Dr. Ahmed Tantawy

Dr. Ahmed N. Tantawy is a lifelong learner and educator, an engineer, an inventor, a scientist, and a former senior business executive. He enjoys conceiving, planning, structuring, and managing innovation ecosystems and effective organizations that are centered around people and purpose.

Since 2013, Dr. Tantawy has been serving as an expert advisor to multinational corporations, the World Bank, the UN and various government agencies. He is currently a senior advisor to the Egyptian Minister of Communications and IT and the Founding Director of the Applied Innovation Center, where national challenges are addressed through the application and adaptation of emerging technologies. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of various national-scale initiatives in the Middle East, a member of the Board of Directors of Telecom Egypt’s Data Services company, and a Trustee of two Not-for-Profit Organizations working in the fields of Education and Sustainable Social Development of underprivileged communities. He was a member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Egyptian National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, a member of the Executive Committee for the Development of the Suez Canal Region, a senior advisor to various cabinet ministers, the Executive Director of an international Nanotechnology initiative, and a principal investment advisor of a Venture Capital fund operating in the US and the Middle East.

Dr. Tantawy held several technical and executive positions at IBM Corporation. From 2008 to 2013, he was Chief Technical Officer and Senior Executive Advisor in the Growth Markets Region, where he oversaw the company’s mega-projects in Central and Eastern Europe, Central and South America, Africa, Asia, and Australasia. From 1996 to 2008, he was the CTO of IBM’s Telecom and Media Industry Solutions Unit then the entire Internet Division, directing Product Development Labs in the US, UK, Germany, Italy, Japan, Brazil, and Egypt. Among his accomplishments during that period, he built and led IBM’s largest Software Services Delivery Hub, which developed advanced products and solutions to clients across the world. He also pioneered the introduction of secure digital content distribution as a viable business and introduced effective security mechanisms to support various e-business applications. From 1988 to 1996, he was a Research Scientist and Manager at IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center in New York.

Dr. Tantawy has always been involved with academic institutions. Between 1980 and 1988 he was a University Professor in the USA, France, and Saudi Arabia. Over the years, he served on the Boards of Trustees and Advisory Councils of a number of universities and research institutes around the world and held special oversight assignments with the US National Academy of Sciences and the Egyptian Supreme Council of Universities.

Dr. Tantawy’s scientific contributions include 34 inventions, 18 issued patents, and the publication of 4 books, 2 book chapters, and over 100 refereed papers. He was the Editor-in-Chief of a book series on High Performance Computers and Communications and an Editor of 4 scientific journals. He participated in the organization of over 50 IEEE, ACM, and IFIP conferences, serving as the General Chair of 14 among them.

His practical experience and technical interests include: Architecture and Design of Large Systems, High Performance Networks, Information Privacy, Data Security, Embedded Systems, Factory Floor Automation, Smart and Secure Cities and Buildings, Artificial Intelligence Applications, Nanotechnology Applications, Digital Transformation Strategies, and Tech-fueled Socio-Economic Growth Initiatives.

Dr. Tantawy holds a Ph.D. in Computer Engineering with highest honors from Grenoble, France and earned his B.Eng. and M.Sc. degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering with distinction and highest honors from Alexandria University, Egypt. He attended advanced executive education programs in Business Administration, Corporate Governance, and Technology Management at Harvard, MIT, and IBM