Speakers

Dr. Saifur Rahman

Director, Virginia Tech Advanced Research Institute, USA | President, IEEE Power & Energy Society, 2018 and 2019 | 2023 IEEE President & CEO

Dr. Saifur Rahman

Director, Virginia Tech Advanced Research Institute, USA | President, IEEE Power & Energy Society, 2018 and 2019 | 2023 IEEE President & CEO

Professor Saifur Rahman is the founding director of the Advanced Research Institute (www.ari.vt.edu) at Virginia Tech, USA where he is the Joseph R. Loring professor of electrical and computer engineering. He also directs the Center for Energy and the Global Environment (www.ceage.vt.edu). He is a Life Fellow of the IEEE and an IEEE Millennium Medal winner. He was the president of the IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES) for 2018 and 2019. He was the founding editor-in-chief of the IEEE Electrification Magazine and the IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy. He has published over 140 journal papers and has made over four hundred conference and invited presentations. In 2006 he served on the IEEE Board of Directors as the vice president for publications. He is a distinguished lecturer for the IEEE Power & Energy Society and has lectured on renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grid, energy internet, blockchain, IoT sensor integration, etc. in over 30 countries. He is the founder of BEM Controls, LLC, a Virginia (USA)-based software company providing building energy management solutions. He served as the chair of the US National Science Foundation Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering from 2010 to 2013. He has conducted several energy efficiency, blockchain and sensor integration projects for Duke Energy, Tokyo Electric Power Company, the US National Science Foundation, the US Department of Defense, the US Department of Energy and the State of Virginia.

Email:presidents@ieee.org

Dr. Eesa Bastaki

President, University of Dubai, UAE

Dr. Eesa Bastaki

President, University of Dubai, UAE

DR. EESA MOHAMMED BASTAKI, Ph.D. PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF DUBAI (UAE), is the recipient of the highest award in the UAE, the “Emirates Excellence Award in Sciences, Literature, and Arts”. Dr. Bastaki has extensive experience in education, leadership, technology, and communications. Previously, Dr. Bastaki worked as a professor at United Arab Emirates University (UAEU). He also held positions as CEO of the ICT Fund; Director of Education, Training, and Research and Development for Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO); and was a member of many academic boards. He is the Honorary Chair of IEEE, Chairman of the Emirates Science Club, Chair of the Emirates Energy Award, and a Board member of the Cultural and Scientific Association, and many more. Dr. Bastaki chaired several technology and research boards, initiated technology incubation concepts, and coined “R&BD terminology”. Dr. Bastaki received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of California, San Diego, and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine, USA.

Dr. Michael Milligan

Chief Executive Officer, ABET, USA

Dr. Michael Milligan

Chief Executive Officer, ABET, USA

Michael K. J. Milligan is the Chief Executive Officer of ABET, the global accreditor of over 4,000 college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering and engineering technology. Prior to joining ABET in 2009, Milligan was a systems director at the Aerospace Corporation, leading a team at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center developing the next generation environmental satellites for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Milligan served over 24 years as a career U.S. Air Force officer working in operations, education, international research and development. During his USAF career, he served as an associate professor and deputy department head in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado. Milligan earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin, his M.S.E. from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and his B.S. from Michigan State University — all in electrical engineering. He also earned an M.B.A. from Western New England College, is a registered Professional Engineer (PE) in Colorado and Maryland, and a Certified Association Executive (CAE). Milligan is also a member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, IEEE Eta Kappa Nu Electrical and Computer Engineering Honor Society, and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Dr. Ingrid Mulder

Associate Professor, Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Netherlands

Dr. Ingrid Mulder

Associate Professor, Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Netherlands

Dr. Ingrid Mulder is an expert in transformative and social design. With a background in policy and organization sciences (MA, University of Tilburg) and educational science and technology (Ph.D., University of Twente), she started her research career anticipating future technologies impacting society within the national Top Technology Institute on Telematics. This has reinforced her ongoing transdisciplinary research that addresses the synergetic interplay of design methods, systemic thinking, social learning and organizational change. Her latest awarded projects Open4Citizens (Horizon2020), Participatory City Making (NWO), DESIGNSCAPES (Horizon2020) and Bauhaus of the Seas (Horizon Europe), share the ambition of exploring the value of design approaches for societal transformations. As one of the pioneering Living Labs researchers in 2005, she headed the impact evaluation of the first Dutch living lab, “Kenniswijk” and established the methodological foundation for the European Network of Living Labs (2006). Ever since, she has been an expert for the European Commission advocating the interplay of policies and bottom-up participatory innovation within the debate on the value of participation in addressing sustainable development goals. As part of her previous readership in digital social innovation, she developed a comprehensive research program ‘Meaningful Design in a Connected City’ as an Urban Living Lab, including the setup of the first Fablab in Rotterdam, Rotterdam Open Data, and the Internet of Things Days Rotterdam. She also founded Creating010, a trans-disciplinary design-inclusive research centre enabling citizens, students, governmental organisations, businesses, and creative industry to collaboratively making futures of Rotterdam. Currently, as a director of the Delft Design Lab Participatory City Making, she further builds design capacity in the public realm through local design experiments and developing methods and strategies for social sustainability and systemic change.

Dr. Ravikiran Annaswamy

Global President, IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society | CEO Co-Founder, Numocity Technologies, India

Dr. Ravikiran Annaswamy

Global President, IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society | CEO Co-Founder, Numocity Technologies, India

Ravikiran Annaswamy is Founder and CEO of Numocity Technologies. He is incubating various innovative products using analytics and deep learning. His current business focus is on bringing Electric Mobility to Indian market and has launched various technology products like Fulcharge.com in this space. He works closely with global programs likeFounders Institute (Fi.Co) and Unreasonable Institute as Mentor and Coach for early stage startups. He is on the global team of IEEE 5G and is responsible for vision & strategy for future applications and services like Tactile/Haptic Internet, IOT, AR, VR Applications. He has over 23 years of business experience as Entrepreneur and as Business Leader at Nokia Siemens Networks and Siemens AG. He was Business Head for Indian market, led Global Product Management and was General Manager for BSS Solutions. He championed Intrapreneurship by working as Innovation head for Bangalore site of Nokia Siemens Networks. He has vast experience of launching successful technology solutions for global markets, mainly in the area of Analytics and Marketing automation, Online Billing and Charging, Innovative 3G/4G applications, Multimedia and Security Solutions. He is an engaged Professional volunteer, was the Chairman for IEEE Bangalore section (2014-2015), Industry Relations for IEEE - Asia Pacific (2014-15) and Secretary for IEEE Asia Pacific (2015-16). He is currently Editor in Chief for Leader Magazine for IEEE TEMS. He is a thought leader and speaker at various prestigious international business conferences.    He has done his MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore and has graduated from UVCE Bangalore.

Mr. Safder Nazir

Senior Vice President - Digital Industries, Huwaei Tech

Dr. Deepak Laxmanrao Waikar

Vice Chair, IEEE Education Society Singapore Chapter | Member, IEEE-TEMS Regional Leaders Subcommittee

Dr. Deepak Laxmanrao Waikar

Vice Chair, IEEE Education Society Singapore Chapter | Member, IEEE-TEMS Regional Leaders Subcommittee

Dr. Deepak L. Waikar has served on various committees in professional bodies such as a Member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE)-TEMS Regional Leaders Subcommittee, Chair of IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES) Chapter, Singapore, and Chair of the IEEE Education Society Chapter Singapore. He is a recipient of the IEEE-PES Outstanding Power Engineers’ Award 2003 and SP Green Buddy Award 2004. Dr. Waikar has been associated with Singapore Certified Energy Manager’s programme for more than a decade. He has also been an advisory committee member of the Indo-Universal Centre for Engineering Education (IUCEE). Dr. Waikar has facilitated several collaborations between Academic Institutions, Industries, and Professional Institutions. He has over three decades of international experience in education, training, research, & management and delivered keynote/ plenary/panel session presentations globally. He completed Ph.D. from the National University of Singapore, M.S. from University of Saskatchewan, Canada, M.Tech. from Indian Institute of Technology, Varanasi, India, and PD Certificate in University Teaching from University of Newcastle, Australia.

Eng. Mohamed Aboud

VP Membership, Marketing, and Communications, IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society

Eng. Mohamed Aboud

VP Membership, Marketing, and Communications, IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society

Mohamed Aboud is a Managing Director of Global Innovation & Entrepreneurship Company which focuses on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Co-Founder & Executive manger of MENA Robotics and Co-Founder & VP for Business Development of Ideaspace which is one of the biggest innovation hubs in MENA region that provide all needed tools, facilities, services and the suitable environment to enable innovation and entrepreneurship. He was the Co- founder and Manager of Start With Google, Bader Program, Mad in the Arab World and many other initiatives that support Innovation and entrepreneurship Eco-System in Egypt and Arab region, also he is a board member of COMESA Innovation Council, he has more than 18 years of experience in innovation and business development, he worked as Business Development Consultant at Science Age for 3 years, and Business Development Manager in the Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF) for 4 years.

Mr. Kin Ng

Chief Executive Officer, Red Sycamore

Mr. Kin Ng

Chief Executive Officer, Red Sycamore

Kin is the Chief Executive Officer of Red Sycamore and director of its two major subsidiaries. Carbonyx Worldwide Pte. Ltd. is creating an offshore exchange for the purposes of trading investment-grade blue carbon credits. Carbonyx BLUE Pte. Ltd. manages seagrass carbon sinks in Southeast Asia for the purposes of creating these blue carbon credits.

Mr. Terence Nunis

Chief Executive Officer, Equinox GEMTZ Pte. Ltd., Singapore

Mr. Terence Nunis

Chief Executive Officer, Equinox GEMTZ Pte. Ltd., Singapore

Terence is the Chief Executive Officer of a strategic consultancy with clients ranging from governments to organisations to politically-exposed individuals, offering effective solutions to unusual problems. He is also the President of two technology startups.

Dr. Vincent Lim Boon Seng

Chief Financial Officer Asia Pacific, DataLogic, Singapore | (FCCA, FCA Singapore)

Dr. Vincent Lim Boon Seng

Chief Financial Officer Asia Pacific, DataLogic, Singapore | (FCCA, FCA Singapore)

Vincent brings to the table insights into the audit and authentication processes for creating a robust carbon framework from the data and accounting perspectives. His experience in finance and sustainability provides insight to the impact and potential pitfalls for the implementation of a regulated international carbon market.

Mr. David Chen

Chief Executive Officer, AgriG8, Singapore

Mr. David Chen

Chief Executive Officer, AgriG8, Singapore

David has experience in connecting smallholder rice farmers to financial institutions, and advising them on implementing ESG and sustainability practices. He is well placed to provide insight into the challenges that small ESG businesses and start-ups have in engaging financial institutions to get their businesses off the ground.

Dr. Victor Tay

Chief Executive Officer, Global Catalyst Advisory | Group Chief Executive Officer, RHT Consulting Asia

Dr. Victor Tay

Chief Executive Officer, Global Catalyst Advisory | Group Chief Executive Officer, RHT Consulting Asia

Victor has experience in venture and financing, and provides transformation consultancy across multiple fields in business. He is in a position to provide the venture and financing perspective for start-ups embracing ESG and sustainability impact in their operations.

Mr. De’Angello Harris

Partner, Think & Grow, Singapore

Mr. De’Angello Harris

Partner, Think & Grow, Singapore

"De’Angello has over 10 years of experience helping high-growth start-ups internationally attain sustainable growth by improving their strategy, structure, and securing strategic partnerships. As an ecosystem builder, he is in the position to provide insight on how start-ups can create sustainable ecosystems to harness the power of the collective."

Dr. Washika Haak Saheem

Dean, Dubai Business School, University of Dubai, UAE

Dr. Sania Ashraf Palattu Parambil

Director, Dubai Business School

Dr. Tariq Samad

Honeywell/W.R. Sweatt Chair in Technology Management, Technological Leadership Institute, University of Minnesota, USA

Dr. Tariq Samad

Honeywell/W.R. Sweatt Chair in Technology Management, Technological Leadership Institute, University of Minnesota, USA

Tariq Samad holds the Honeywell/W.R. Sweatt Chair and is Senior Fellow at the Technological Leadership Institute at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Samad joined TLI in 2016 after a 30-year career with Honeywell, retiring as Corporate Fellow. During his career with Honeywell he contributed to and led automation and control technology developments for applications in clean energy, electric power systems, building management, the process industries, automotive engines, unmanned aircraft, and advanced manufacturing. Dr. Samad is currently Vice President of Publications for IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society. He is a past president of the American Automatic Control Council and IEEE Control Systems Society. He is a Fellow of IEEE, IFAC, and AAIA and the recipient of a few awards including the IEEE CSS Control Systems Technology Award, Distinguished Member and Outstanding Service Awards from IEEE CSS and IFAC, respectively, an IEEE Third Millennium Medal, and inclusion in Control Global’s Process Automation Hall of Fame. Dr. Samad holds 20 patents and has authored or coauthored over 100 publications. His book publications include the Encyclopedia of Systems and Control (co-editor-in-chief, Springer, 2014; 2nd edition 2021). He was editor-in-chief of IEEE Press and is the founding editor of the Wiley/IEEE Press book series on Technology Management, Innovation, and Leadership. Dr. Samad holds a B.S. degree in Engineering and Applied Science from Yale University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University.

Eng. Mohamed Salama

Senior Partner, Unity Technologies, UAE | Executive Chair, MEA - IEEE TEMS

Eng. Mohamed Salama

Senior Partner, Unity Technologies, UAE | Executive Chair, MEA - IEEE TEMS

Senior Partner at Unity Technologies, leading the company's business growth in the MEA markets and contributing to the success of Unity Technologies. I bring over 19 years of extensive business experience in corporate and entrepreneurial arenas. Prior to Unity, I was responsible for Automotive and Auto-IoT Sales at HERE technologies, and before that, Sales Mobility Solutions Sales at Microsoft, managing the business in the region. Before Microsoft, I was among a team of four who established the Nokia regional office back in 2006. My last role was as a Business Development Manager for Near East and North Africa, running Nokia Ecosystem and Partners Engagement. I led the launch of the first Nokia Mobile Lab in MEA. Avid, active supporter and coach to aspiring entrepreneurs. An Advisory Board member at multiple startups and other business facilitation and consultancy roles. Proud Ambassador of One Young World appointed. A devout tech geek, passionate about traveling, and loves to be called by nickname Galilu.

Eng.Chintan Oza

Founder, Anantam Ecosystems | Regional Director, Founder Institute | Member, IISEC, IEEE TEMS | India Region Lead, IEEE Entrepreneurship

Eng.Chintan Oza

Founder, Anantam Ecosystems | Regional Director, Founder Institute | Member, IISEC, IEEE TEMS | India Region Lead, IEEE Entrepreneurship

1. Chintan has 23 years of intrapreneurship experience in the telecom and ICT sectors. 2. Chintan is an alumnus of IIT Mumbai, UC Berkeley, and Oxford University. In 2022, he also completed the Innovation and Technology Commercialization Professional Certification from Georgia Tech. 3. He spent an equal amount of time in his career with Reliance and Tata Group, deploying strategic telecom projects on a national and international scale. 4. At present, Chintan is the local leader of Founder Institute in Mumbai and, as Regional Director, helps the Founder Institute expand in India. Chintan collaborates with entrepreneurs, helping them with go-to-market strategies and scaling up the technology. He has worked with 102+ cohorts across six continents and has mentored over 320 plus entrepreneurs as they launch and scale their businesses. 5. Chintan is an active volunteer at PMI, IEEE, TEMS, BMA, OneQuantum, Emerging Technologies Forum, and Rotary International. 6. Chintan is on the advisory boards of various startups and academic institutions. He has been an angel investor in three startups. He is part of the investment committee for various venture capital funds, collaborates with investment syndicates and angel investors. 7. Recently, he co-founded Arnima Energy Solutions, which is gearing up to launch a range of electric vehicles and high-speed chargers. 8. This year, Chintan is the India Region Lead for IEEE Entrepreneurship. There would be various virtual events on the theme of protecting innovation, i.e., intellectual property rights, patents, innovation monetization etc. 9. Chintan is Member of Council for Alliance Taskforce at Startup20. Startup20 is newly formed engagement group within G20 under India's presidency in 2023. 10. In July 2023, Chintan delivered a talk on “Leadership imperatives for Transformation in Business and Social Practices for a Sustainable Future” at the Sustainable Business and Climate Change Summit organised by the Consulate General of the United Aram Emirates in Mumbai. This was a side event as part of COP28 being held in presidency of the UAE in 2023. 11. Recently, Chintan was invited to the BRICS Innovation Forum, which was held in Moscow on August 27-29, 2023. The forum is an emerging global platform to discuss the future of cities as technology hubs. The theme of this year's forum is Cloud City: how digital technologies help communities, governments and companies successfully address modern challenges, create sustainable urban environments, and deliver a new quality of life. Chintan attended three panel discussions and had opportunity to network with global leaders from BRICS member countries.

Mr. Samar Hasan

Founder, Epiphany, UAE

Mr. Sam Clever

Chief Executive Officer, NOSTRA, UK

Mr. Sam Clever

Chief Executive Officer, NOSTRA, UK

Sam Clever is the Founder & CEO of NOSTRAVERSE, where he is responsible for structuring & managing the company, penetrating new markets, and exploring new partnerships. On a mission to disrupt the business world, he is focused on improving the interconnectivity between businesses and creating new opportunities to put companies on the cutting edge of our modern world. Before founding NOSTRAVERSE, Sam gained experience in real estate development, insurance, investment banking, and financial institutions. He has previous experience as a Fund Manager at an Investment Bank. In addition, Sam has a track record of 3 successful exits, founding a real estate development firm, a prepaid credit card provider (White Card), and software solutions development for the real estate & insurance industries (ClickOne). Sam Clever has been featured in Tech Times, Gulf News, Khaleej Times, and Fairmont Post. He is very well recognised for being an astounding visionary, his innovative ideas will shape our perception of the Metaverse.

Mr. Omar Sabha

Program Manager, Unity | UAE Chapter President, VR/AR Association (VRARA), UAE

Mr. Murtaza Zaidi

"Co-founder l Parnter Global Expansion EcoEdgeAI LLC, UAE"

Mr. Murtaza Zaidi

"Co-founder l Parnter Global Expansion EcoEdgeAI LLC, UAE"

Company details: Headquartered in Dubai, EcoEdgeAI is at the forefront of revolutionizing Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems by leveraging Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to reduce carbon emissions and making them highly effective. At the heart of EcoEdgeAI's mission is Data-Driven Optimization, an approach that leverages the power of Machine Learning. By analyzing usage patterns and incorporating key data from external sources, the company's innovative technology enables artificial intelligence (AI) to make data-centric decisions. This results in a significant enhancement of HVAC efficiency, effectively managing energy consumption and reducing carbon footprint. In a world increasingly focused on achieving net-zero goals and mitigating climate impact, EcoEdgeAI stands as a beacon of change. By seamlessly integrating technology and sustainability, the company is actively contributing to the collective mission of achieving net-zero carbon emissions. EcoEdgeAI's commitment to sustainability goes beyond conventional practices, with a vision to transform the way we approach climate control in buildings.

Dr. Sania Ashraf

Director, Dubai Business School

Speakers

Dr. Saifur Rahman

Dr. Eesa Bastaki

Dr. Michael Milligan

Dr. Ingrid Mulder

Dr. Ravikiran Annaswamy

Mr. Safder Nazir

Dr. Deepak Laxmanrao Waikar

Eng. Mohamed Aboud

Mr. Kin Ng

Mr. Terence Nunis

Dr. Vincent Lim Boon Seng

Mr. David Chen

Dr. Victor Tay

Mr. De’Angello Harris

Dr. Washika Haak Saheem

Dr. Sania Ashraf Palattu Parambil

Dr. Tariq Samad

Eng. Mohamed Salama

Eng.Chintan Oza

Mr. Samar Hasan

Mr. Sam Clever

Mr. Omar Sabha

Mr. Murtaza Zaidi

Dr. Sania Ashraf

Useful Links

Symposium Committees