Christian Catalini

Founder

United States20 yrs 3 mos experience
Most Likely To SwitchHighly Stable

Key Highlights

  • Founder of the MIT Cryptoeconomics Lab.
  • Co-created Libra and contributed to Bitcoin adoption.
  • Head Economist at Meta with a focus on fintech.
Stackforce AI infers this person is a Fintech and AI expert with a strong academic background.

Contact

Skills

Core Skills

StrategyFinance

Other Skills

Corporate DevelopmentStrategic PartnershipsArtificial Intelligence (AI)Data ScienceEconomicsStart-upsData AnalysisVenture CapitalEconomics of InnovationInnovationTechnology ManagementCorporate StrategyEconometricsPythonR

About

Christian Catalini is a tech founder with roots in academia. He obsesses over the moment before the rules are written—the messy, pre-consensus phase—from crypto to AI. He’s usually early—founder of the MIT Cryptoeconomics Lab—and he takes big swings—from seeding a generation of MIT builders with Bitcoin in 2014 to co-creating Libra. After co-founding Lightspark, he’s reset for one last meaningful swing before AGI does the rest. He holds a PhD from the University of Toronto (Rotman School of Management), and MSc (summa cum laude) in Economics and Management of New Technologies from Bocconi University, Milan. Christian’s research has been featured in Nature, Science, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Economist, WIRED, NPR, Forbes, Bloomberg, TechCrunch, the Chicago Tribune, the Boston Globe, VICE news and the Washington Post among others. Christian has presented his work at a variety of institutions including Harvard University, MIT, Yale University, London Business School, New York University, UC Berkeley, Stanford University, the Federal Reserve Bank, the US Treasury, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the World Bank, the IMF, the White House OSTP, and a number of central banks and regulators.

Experience

Skyfire

Advisor

Sep 2025Present · 6 mos

Polarity

Advisor

May 2024Present · 1 yr 10 mos

Hivemind

Independent Board Member

Sep 2023Present · 2 yrs 6 mos

U.s. commodity futures trading commission

Technology Advisory Committee Member

Mar 2023Mar 2025 · 2 yrs

Lightspark

Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer

May 2022Present · 3 yrs 10 mos · Los Angeles Metropolitan Area

  • Strategic Partnerships, Finance, AI & Data Science, Corporate Development, BD, and Special Projects.
StrategyFinanceCorporate DevelopmentStrategic PartnershipsArtificial Intelligence (AI)Data Science

Coinbase

Advisory Board, Coinbase Institute

May 2022Present · 3 yrs 10 mos

Chainlink labs

Advisor

Nov 2021Apr 2025 · 3 yrs 5 mos

Bank of england

Member, CBDC Engagement Forum

Sep 2021Sep 2023 · 2 yrs

Mit sloan school of management

2 roles

Founder, MIT Cryptoeconomics Lab, and Research Scientist

Promoted

Jul 2021Present · 4 yrs 8 mos

Associate Professor

Feb 2018Jul 2021 · 3 yrs 5 mos

Diem association

2 roles

Chief Economist

Jun 2020May 2022 · 1 yr 11 mos

Co-Creator

Jul 2018May 2022 · 3 yrs 10 mos

Creative destruction lab

3 roles

Associate

Aug 2018Present · 7 yrs 7 mos

Strategic Advisory Board Member

Jul 2013Aug 2018 · 5 yrs 1 mo

Associate Director

May 2012Jul 2013 · 1 yr 2 mos

Meta

Head Economist for Meta Fintech

Jul 2018May 2022 · 3 yrs 10 mos · Menlo Park, California, United States

National bureau of economic research

Faculty Research Fellow

May 2018Nov 2023 · 5 yrs 6 mos · Cambridge, MA

Mit cryptoeconomics lab

Founder

Sep 2017Present · 8 yrs 6 mos

Algorand

Economic Advisor

Sep 2017Dec 2025 · 8 yrs 3 mos

Massachusetts institute of technology

Theodore T. Miller Professor

Jun 2017Jul 2021 · 4 yrs 1 mo

Mit sloan school of management

2 roles

Fred Kayne (1960) Career Development Professor of Entrepreneurship

Promoted

Sep 2014Jun 2017 · 2 yrs 9 mos

Assistant Professor

Jun 2013Feb 2018 · 4 yrs 8 mos

Delphia

Advisor

Feb 2014Jan 2025 · 10 yrs 11 mos

The next 36

2 roles

Faculty

Promoted

Feb 2013Dec 2017 · 4 yrs 10 mos

Tech Advisor

Jun 2010Feb 2013 · 2 yrs 8 mos

Brainmaven corp.

Chief Scientist

Jan 2011Jan 2012 · 1 yr · Toronto, ON

Rotman school of management

PhD Candidate, Strategic Management

Aug 2007Jun 2013 · 5 yrs 10 mos

Bocconi university

Research Scientist

Jan 2006Aug 2007 · 1 yr 7 mos · Milan Area, Italy

Education

University of Toronto - Rotman School of Management

PhD — Strategic Management

Jan 2007Jan 2013

Università Bocconi

MSc — Economics and management of international markets and new technologies (CLEMIT)

Jan 2004Jan 2006

Stockholm School of Economics

MSc (Exchange Year)

Jan 2005Jan 2005

Università Bocconi

Bachelor — Economics of international markets and new technologies

Jan 2001Jan 2004

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