Xiaotong Cheng

Assistant Professor @ SDU

Hi! I am Xiaotong. I am currently an Assistant Professor in the School of Computer Science and Technology at Shandong University.

I obtained my Ph.D. (summa cum laude) from Ruhr University Bochum in 2025, where I was advised by Prof. Setareh Maghsudi.

My research lies at the intersection of online learning, game theory, and multi-agent systems. I am particularly interested in designing provably efficient algorithms for decision-making in complex, dynamic environments, including

Foundations & Theory

  • Online Decision-Making: Algorithm design and regret analysis for online learning with bandit feedback
  • Multi-Agent Coordination: Game-theoretical frameworks for distributed consensus, clustering, and social learning.

Applications

  • Social Network & Online Recommendations
  • Edge Intelligence & IoT
  • Autonomous Systems

Selected Publications

Anomaly Detection in Networked Bandits
Xiaotong Cheng, Setareh Maghsudi
Accepted by IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing [PDF]
Online Influence Maximization With Semi-Bandit Feedback Under Corruptions
Xiaotong Cheng, Behzad Nourani-Koliji, Setareh Maghsudi
IEEE Transactions on Network Science and Engineering, 2025 [PDF]
Distributed Management of Fluctuating Energy Resources in Dynamic Networked Systems
Xiaotong Cheng, Ioannis Tsetis, Setareh Maghsudi
IEEE Transactions on Network Science and Engineering, 2024 [PDF]
Distributed Consensus Algorithm for Decision-Making in Multiagent Multiarmed Bandit
Xiaotong Cheng, Setareh Maghsudi
IEEE Transactions on Control of Network Systems, 2024 [PDF]
Parallel Online Clustering of Bandits via Hedonic Game
Xiaotong Cheng, Cheng Pan, Setareh Maghsudi
International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML), 2023 [PDF] [Code]
Distributed Task Management in Fog Computing: A Socially Concave Bandit Game
Xiaotong Cheng, Setareh Maghsudi
IEEE Transactions on Green Communications and Networking, 2023 [PDF]
Multitask Cooperative Formation Control of Autonomous Surface Vehicles with Interception of Moving Objects
Xiaotong Cheng, Yu Lu, Lei Qiao, Zhihuan Hu, Weidong Zhang
IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering [PDF]

Education

Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
Ruhr University Bochum (2023 - 2025)
Ph.D. study in Computer Science
University of Tuebingen (Transferred to RUB) (2021 - 2023)
M.S. in Control Engineering
Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2019 - 2021)
M.S. in Electrical Engineering
Technical University of Berlin (2017 - 2019)
B.S. in Automation
Shanghai Jiao Tong University (2014 - 2018)