Zeev Kalyuzhner
AI Researcher in Electrical Engineering
👋 About
I am a Senior AI Research Scientist and PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering at Bar-Ilan University, advised by Prof. Zeev Zalevsky (Dean of Engineering). My research lies at the intersection of artificial intelligence, nano-optics, neuroscience, and biomedicine — developing deep learning models for advanced biomedical imaging and non-invasive sensing via speckle pattern analysis.
In parallel, I serve as a Lead AI Researcher at Wix, working on AI systems and cybersecurity, and as a Faculty Lecturer at Tel-Aviv University and The Open University, teaching AI, operating systems, and security courses.
🔬 Research
My research focuses on photonic sensing and AI-driven biomedical imaging. Key areas include:
- Non-invasive biomedical sensing — Remote detection of blood oxygen saturation, intraocular pressure, and physiological states using laser speckle patterns and deep learning.
- Neural activity imaging — Visual cortex speckle imaging for shape recognition and monitoring brain responses to speech stimuli.
- Photonic human identification — Deep learning of back-scattered laser speckle patterns for biometric identification.
- Microsaccade tracking — Secondary speckle pattern analysis for precise eye micro-movement tracking.
- Optical memory — Machine learning models for novel optical memory approaches.
- AI for cybersecurity — Detection algorithms and ML-based threat modeling at Wix, including LLM security research.
📑 Publications
- New Kalyuzhner, Z., Agdarov, S., Beiderman, Y., Beiderman, Y., & Zalevsky, Z. (2025). Visual cortex speckle imaging for shape recognition. Scientific Reports, 15(1), 42690. paper
- New Segal, N., Kalyuzhner, Z., Agdarov, S., Beiderman, Y., Beiderman, Y., & Zalevsky, Z. (2025). AI-powered remote monitoring of brain responses to clear and incomprehensible speech via speckle pattern analysis. Journal of Biomedical Optics, 30(6), 067001. paper
- New Shteinberg, O., Agdarov, S., Beiderman, Y., Bonneh, Y. S., Ziv, I., Kalyuzhner, Z., & Zalevsky, Z. (2025). Microsaccades tracking by secondary speckle pattern analysis. Journal of Biophotonics, 18(12), e202400184. paper
- Raviv, T., Kalyuzhner, Z., & Zalevsky, Z. (2024). Machine Learning Models for a Novel Optical Memory Approach. ACS Omega, 9(51), 50838–50843. paper
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Zalevsky, Z. (2024). Leveraging Machine Learning for Advanced Biomedical Imaging: Insights from Speckle Pattern Analysis. In: Gogoi, A., Mazumder, N. (eds) Biomedical Imaging. Springer, Singapore. chapter
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Agdarov, S., Beiderman, Y., Bennet, A., Beiderman, Y., & Zalevsky, Z. (2024). Remote and low-cost intraocular pressure monitoring by deep learning of speckle patterns. Journal of Biomedical Optics, 29(3), 037003. paper
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Agdarov, S., Orr, I., Beiderman, Y., Bennett, A., & Zalevsky, Z. (2022). Remote photonic detection of human senses using secondary speckle patterns. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 1–9. paper
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Agdarov, S., Bennett, A., Beiderman, Y., & Zalevsky, Z. (2021). Remote photonic sensing of blood oxygen saturation via tracking of anomalies in micro-saccades patterns. Optics Express, 29(3), 3386–3394. paper
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Levitas, O., Kalichman, F., Jacobson, R., & Zalevsky, Z. (2019). Photonic human identification based on deep learning of back-scattered laser speckle patterns. Optics Express, 27(24), 36002–36010. paper
🎙️ Conferences
- IMVC 2025 — Israel Machine Vision Conference [link]
- AI Week 2024 — BioMed Track [video]
- Cyber Week 2023 — Academic Perspectives on Cybersecurity Challenges Track [video]
- Kalyuzhner, Z., Beiderman, Y., Agdarov, S., & Zalevsky, Z. (2022). “Wearable vs. contact-free photonic bio-sensors and their application to SARS-CoV-2 symptoms detection.” Proc. SPIE PC11979. [paper]
📜 Patents
- System and method for monitoring biomechanical characteristics of an eye [patent]
- System and method for tracking cellular devices [patent]
- System and method for few-shot learning [patent]
- System and method for estimating properties associated with routers [patent]
- System and method for identifying services with which encrypted traffic is exchanged [patent]
💼 Experience
Lead AI Researcher — Wix
2022 – Present
End-to-end AI research at the intersection of data science, AI systems, and cybersecurity. LLM security policy, threat modeling, and strategic AI guidance for executive leadership.
Lead AI Researcher — Cognyte (formerly Verint)
2019 – 2022
Led research PoCs, invented SoTA few-shot object detection methods (pending patent), and engineered large-scale intelligence data analysis algorithms (OSINT/SIGINT).
Deep Learning Researcher — Apester
2018 – 2019
Sentiment and intent algorithms, unsupervised learning, and collaborative filtering for personalization.
Deep Learning Researcher — Dragontail Systems
2017 – 2018
Object detection and recognition using deep learning with distortion correction and image segmentation.
🎓 Teaching
Faculty Lecturer — Tel-Aviv University & The Open University
2022 – Present
Courses in the Faculty of Engineering and Department of Computer Science:
🏫 Education
Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and AI
Bar-Ilan University — 2021–2026
Thesis: Advanced AI and photonic methods for biomedical sensing. Advisor: Prof. Zeev Zalevsky (Dean of Engineering).
M.S. in Electrical Engineering and AI
Bar-Ilan University — 2020–2021
Thesis: Photonic human identification based on deep learning of back-scattered laser speckle patterns.
M.S. in Computer Science
The Open University — 2018–2020
Specialization in machine learning and computer vision.
B.S. in Computer Science
Holon Institute of Technology — 2014–2017
🤝 Community & Service
- Magshimim AI Program (Israel National Cyber Directorate) — Mentoring high school students in AI and cybersecurity.
- MesayaaTech — Mentoring IDF reservists transitioning to high-tech careers.
- Kama-Tech — Managing the Data Science track for integrating ultra-Orthodox communities into Israel's high-tech sector.