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F. Thomson Leighton
Photo: Beannyc924, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons34

F. Thomson Leighton

American computer scientist (born 1956)

Frank Thomson "Tom" Leighton (born 1956) is an American mathematician and computer scientist who is the CEO of Akamai Technologies, the company he co-founded with Daniel Lewin in 1998, and a professor of applied mathematics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).2

From Wikipedia’s article on F. Thomson Leighton (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born 1956.1

About

He is a member of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) at MIT.

From Wikipedia’s article on F. Thomson Leighton, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Companies

Holdings

Stock this person has reported owning, from the forms officers and directors file with the SEC. See the biggest insider stakes.

Shares held

As of each latest filing. The line shows shares held over time.

Recent filings

Early life and education

  • Date not recordedMassachusetts Institute of Technology3
  • Date not recordedPrinceton University3

Leighton's father was a U.S. Navy colleague and friend of Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, the father of naval nuclear propulsion and a founder of the Research Science Institute (RSI). His brother, David T. Leighton, is a professor at the University of Notre Dame specializing in transport phenomena.

As a senior in high school, Leighton won second prize at the 1974 Science Talent Search (STS) for his project on a computational algorithm to predict prime number sequences. He received his B.S.E. in electrical engineering from Princeton University in 1978, followed by his Ph.D. in mathematics from MIT in 1981, advised by Gary Lee Miller.

From Wikipedia’s article on F. Thomson Leighton (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: mathematician, university teacher, computer scientist.10

Leighton discovered a solution to free up web congestion using applied mathematics and distributed computing.

Leighton worked on algorithms for network applications and has published over 100 papers on algorithms, cryptography, parallel architectures, distributed computing, combinatorial optimization, and graph theory. He also holds patents involving content delivery, Internet protocols, algorithms for networks, cryptography and digital rights management.

Leighton served on the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC) from 2003 to 2005 and chaired its subcommittee on cybersecurity. He serves on the boards of trustees of the Society for Science & the Public (SSP) and the Center for Excellence in Education (CEE), and he has participated in the Distinguished Lecture Series at CEE's flagship program for high school students, the Research Science Institute (RSI).

From Wikipedia’s article on F. Thomson Leighton (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Personal life

  • CitizenshipUnited States11

He is married to the MIT professor Bonnie Berger, American mathematician and computer scientist, and they have two children.

From Wikipedia’s article on F. Thomson Leighton (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Awards

  • 2018ACM Fellow12 17
  • 2017National Inventors Hall of Fame12 16
  • 2013Fellow of the American Mathematical Society12 15
  • 2009Fellow of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics12 14
  • 2001Charles Babbage Award12 13
  • 1981Machtey Award12

Sources

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    Wikidata and SEC EDGARAkamai Technologies, Board member
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