Researchers and Members

The Apriori Institute is a Brazilian private, non-profit Science, Technology and Innovation Institution (ICT) working in computer science and engineering. What the Institute researches is set out in its fields of scientific and technological activity.

Research Team

The four founding members constituted the Institute in November 2025. Scientific direction rests with the Principal Investigator (PI), Prof. Dr. Vitor Venceslau Curtis, Technical-Scientific Director, responsible for coordinating science and technology, research and development, technology projects and research partnerships.

Vitor Venceslau Curtis

Prof. Dr. Vitor Venceslau Curtis

Principal Investigator (PI) · Technical-Scientific Director Founding member
E-mail
curtis@institutoapriori.org.br
Identifiers
ORCID 0000-0003-4462-3907 · Lattes CV
Education
PhD (2018) and MSc (2013) in Electronic Engineering and Computer Science, ITA
Research areas
High-performance computing, parallel computing, algorithms, optimization and data science
Affiliation
Professor, Computer Science Division, Department of Computer Systems, Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA)
Researcher’s publications (ITA affiliation)
Computers & Operations Research, 2025 · Mathematics, 2025

Institutional page

Elton Felipe Sbruzzi

Prof. Elton Felipe Sbruzzi

Director of Innovation and Technology Transfer Founding member
E-mail
sbruzzi@institutoapriori.org.br
Identifiers
ORCID 0000-0003-0457-0310 · Lattes CV
Affiliation
Professor, Department of Software and Information Systems, Computer Science Division, Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA)

Emília de Menezes Colonese

President Founding member
E-mail
colonese@institutoapriori.org.br
Identifiers
Lattes CV
Affiliation
Collaborating lecturer, Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA)

Carlos Freire Longato

Researcher — Law and Innovation Founding member · Lawyer
E-mail
longato@institutoapriori.org.br
Identifiers
Lattes CV
Research areas
Science, technology and innovation law; the Brazilian Legal Framework for ST&I; legal instruments for research partnerships and technology transfer

Research Group

The group is coordinated by the Principal Investigator and brings together researchers with an active, continuing publication record in these lines — 24 published works with DOIs, three of them co-authored between members of the Institute. The Institute was constituted in November 2025 and is building its institutional lines on that basis. See the full publication list.

Attribution: these works were produced under the authors’ affiliations at other institutions — principally the Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA) — and all of them before the Apriori Institute was constituted on 13 November 2025. They are not institutional output of the Apriori Institute.

Algorithms and high-performance computing

GPU algorithms for the subset-sum problem, parallel and distributed computing. Published in Computers & Operations Research, European Journal of Operational Research and Concurrency and Computation.

Responsible: Vitor Venceslau Curtis

Autonomous systems and delivery drones

Last-mile drone routing, UAV control and safety in urban airspace, AI-based wildfire monitoring. Published in Computers & Operations Research, IEEE Access and IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Magazine.

Responsible: Vitor Venceslau Curtis and Elton Felipe Sbruzzi

Machine learning in financial markets

Forecasting and asset allocation with deep learning, singular spectrum analysis and multi-agent trading systems. Published in IEEE Access, IEEE Systems Journal and IEEE Latin America Transactions.

Responsible: Elton Felipe Sbruzzi

Data mining, cybersecurity and distributed systems

Cluster validation indices, denial-of-service mechanisms and blockchain-based digital contracts. Published in Mathematics and at international conferences.

Responsible: Vitor Venceslau Curtis

Executive Board and Audit Committee

The remaining associate members hold the management and oversight positions elected at the founding assembly, with a mandate running to November 2029.

Brenno Colonese Domingues

Administrative Director · Vice-President

Lucas Barrero Longato

Legal Director

Roberto Antônio Curtis Filho

Audit Committee · full member

Michael Douglas Coelho de Araujo

Audit Committee · full member

Elisa Yuki Itogawa

Audit Committee · alternate · research engineer

The Audit Committee oversees the accounts, issues an annual opinion on the Institute's financial position and monitors compliance with the Bylaws.

How people join the Institute

Besides the founding members, the Bylaws provide three ways of belonging to the Institute: Members, who work directly on projects and vote at the General Assembly; Supporters, recognised for donations or relevant contributions; and Independent researchers or inventors, invited for specific projects for a fixed term. Admission considers proven academic background or experience in the field, technical or scientific contribution, and commitment to the Bylaws.

Researchers and independent inventors

The Institute is open to researchers, university lecturers and independent inventors in its fields of activity, either to join the Institute or to take part in specific RD&I projects.

Get involved

Or write directly to contato@institutoapriori.org.br, stating your field and research line.