Luigi Vigneri Highlights IOTA’s Research and Next-Gen DLT at ICBC 2025

This year’s IEEE ICBC 2025 conference in Pisa, Italy was not only a new assembly of blockchain researchers, it also marked another chapter in how modular DLT continues to advance. One of the best-known examples is IOTA, who contributed more than just another sponsorship. Their engagement in activities that included research, community building, and workshop organizing underscored their technical capabilities and longer-term plans for the decentralized infrastructure. 

IOTA has been participating and supporting every ICBC from the first edition in 2019. However, the presence of IOTA and their activity at ICBC 2025 was immeasurably larger, which is significant when considering the evolutionary moment for the ecosystem around real-time, modular, and scalable distributed ledger solutions. The conference represented an important venue for open discussion, sharing of innovation, and developing real academic ties.

IOTA Sponsored, Supported, and Steered ICBC 2025

As a primary sponsor, IOTA contributed not just funding, but on-site merchandise and support to help create a more cohesive and immersive experience for all participants. IOTA’s pervasive presence both in branded materials like banners and hats, and their support team, communicated not just commitment, but leadership in the future direction of what blockchain events should feel like, and how they can be done right. 

But sponsorship aside, IOTA’s real impact was in their intellectual contributions, with the team presenting three research papers on important pieces of modular DLT technology including transaction selection, incentive strategies, and sequencing. Importantly, these papers were not abstract theories, they were situated in the context of the needs and future direction of decentralized systems.

The Beyond the Chain Workshop Sparked Critical Thinking

Another standout initiative was the third edition of the Beyond the Chain: Workshop on Next-Generation Distributed Ledger Technologies (NextGenDLT’25). Co-organized by Luigi Vigneri, Sebastian Mueller, and Stefano Ferretti, this workshop is fast becoming a cornerstone for deep dives into the future of distributed systems. This year’s edition featured a keynote by Bhaskar Krishnamachari from USC, setting a high bar with visionary insights. 

The workshop sparked high-energy dialogue, raised fundamental questions around decentralized infrastructure, and encouraged active participation from academics, engineers, and early-stage researchers alike. It was clear that NextGenDLT’25 wasn’t just a side session, it was a central force driving technical curiosity and ambition at the event.

IOTA Research Showcased a Vision for the Future

The three papers IOTA presented tackled some of the most important problems of blockchain design today. Some of the topics, such as transaction selection or incentive schemes, represent fundamental challenges associated with the effective and efficient operation of modular DLTs. These contributions were as valuable to the academic integrity of the conference as they were to contextualising IOTA research as a credible contributor to part of the conversation about blockchain technology.

Luigi Vigneri also contributed to the overall scholarly identity of IOTA in his role as Poster Co-Chair for the main conference. Luigi facilitated the presentation and evaluation of exciting research ideas contributed by conference registrants from around the world. This involvement uniquely situated IOTA within the ongoing technical and scholarly dialogue taking place at the heart of the conference.

Building Connections and Momentum for the Future

What was exciting for IOTA’s team was not so much the content of the sessions and keynotes but the ability to engage with other participants in a physical space. In Montana, as with many other 2023 and upcoming events, the IOTA team was able to use the festival atmosphere to get their priorities and workstreams aligned, discuss the possibilities for collaboration with areas of the academy, and build relationships that will undoubtedly frame the next chapter of blockchain development.

The hallway conversations, double-take introductions, and moments of serendipity over a cup of coffee helped shape an energized environment at ICBC 2025. IOTA’s research team witnessed legitimate curiosity from attendees and encountered quite a few key contacts that will likely lead to future experiments and collaborative endeavours across institutions. As the conference ended, there was a strong sense of building momentum not only for IOTA but for the larger discussion regarding decentralized infrastructure and the emergent real-world implications of Modular DLT.

Looking Ahead to ICBC 2026 in Brisbane

With its sponsorship, research leadership, and community engagement, IOTA made a lasting impression at ICBC 2025. From pushing the envelope on modular DLT to amplifying the role of technical workshops like NextGenDLT’25, their work continues to build meaningful progress in decentralized systems.

As discussions from Pisa begin to translate into projects and collaborations, the journey now heads toward ICBC 2026 in Brisbane. For those passionate about the evolution of blockchain infrastructure, it’s clear: the real breakthroughs happen when deep research meets real-world engagement, and IOTA is right at the intersection of both.