Ali Can Kizilkaya obtained his PhD in 2014 from Eindhoven University of Technology, under the supervision of Prof. Hans Niemantsverdriet, related to the physical chemistry of catalyst surfaces, combining experimental surface science with molecular modeling. After his PhD, he worked in industrial R&D in Shell Amsterdam and AkzoNobel Izmir laboratories for 2 years. Until October 2025, he worked as a principal investigator in Izmir Institute of Technology and held visiting professor positions in University of Amsterdam and University of Jyväskylä. He has contributed to and led several successful academia-academia and academia-industry collaborations with outcomes such as grant acquisitions, academic papers, and training of several young researchers. Since October 2025, he has been working as a senior researcher with Prof. Mark Saeys at LCT, Ghent University, related to the rational design and multiscale modeling of thermal and electrocatalytic systems for sustainable energy technologies, as well as actively taking part in teaching and supervision.