# Rodrigo Villar

> Software Engineer @ Ava Labs

Location: New York City Metropolitan Area, United States
Profile: https://flows.cv/rodrigovillar

At Ava Labs, I focus on blockchain virtual machine development and and optimization, having worked extensively with both the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and the HyperSDK, a framework for building fast custom VMs. My work spans the full development lifecycle: from maintaining core SDK infrastructure to architecting custom virtual machines and implementing comprehensive load testing suites. I currently work on Firewood, a custom compaction-less database for storing merkleized blockchain state.

I also have experience in smart contract development; during my time at Cornell, I founded and taught a for-credit smart contract development course where I taught students the fundamentals of EVM programming.

I'm particularly interested in learning more about alternative blockchain virtual machines and their architectures, along with traditional distributed systems.

## Work Experience
### Software Engineer @ Ava Labs
Jan 2024 – Present
Previously worked on the HyperSDK and making the EVM fast; now working on Firewood.

### Developer Relations Engineer @ Ava Labs
Jan 2024 – Jan 2024
Helping build the HyperSDK

### Head of Research @ Cornell Blockchain
Jan 2023 – Jan 2023 | Ithaca, New York, United States

### Technical Research Lead @ Cornell Blockchain
Jan 2022 – Jan 2023
• Led the creation of original technical research for the club to publish
• Advised 4 student researchers and provide educational resources for their research
• Presented bi-weekly research updates to Executive Board members

### Project Manager - MEV Bot @ Cornell Blockchain
Jan 2022 – Jan 2022
• MEV-focused project with the goal of exploiting price differences between decentralized exchanges on EVM-compatible blockchains
• Write proprietary Rust code necessary to find and execute profitable arbitrage trades
• Organize development timeline and facilitate communication between project members
• Contribute to mathematics necessary to execute arbitrage transactions with optimal token inputs

### R&D Team Member @ Cornell Blockchain
Jan 2021 – Jan 2022
• Attended weekly club meetings and engaged in technical workshops
• Provided guidance on the tokenonomics/governance for the Cornell Blockchain DAO

### Course Lecturer @ Cornell University
Jan 2023 – Jan 2023 | Ithaca, New York, United States
CS4998: Blockchain Development
• Led the creation of Cornell University's first technical blockchain course
• Produce lectures + course assignments relating to the Solidity programming lanuage and other blockchain development practices

### Developer Relations Intern @ Ava Labs
Jan 2023 – Jan 2023

### Capital Markets Intern @ CrossTower
Jan 2022 – Jan 2022
• Rewrote automated risk report code to produce detailed PnL summary at end of each trading day
• Utilized historical data on cryptocurrency perpetuals to create visualizations of trends and identify correlations
• Advise co-workers on wide range of blockchain fields from zero-knowledge proofs to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)


## Education
### Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Mathematics
Cornell University

### High School Diploma
Edison High School


## Contact & Social
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rrodrigovillar
- Portfolio: https://rodrigovillar.com

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Source: https://flows.cv/rodrigovillar
JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/rodrigovillar/resume.json
Last updated: 2026-04-13