MPI-SP Success Story: Alessandro Fabris becomes assistant professor at University of Trieste

Until February 2025, Alessandro Fabris was a postdoctoral researcher in the Responsible Computing Group at the Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy. In March, he began the next chapter of his career as an assistant professor at the University of Trieste. Before he left, Alessandro answered a few questions about his time at the institute and his experience in Germany.

From industry to academia

Alessandro is originally from “a lovely Italian region called Friuli Venezia Giulia”. After obtaining his Master’s degree, he joined the industry sector, working at several international companies. The lack of research flexibility in the corporate world has motivated Alessandro to return to academia and pursue his PhD. “I was lucky to find collegial corporate environments where personal initiative was valued. Inevitably, though, the main direction for research and development was chosen at a different level. Academia is great for the flexibility of asking your own questions and challenging disciplinary boundaries.”, shared Alessandro.

Research in algorithmic fairness

Alessandro’s PhD research on discriminatory pricing in Italian car insurance revealed biases in pricing, with people from certain cities in Italy or with different nationalities having to pay a more expensive insurance policy. This research has gotten the attention of the Italian insurance supervision body and has been covered by both Italian and international press.

His research journey brought him to MPI-SP in 2023, where he joined the Responsible Computing Group as a postdoctoral researcher. Here he continued to pursue research in the field of algorithmic fairness and received the Humboldt Research Fellowship for his groundbreaking work. When asked about his motivation for choosing this topic, Alessandro answered: “Data-driven algorithms are increasingly used to support important decisions in our lives. Since data is a mirror of imbalanced societies, there is a strong risk that algorithms will encode and perpetuate these discriminatory patterns. Understanding and mitigating undesirable disparities is fundamental to keeping algorithms in check and ensuring shared benefits for societies. This is my main motivation for contributing to this research domain.”

In March 2025, Alessandro Fabris joined the University of Trieste as an assistant professor of computer science. He will lead the research group called Measuring Evolving Technology Risks, Impacts, and eXperiences, “or METRIX lab in short”.

Living in Bochum, Germany

In our interview, Alessandro shared his experience living in Bochum, Germany: “I am very grateful for my time in Bochum. I met loads of great people and discovered the local culture a little bit, including - what seemed to me - very direct communication and unexpected self-irony.” He also mentioned one of the great benefits of living in Germany: “I cannot begin to express my appreciation for the Deutschland ticket and its convenience for public transport.”. By moving to Bochum, Alessandro was also able to reconnect with family members living in a nearby city: “On a personal note, moving to Bochum allowed me to reconnect with my cousins who run an ice cream parlor in Essen Steele!”

Working at MPI-SP

“I came to MPI-SP for its global recognition and great research. At the institute, I found lovely colleagues, wholesome conversations, exciting initiatives, and a fantastic admin team who really contributed to making me feel welcome and supported,” shared Alessandro. He concluded the interview by saying “I recommend MPI-SP to anyone interested in pursuing a research stint, even if they don't have any relative running ice cream shops nearby!”