Electrical and Computer Engineering
John Villasenor
Professor
Professor of public policy, management, law
Founder and faculty co-director of the UCLA Institute for Technology, Law and Policy (joint institute of UCLA Samueli and UCLA Law)
Faculty Information
Research and Interests
Cybersecurity, critical infrastructure security, financial inclusion, vehicle automation, digital privacy
Notable Publications and Books
- John Villasenor, “Technology and the Role of Intent in Constitutionally Protected Expression,” Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, Spring/Summer 2016
- John Villasenor, “The Fast-Evolving Uses and Economic Impacts of Drones,” Testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce; Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, November 19, 2015
- Lok-Won Kim and John Villasenor, “Dynamic Function Verification for System-on-Chip Security against Hardware-Based Attacks,” IEEE Transactions on Reliability, November 2015.
- John Villasenor, “Corporate Cybersecurity Realism: Managing Trade Secrets in a World Where Breaches Occur,” American Intellectual Property Law Association Quarterly Journal, Spring/Summer 2015
- L.-W. Kim and John Villasenor, “Automated Iterative Pipelining for ASIC design,” ACM Transactions on Design Automation of Electronic Systems, February 2015.
- John Villasenor, “First Sale Under Title 17” Testimony before the House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, June 2, 2014
- L.-W. Kim and John Villasenor, “Dynamic Function Replacement for System-on-Chip Security in the Presence of Hardware-Based Attacks,” IEEE Transactions on Reliability, June 2014.
- John Villasenor, “Products Liability and Driverless Cars: Issues and Guiding Principles for Legislation” The Brookings Institution, April 2014.
- John Villasenor, “‘Drones’ and the Future of Domestic Aviation,” Proceedings of the IEEE, March 2014
- John Villasenor, “Compromised By Design? Securing the Defense Electronics Supply Chain” The Brookings Institution, November 2013
- John Villasenor and M. Tehranipoor, “The Hidden Dangers of Chop-Shop Electronics: Clever counterfeiters sell old components as new, threatening both military and commercial systems,” IEEE Spectrum, September 20, 2013
- John Villasenor, “Smartphones for the Unbanked: How Mobile Money Will Drive Digital Inclusion in Developing Countries” The Brookings Institution, September 2013
- John Villasenor, “Observations from Above: Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Privacy” Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, Spring, 2013
- Vivek Mohan and John Villasenor, “Decrypting the Fifth Amendment: The Limits of Self-Incrimination in the Digital Era” University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law Heightened Scrutiny, vol. 15, October 2012
In the News
- The Supreme Court Is About To Decide How Far Geofence Warrants Can Go | CyberScoop, April 2026
- Rep. Kennedy: Congress should adopt Utah’s ‘sandbox’ approach to policy | Deseret News, April 2026
- Can You Spot an AI Generated Face? Put Your Skills to the Test With Our Quiz | NY Post, California Post, February 2026
- Should the U.S. Put Location Trackers on AI Chips? | Marketplace, August 2025
- Tech Companies Want to Move Fast. Trump’s ‘AI Action Plan’ Aims to Cut ‘red tape’ | LA Times, July 2025
- In fighting AI Chip Trade War with China, There’s One Big Mistake U.S. Can’t Afford to Make | CNBC, February 2025
- UK Orders Apple to Open Access to Encrypted Data, Report Says. | USA Today, February 2025
- Companies Are Preparing for the Second Trump Administration | NPR, January 2025
- 5 Big Questions About How Tech Will Look Under Trump | CNN, November 2024
- The AI Chatbots Are Rooting for Kamala | The Free Press, October 2024
- The AI Revolution: It’s Here. It’s Going to change Life as We Know it. Are You Ready? Are You Sure? I UCLA Magazine, October 2024
- Fabricating An Artificial Emergency Isn’t Intelligent | The Hill, November 2023
- Fugees Rapper Says Lawyer's Use of AI Helped Tank His Case, Pushes for New Trial | AP News, October 2023
- Navigating the Multi-Headed Opportunity that is Gen AI | PYMNTS, September 2023
- Regulating AI: Three Experts Explain why it’s Difficult to do and Important to Get Right | Morning News (Canada), August 2023
- Opinion: Another Reason Hollywood Will Love AI | The Wall Street Journal, May 2023
- The Future: Incorporation of AI in Classrooms Will Facilitate Innovation | The Daily Bruin, May 2023
- The Rapid Rise of Generative AI Threatens to Upend US Patent System | Financial Times, April 2023
- Regulating AI: 3 Experts Explain Why It’s Difficult to Do and Important to Get Right | The Conversation, April 2023
- How ChatGPT Can Improve Education, Not Threaten it | Scientific American, February 2023
- INSIGHT - Lawsuits pile up as U.S. parents take on social media giants | Reuters, February 2023
- Chinese Spy Balloon Has Unexpected Maneuverability | Scientific American, February 2023
- Fight Over Big Tech Looms in Supreme Court | VOA News, January 2023
- As Crypto Chaos Continues, the Next Generation of Hires is Having Doubts | Marketplace Radio, November 2022
- Could the Internet Archive Go Out Like Napster? | Slate, September 2022
- Tesla monitored its employees on Facebook with help of PR firm during 2017 union push | CNBC
- It’s Time To Fix Diversity Training, Part 1 | Forbes
Awards and Recognition
- 2015-2016, National Fellow, the Hoover Institution, Stanford University
- 2014-2015, National Fellow, the Hoover Institution, Stanford University
- 2014, Selected as a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations
- 2011, Appointed as a Nonresident Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution