Gabriel de Jesus

Affiliation: INESC TEC (Portugal) / Timor News (Timor-Leste).

Gabriel de Jesus is a researcher and information retrieval (IR) expert who earned his PhD in Informatics Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), Portugal, in September 2025. His doctoral research advanced search solutions for Tetun, creating foundational IR and natural language processing (NLP) resources for the language and developing retrieval algorithms and methods that strengthen Tetun’s digital presence, promote linguistic inclusion, and enable equitable access to information for Tetun-speaking communities in the online ecosystem.

He is an affiliated researcher with INESC TEC, based in Timor-Leste, where his research interests include IR, NLP, retrieval-augmented generation, and generative AI. His broader goal is to develop culturally aware and inclusive AI systems.

Gabriel has over a decade of experience in designing, developing, and managing information systems across both the public and private sectors. He has held senior roles, including Non-Executive Board Member of the National Communications Authority (ANC), IT Director at the Major Project Secretariat, and HR Information Systems Manager at Chemonics International for USAID’s HRH2030 Timor-Leste Program. These experiences strengthened his expertise in digital governance, policy, and institutional transformation.

He is the founder of Timor News, an online news agency, and the creator of the Labadain platforms: Labadain Search, a search engine for Tetun, and Labadain Chat, an LLM-based conversational assistant. These initiatives bridge research and social impact, advancing linguistic inclusion in digital spaces.

In academia, Gabriel has taught courses in computer programming, data mining, and database systems at several higher education institutions in Timor-Leste and has supervised students at both national and international levels. His work demonstrates a deep commitment to inclusive digital transformation, empowering communities in Timor-Leste through technology, research, and education.

Learn more at linkedin.com/in/gabrieljesus.