and other DoD agencies. He holds a Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Virginia Tech and is a Fellow of the IEEE.
Dr. Yalin Sagduyu, CTO
Dr. Sagduyu is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Nexcepta. He has extensive experience in R&D, technology transition, and the commercialization of cutting-edge technologies spanning communications, networks, 5G/6G, security, AI/ML, data analytics, and computing. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park. He has held various senior positions in both industry and academia and has executed numerous BAA and SBIR/STTR projects. He has published extensively in prestigious venues, served on journal editorial boards, and organized conferences and workshops.
Dr. Tugba Erpek, Principal Scientist
Dr. Erpek is a Principal Scientist at Nexcepta, Inc. She received her Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Virginia Tech. Prior to Nexcepta, she was a Research Associate Professor at Virginia Tech National Security Institute, a Lead Scientist at the Intelligent Automation, a BlueHalo Company, and Senior Communications Systems Engineer at Shared Spectrum Company. Her R&D work covers wireless communications, 5G and beyond, dynamic spectrum sharing, cognitive radio, radar systems, machine learning, adversarial machine learning and network protocol design and implementation. She has published extensively in these areas. She has been serving as a TPC member and reviewer for major IEEE conferences and journals.
Dr. Kemal Davaslioglu, Principal Scientist
Dr. Davaslioglu is a Principal Scientist at Nexcepta . He received his Ph.D. in 2015 from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. He has worked at Broadcom, University of South Florida, and Intelligent Automation, Inc. His research expertise includes applying AI/ML techniques to address challenges in communications, radar, text analytics, computer vision, as well as enhancing AI security and robustness. He has extensive hands-on experience with deep learning software, cognitive radio, and hardware implementations. He received the IEEE Best Paper Award and selection for IEEE Best Readings.
Ariunaa Sagduyu, Director of Finance and Contracts
Ariunaa Sagduyu is the Director of Finance and Contracts at Nexcepta. She is responsible for the company’s finances, contracting efforts, HR, and legal activities. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with active licenses in multiple states. She holds a B.S. degree in Accounting from the R.H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, College Park. She has worked at various organizations, including Deloitte, WGL, Reznick Group P.C. (CohnReznick), Hewitt Associates (Aon Hewitt), and the Association of Public Health Laboratories.