Valery Vavilov

Valery Vavilov is the CEO and founder of the Bitfury Group, the world’s leading emerging technologies company. Axelera AI, the Netherlands-based startup building next-gen, scalable hardware for AI at the edge, was incubated by Bitfury and advised by other technology companies, including nanotechnology firm IMEC and deep-tech venture capital funds Innovation Industry Fund and imec.xpand. Other game-changing companies Bitfury has incubated and brought to market include LiquidStack, the emerging leader in two-phase liquid immersion cooling for the world’s most intensive computing applications, and Crystal Blockchain, the most advanced blockchain analytics platform for digital asset compliance.

Valery’s entrepreneurial experience and passion for blockchain led him to found the Bitfury Group in 2011 when blockchain was just beginning to capture the world’s attention and imagination. A native Latvian who experienced first-hand the challenges resulting from the collapse of the Soviet Union, Valery was inspired by the innovative technology and saw an opportunity to build technological solutions that could improve the lives of people worldwide. Valery focused first on hardware solutions that would ensure security and trust in the Bitcoin Blockchain, leading Bitfury to develop six generations of cutting-edge chips and state-of-the-art data center designs. Under his leadership, the company has expanded its focus to provide custom-designed software and advanced hardware in cryptocurrency, blockchain and artificial intelligence, all while maintaining its position as one of the major public Bitcoin Blockchain security and transaction providers. Prior to founding Bitfury, Valery spent more than 15 years in a variety of technical and leadership positions.

He has received his M.S. degree in Computer Science from Riga’s Transport & Telecommunication University in Latvia and has completed the Stanford Executive Program at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Among other leadership initiatives, he is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Fourth Industrial Revolution Council on Blockchain.