Kurt is an assistant professor at Michigan State University in the Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media. His primary research is on the value of information and communication technology in developing economies. His research uses a combination of simulations, evolutionary algorithms, and econometrics.

He received his PhD from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He also hold a BS in Computer Science from Hope College.

Prior to earning his PhD, he was a co-founder of Slashdot.org. He is currently a member of the board of directors of the Perl Foundation.