With more than 15 years of experience in technology and a track record of contributions to open-source security tools, Fotis Chantzis, MEng, now applies his expertise to one of the field’s most pressing challenges: ensuring AI systems remain safe and secure. As agent security lead at OpenAI, Chantzis has served as an expert in building novel security and safety controls since 2020.
An Early Interest in Computers
Chantzis has been fascinated with computers ever since he was a child in Greece. During middle school, he began experimenting with programming languages and coding, loved playing video games, and was even inspired to create his own. All his progress was garnered through self-learning and experimenting with code.
“At that time, we had very slow internet connections, but it was still enough to be able to browse the web and read forums about programming and coding,” Chantzis says.
This first foray into software engineering and development would be the foundation for Chantzis’ future ambitions, as he expanded his self-taught knowledge in high school. His fascination with computers extended to their inner workings, and he began studying network security protocols, culminating in a publication at Phrack Magazine on hacking TCP, the foundational network protocol on which the entire Internet relies. He was also intrigued by methods for modifying program behavior beyond the boundaries of their original specifications. He found computers both challenging and fascinating and they occupied a significant amount of his time.
“It was something that I did for fun. It was basically my main hobby for a long time. Then, I realized it’s also a huge field of science. Computer engineering was my top choice for school,” Chantzis says.
Building a Career
Following his passion for computer science, Chantzis earned a master’s in computer engineering and informatics from the University of Patras in Greece. He has also acquired certifications, including Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP), Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Offensive Security Certified Expert (OSCE).
Chantzis has built a career as a software engineer in Greece and the U.S., achieving significant success in the field. Among his notable accomplishments, he contributed to a well-regarded open-source project. “The project is called Nmap, he says. “It’s a network security tool that everybody in the industry uses. It’s open source, so that means the code is available for everyone to access, contribute to and modify if they so desire. Nmap is essentially a suite and I created one tool, called Ncrack, within this suite of tools that became its own project, but it was still under the umbrella of the Nmap project.”
In Chantzis’ view, the tech field is highly demanding and its “progress requires perseverance through challenges.” He believes that his success is the result of his resilience and determination. These are traits he relies on as he pursues his goal to achieve artificial superintelligence. He understands how critical it is that advanced AI “remains safe and under control,” but also believes that AI has immense potential to change the world.
In addition to his technical work, Chantzis is also an author, having written the book “Practical IoT Hacking: The Definitive Guide to Attacking the Internet of Things,” published in 2021.
For his expertise in technology, Chantzis was honored with inclusion in Marquis Who’s Who in September 2025.
