Me in brief

I obtained my Ph.D. in Mathematics at Roma Tre University in January 2026. Since October 2026, I have been an Associate Professor at EPITA.

Short Bio

Rocco Brunelli graduated in Mathematical Sciences from the University of Rome "La Sapienza" in 2020 and earned a Master's Degree in Mathematical Sciences Applied to Data Science from the same university in 2022. He completed his Ph.D. in Mathematics at Roma Tre University in 2026, under the supervision of Marco Pedicini and Loic Rouquette. After completing his Ph.D. and a postdoctoral position at the University of Milan (La Statale), under the supervision of professor Andrea Visconti, he joined EPITA as an Associate Professor.

Research Interests

My ORCID is 0009-0005-2481-410X and a list of my publications is available on my profile.

• My main research interests are:Machine Learning applied to Differential Cryptanalysis (Neural Cryptanalysis): Investigating deep learning techniques and generic partial decryption pipelines to construct neural distinguishers and neural-assisted key recovery attacks on block ciphers.
• Constraint Programming for Automated Cryptanalysis: Applying constraint programming, SAT, and MILP solvers to model and automate the search for differential and boomerang characteristics in block ciphers (including frameworks such as TAGADA and CLAASP).
• Algebraic Cryptanalysis and Polynomial System Solving: Analyzing arithmetic-oriented symmetric cryptographic primitives and CICO problems through multivariate polynomial systems and Gröbner bases techniques.

Teaching

I am currently teaching the following classes:

• Probability Reasoning, International Master Program, EPITA (2026)
• Statistical Inference, International Master Program, EPITA (2026)
• Optimization Foundation, International Master Program, EPITA (2026)
• Matricial Algebra and Numerical Analasys, Bachelor Program, EPITA (2026)