Theophilus Benson
Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Theophilus A. Benson is an electrical and computer engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Benson’s research focuses on improving the performance and availability of computer networks. In particular, he works with a broad set of cloud providers to improve their infrastructures. He recently has been developing an initiative to address the digital divide in the global south.
His research was recognized by paper awards, including Internet Measurement Conference (IMC), European Conference on Computer Systems, and Applied Networking Research Prize. Benson received the Special Interest Group on Data Communication (SIGCOMM) Test of Time Award, IMC Test of Time Award, NSF CAREER Award, Nippon Electric Company Faculty Award, Google Faculty Award, Facebook Faculty Award (twice), and Faculty Research and Engagement Program (twice).
He currently serves on the steering committee for Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) HotNets. He served on DARPA’s Information Science and Technology study group, steering committee for ACM Conference on Emerging Networking Experiments and Technologies, technical program chair for top networking conferences (IMC ’22, SIGCOMM ’26, Networked Systems Design and Implementation ’25) as a member of the external advisory board for the Department of Computer Science at Tufts University. He earned his B.S. from Tufts, Ph.D. from University of Wisconsin-Madison, and post-doctorate from Princeton.
A Faster, More Reliable Internet for Everyone
Research Interests
Media mentions
CyLab Security and Privacy Institute
CyLab researchers set to present their work at PETS 2026
Carnegie Mellon University faculty members and students are preparing to share their research at the 2026 Privacy Enhancing Technologies Symposium (PETS).
Carnegie Mellon University Africa
Benson receives second Test of Time Award
ECE's Theophilus Benson has received the 2025 Internet Measurement Conference Test of Time Award, the second that he has received for the paper.
Carnegie Mellon University Africa
Rethinking the role of submarine cables
Theophilus Benson and his team tested the ability of some of the most popular network characterization tools to assess critical components of Africa's network infrastructure ecosystem.
Carnegie Mellon University Africa
Community & connectivity, around the globe
On his journey to learn everything he can about distributed networks, Mike Mwanje (MSIT ’25) picked up some insights on the value of global connections as a CMU-Pittsburgh exchange student.
Carnegie Mellon University Africa
Improving digital infrastructures for all
ECE Professor Theophilus Benson strives to realize Sustainable Development Goal 9 by improving the performance and accessibility of digital infrastructures.