UCLA Engineering Professor Liz Izhikevich Named to Forbes 30 Under 30

Liz Izhikevich, an electrical and computer engineering assistant professor at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, has been named to Forbes’ 2025 30 under 30 list in the science category.

Izhikevich was recognized for her research focused on improving the performance and security of the internet — both on Earth and in space. Her work has unearthed previously unknown threats on the internet and enabled researchers to identify performance glitches. Thanks to her efforts, Netflix “is improving video delivery for over one million satellite broadband users,” according to Forbes’ announcement.

At UCLA, Izhikevich leads the Security and Networking Lab with a data-driven approach to enhancing the internet’s safety. Her team works on building systems that collect data about the behaviors of networks, and their users and hackers, leveraging quantitative analysis to find operational challenges and threats in near-real time. She is also a research scientist at software security company Censys.

Prior to joining UCLA Samueli in July 2024, and during the last year of her doctoral studies in computer science at Stanford University, Izhikevich was a research fellow at Netflix, where she worked in collaboration with SpaceX’s Starlink to improve satellite-internet streaming quality. She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer science from UC San Diego. 

Izhikevich is among 46 Forbes 30 Under 30 honorees with UC connections. Previous recipients include UCLA assistant professors of computer science Aditya Grover and Saadia Gabriel, who were both named to the 2024 science list.

Published annually, the magazine’s list features innovators and visionaries under the age of 30 in recognition of their accomplishments and contributions to society across a broad range of disciplines.