Kevin Choi is the cofounder of Spectral, a company focused on developing credit risk assessment infrastructure for Web3 and decentralized finance (DeFi). He is also a computer science PhD candidate at NYU's Courant Institute. ^{[1] [2]}

Overview

Kevin Choi's work spans the fields of computer science, mathematics, and blockchain technology. He has contributed to research in number theory and cryptography, and has experience in both academic and startup environments. Choi's expertise includes decentralized finance (DeFi), cryptography, and machine learning. He is a co-founder of Chain Intelligence, a technical consulting group, and has also worked on decentralized applications (dApps) built on Ethereum ^[3]

Education

Choi attended Columbia University, where he earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Mathematics and Music in 2017. During his time at Columbia, he was on the Dean's List from Fall 2013 to Spring 2017 and was a Richard Lewis Kohn Fellow in Fall 2015. He also studied abroad at University College London during the 2015-2016 academic year. As of Fall 2019, Choi is pursuing a PhD in Computer Science at NYU's Courant Institute. ^{[3] [4]}

Career

Prior to his doctoral studies, Choi co-founded Chain Intelligence, a technical consulting group based in New York City, in 2017. The company provided technical research and market intelligence consulting services to blockchain startups based in Asia. During his time with Chain Intelligence, Choi managed a team of researchers, engineers, and a media partner.

Choi is currently a cofounder at Spectral, a Web3 startup developing credit risk assessment infrastructure for decentralized finance (DeFi). Spectral developed the Multi-Asset Credit Risk Oracle (MACRO) score, an on-chain credit score generated from a user’s on-chain activity. Truist Ventures invested in Spectral to support the development of credit risk assessment infrastructure in Web3 ^[1]. Samsung Next also invested in Spectral, citing the platform's ability to provide trustless, permissionless credit analysis for DeFi decisions. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]}

Other Projects and Activities

• Own A Number: Choi developed "Own A Number", a decentralized application (dApp) built on the Ethereum blockchain.
• Columbia Math REU: Choi participated in the Columbia Math Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program in 2015 and 2016, where he conducted research on number theory and related topics. His projects included "On the Numerators of Hurwitz Numbers" and "Random Variety in P1(Fq ) and P2(Fq )".
• Wolfram Demonstrations Project: Choi has three published projects in the Wolfram Demonstrations Project, including "Decomposing a Random Newton Polygon".
• Teaching Assistant: Choi worked as a teaching assistant at Columbia University for "MATH UN3020 Number Theory and Cryptography" in Spring 2017 and "MATH UN3025 Making, Breaking Codes" in Fall 2016.
• Musical Performances: Choi performed at Carnegie Hall as a classical guitarist on April 8, 2015.. He has also arranged and performed various musical pieces, including "Clair de Lune" for guitar and flute. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]}