Born in Kindu the 9/9/1999, Gilbert Bemwiz discovered computing at age 14 through mobile video games. Despite having an aptitude for mathematics, he chose the Computer Commerce program out of pure passion for technology.

At 16, his interest in tech led him to experiment - sometimes to the point of "crashing" phones! Graduating in 2017, he joined the first cohort at MAPON University where, finding the curriculum too general, he embarked on intensive self-directed learning in the computer lab.

In 2019, he co-created "Busoga," a local social network. In 2021, his "intelligent virtual ophthalmologist" project won an innovation award. Confronted with the lack of medical data adapted to the Congolese context, this field experience led him to develop "Tradition Learning."

Currently serving as the Professional Practice Officer at ISTA-Kindu, a freelance consultant, and a Data & ML Engineer Intern at Neotex.ai DRC, he applies his expertise to innovative projects while sharing his passion for developing artificial intelligence tailored to African realities.

Born in Kindu the 9/9/1999, Gilbert Bemwiz discovered computing at age 14 through mobile video games. Despite having an aptitude for mathematics, he chose the Computer Commerce program out of pure passion for technology. At 16, his interest in tec... Show more

I’m driven by curiosity and a passion for building better systems. With experience across DevOps, DevSecOps and FinOps, I integrate security, automation and efficiency from day one. I help organizations tame complexity and turn technology into a competitive advantage. I believe in knowledge sharing and lifting teams to their full potential. My focus: stable foundations, faster delivery, and smarter spend.

I’m driven by curiosity and a passion for building better systems. With experience across DevOps, DevSecOps and FinOps, I integrate security, automation and efficiency from day one. I help organizations tame complexity and turn technology into a comp... Show more

Cofondateur de Shodo Studio, je construis depuis 15 ans du code durable et accompagne des équipes sur leurs projets les plus critiques. Convaincu que le développement est un artisanat qui se transmet, je partage mon savoir-faire avec la communauté sous plusieurs formats : articles, talks, et au sein de CraftsRecords, un collectif de passionnés.

Aujourd'hui, j'explore comment l'IA peut devenir un véritable allié dans la reprise de contrôle sur le legacy — à condition de garder la main et d'éviter les promesses marketing.

Cofondateur de Shodo Studio, je construis depuis 15 ans du code durable et accompagne des équipes sur leurs projets les plus critiques. Convaincu que le développement est un artisanat qui se transmet, je partage mon savoir-faire avec la communauté so... Show more

Highlighting place and location as memory, audiences explore our interactions with ecosystems revealing that what appears completely factual is often, not factually complete. Recognized as a leading voice in thinking beyond words to illuminate climate science and the human impact on our planetary boundaries, Bonny describes storytelling as where perception and truth create friction. Her expertise transforms raw data into compelling narratives that drive impactful decision-making.

Highlighting place and location as memory, audiences explore our interactions with ecosystems revealing that what appears completely factual is often, not factually complete. Recognized as a leading voice in thinking beyond words to illuminate climat... Show more

PhD in Applied Geosciences (Hydrogeology & Hydrochemistry)

PhD in Applied Geosciences (Hydrogeology & Hydrochemistry) Show more

Samuel Desseaux is a CTO & CIO Advisor focused on observability, edge AI, and IT/OT integration. He designs open-source observability labs and reproducible pipelines that help teams instrument, benchmark, and trust complex AI and high-performance systems deployed at the edge or within industrial infrastructures. His work spans factories, mobility systems, HPC-adjacent environments, and scientific instrumentation. Through his companies, Erythix in France and Aureonis in Belgium, he supports organizations in building transparent, resilient, vendor-neutral architectures that unify AI, OT, and HPC workflows.

Samuel Desseaux is a CTO & CIO Advisor focused on observability, edge AI, and IT/OT integration. He designs open-source observability labs and reproducible pipelines that help teams instrument, benchmark, and trust complex AI and high-performance sys... Show more

Hello everyone, my name is Sophia Solomon and I am a Developer Advocate at Elastic.

Hello everyone, my name is Sophia Solomon and I am a Developer Advocate at Elastic. Show more

professional with strong expertise in Kubernetes platforms, DevSecOps practices, and zero-trust security. With hands-on experience in implementing admission control policies, container security scanning, and secure deployment pipelines, Subhash focuses on bridging the gap between development speed and security compliance. Having worked across full-stack development, SQL architecture, on-call operations, and cloud-native platforms, Subhash brings a practical perspective to container security.

professional with strong expertise in Kubernetes platforms, DevSecOps practices, and zero-trust security. With hands-on experience in implementing admission control policies, container security scanning, and secure deployment pipelines, Subhash focus... Show more

Siri Yellu is a Graduate Research Assistant and Computer Science professional specializing in Data Science and Machine Learning. Her work focuses on building reliable and interpretable machine learning systems, with experience spanning feature engineering, evaluation-driven modeling, and applied AI system design.

She is the first author of peer-reviewed publications in IEEE and Springer conferences, where her research explores handcrafted image features, Bayesian optimization, ensemble learning, and generative models for medical image analysis, computational pathology, and multimodal AI applications. Her work emphasizes bridging rigorous evaluation with practical system design to ensure models are not only accurate, but trustworthy and maintainable.

Siri enjoys working at the intersection of theory and practice, translating research insights into real-world AI systems. She is particularly interested in applied machine learning architectures, system reliability, and building AI solutions that can be confidently deployed and maintained by engineering teams.

Siri Yellu is a Graduate Research Assistant and Computer Science professional specializing in Data Science and Machine Learning. Her work focuses on building reliable and interpretable machine learning systems, with experience spanning feature engine... Show more

Chike is an expert in business and technology strategy, with over a decade of experience leading global, hybrid teams to deliver large-scale, high-value transformation programmes. He combines lean agile and design thinking to deliver results on client projects across multiple sectors. Chike advises business leaders on key technology trends, helps translate user needs into a bold vision and strategy for change, designs new business propositions, and defines a solutions portfolio and roadmap. He is passionate about solving complex challenges using innovative digital and data technologies. As an intrapreneur, he leads the Capgemini Invent UK Business Apps and Low Code No Code team.

Qualifications
Cambridge Judge Business School | Digital Innovation & Transformation
Imperial College Business School | MSc International Health Management
Kings College London | BSc Biomedical Sciences

Certifications & Accreditations
Microsoft Certified Power Platform Functional Consultant Associate
Microsoft Certified Azure Fundamentals
SAFe Agilist & Scrum Master

Chike is an expert in business and technology strategy, with over a decade of experience leading global, hybrid teams to deliver large-scale, high-value transformation programmes. He combines lean agile and design thinking to deliver results on clien... Show more

Aditya Rokade is an IT Engineer specializing in cloud automation, DevOps, and AI-driven infrastructure solutions. Passionate about scalable cloud operations, he combines hands-on technical expertise with public speaking experience to deliver actionable insights and practical strategies. Aditya has successfully implemented Terraform-based IaC pipelines and multi-cloud automation for enterprise-grade systems.

Aditya Rokade is an IT Engineer specializing in cloud automation, DevOps, and AI-driven infrastructure solutions. Passionate about scalable cloud operations, he combines hands-on technical expertise with public speaking experience to deliver actionab... Show more

Steve is a Dad, Partner, Son, and Principal Community Architect at Red Hat focused on AI. He can teach you about Data Analysis, Computer Vision, AI, Kubernetes, Java, Python, and PostgreSQL. He has deep subject area expertise in GIS/Spatial, Statistics, and Ecology. Before Red Hat, Steve was a developer Advocate for Crunchy Data, DigitalGlobe, VMWare, LinkedIn, deCarta, and ESRI. Steve has a Ph.D. in Ecology and can easily be bribed with offers of bird watching or fly fishing.

Steve is a Dad, Partner, Son, and Principal Community Architect at Red Hat focused on AI. He can teach you about Data Analysis, Computer Vision, AI, Kubernetes, Java, Python, and PostgreSQL. He has deep subject area expertise in GIS/Spatial, Statis... Show more

I bring 11 years of experience across Cognizant, Oracle, and AWS, spanning presales, sales, and post‑sales roles. I hold a PGDM from IIM Kozhikode. Over the past five years at Microsoft, I’ve been driving strategic engagement and business growth for global enterprise customers—most notably Walmart and Goldman Sachs—serving as their Account Manager.

I bring 11 years of experience across Cognizant, Oracle, and AWS, spanning presales, sales, and post‑sales roles. I hold a PGDM from IIM Kozhikode. Over the past five years at Microsoft, I’ve been driving strategic engagement and business growth for ... Show more

Software engineer focused on boosting developer productivity with generative AI. Actively engaged in tech communities and passionate about sharing knowledge.

Software engineer focused on boosting developer productivity with generative AI. Actively engaged in tech communities and passionate about sharing knowledge. Show more

Francisco Bernardo, PhD, is a research engineer and designer focused on Human-centred computaional toolkits for user innovation. He has extensive work experience in the industry, academia, and at their interface, where he conducts applied research at the intersection of art and creative technology.

Francisco Bernardo, PhD, is a research engineer and designer focused on Human-centred computaional toolkits for user innovation. He has extensive work experience in the industry, academia, and at their interface, where he conducts applied research at... Show more

Specializing in building and directing high-performing design organizations for global giants like Google and Amazon.

I leverage AI to transform both how we design (accelerating workflows) and what we design (intelligent features), driving operational efficiency and delivering commercial impact across FinTech, AdTech, and E-commerce.

Currently UX Manager at Google. Previously Head of UX Research & Design at Credit Suisse.

Specializing in building and directing high-performing design organizations for global giants like Google and Amazon. I leverage AI to transform both how we design (accelerating workflows) and what we design (intelligent features), driving operati... Show more

Matic Petrič studied theoretical physics at University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mathematics in physics.

During his studies, Pertič worked at T-Labs, the Deutsche Telekom Laboratories, where he derived a problem formulation for optimizing traffic flow in real time with Quantum Annealing.

After finishing his degree during the pandemic, he is now working as a Quantum Computing Researcher at Fraunhofer FOKUS, focusing on hybrid quantum-classical algorithms, and working on Eclipse Qrisp - a high level programming language he'll be presenting on stage together with Raphael Seidel during WAD'24.

Matic Petrič studied theoretical physics at University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Mathematics in physics. During his studies, Pertič worked at T-Labs, the Deutsche Telekom Laboratories, where he derived a problem formulation for optimizing traffic ... Show more

Janet has been working within the Microsoft Dynamics ego system for over 24 years. Both within Microsoft , Partner networks & Consultancy. She is one of the leading change practitioners in Dynamics & Power Platform, she knows what works & the effort it requires to be successful.

Janet is one of the founding members of the power platform community & known for mentoring & supporting up & coming talent. Janet is passionate about ensuring a safe & equal opportunities for women within the IT industry.
She is known for being straight talking – you have be warned.

Janet has been working within the Microsoft Dynamics ego system for over 24 years. Both within Microsoft , Partner networks & Consultancy. She is one of the leading change practitioners in Dynamics & Power Platform, she knows what works & the effort... Show more

A wellbeing guide. Kira Buckley is an integrative medicine practitioner, writer, and ceremonial guide whose work sits at the intersection of somatics, ancestral intelligence, nervous system regulation, and cultural repair.
With a background as a former educator and over a decade of clinical and experiential work in acupuncture, herbal medicine, somatic therapy, and ritual facilitation, Kira speaks to what happens beneath behavior—where the body carries stories that language, systems, and family structures often fail to name.
Her talks explore themes such as:
The inherited costs of caretaking, productivity, and “being strong”
Rest as a physiological and cultural recalibration—not a luxury
How grief, burnout, and chronic symptoms are often signals of misalignment rather than pathology
Reclaiming authority from external validation, tradition, and transactional love
The body as a living archive of ancestral memory and future possibility
Kira is known for her grounded presence, sharp insight, and ability to translate complex somatic and spiritual concepts into language that is accessible, embodied, and actionable. She does not offer platitudes or performance healing—she invites people into honest self-contact, practical integration, and courageous choice-making.
Whether speaking to educators, healers, creatives, caregivers, or organizational leaders, Kira’s work leaves audiences with more than inspiration—it leaves them with permission and tools to live in deeper alignment with their bodies, boundaries, and truth.

A wellbeing guide. Kira Buckley is an integrative medicine practitioner, writer, and ceremonial guide whose work sits at the intersection of somatics, ancestral intelligence, nervous system regulation, and cultural repair. With a background as a for... Show more

Vyacheslav (Slava) Tykhonov is the head of Artificial Intelligence and Interoperability at CODATA and has a background in information and computer science. Slava has worked for more than 25 years in the area of software development, research and innovation for national, European and international research infrastructures. Most recently, as a Senior R&D Engineer and FAIR data expert, Slava participated in various projects funded by the European Commission. For many years, he has been an active member of the Open-Source community around the Harvard Dataverse platform. As a knowledge engineer and Semantic Web enthusiast, Slava explored and implemented new solutions and data services, from AI and data enrichment to long-term archiving. Slava is co-author of the emerging Croissant for Machine Learning standard.

Vyacheslav (Slava) Tykhonov is the head of Artificial Intelligence and Interoperability at CODATA and has a background in information and computer science. Slava has worked for more than 25 years in the area of software development, research and inno... Show more

Many of us are exhausted when our nervous systems carry more than they were ever designed to hold, while the world still expects peak performance. Farhan Zahid steps into that gap and turns all of that pressure into a doorway for sustainable power, clearer thinking, and real breakthroughs in personal and professional wellness.

Farhan is the founder and CEO of KNKO, a concierge wellness company for high-performing leaders, teams, and member communities based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Before KNKO, he spent years as a Chartered Accountant, Big 4 Internal Auditor and Head of Risk at a global investment firm. That experience means his keynotes and workshops connect wellbeing directly to performance, outcomes, and impact, helping individuals and organizations create tangible, measurable shifts instead of simply “feeling better.”

Alongside his corporate career, Farhan has trained as a clinical hypnotherapist, Master NLP practitioner, yoga teacher, massage therapist, and has worked as an auxiliary nurse in both clinical and psychiatric settings. He combines body-mind science, behavioral change, and practical tools into sessions that help people immediately regulate stress, deepen rest, and cultivate their energy in real-world conditions.

With 20+ years on stage, Farhan has spoken at organizational and industry conferences, board meetings, executive off-sites, company all-hands and private members clubs. Whether he is working with a leadership team, a full organization, or an individual, his aim is simple: to help people who carry a lot on their shoulders move through the world with more clarity, calm, sustainable power...and the capacity to perform at their best when it truly counts.

Many of us are exhausted when our nervous systems carry more than they were ever designed to hold, while the world still expects peak performance. Farhan Zahid steps into that gap and turns all of that pressure into a doorway for sustainable power, c... Show more

Anna van Dillen is a freelance consultant, trainer and coach working with tech organisations on agile leadership, product development and ways of working – currently supporting a German industrial tech company in the Black Forest alongside other clients. Previously a travelling consultant at Thoughtworks, a tribe master building a big data organisation, and a people development manager in a cloud-native startup, she brings over a decade of hands-on experience in delivery and organisational change. In recent years she has integrated systemic coaching and breathwork training into her practice, using simple, evidence-informed nervous system tools to help leaders and teams stay clear-headed, collaborative and sustainable in high-pressure environments.

Anna van Dillen is a freelance consultant, trainer and coach working with tech organisations on agile leadership, product development and ways of working – currently supporting a German industrial tech company in the Black Forest alongside other clie... Show more

I’m an extrovert with over 10 years of multi-industry experience, skilled in Digital Marketing, Semantic SEO, Technical SEO, E-commerce management, customer service, and Amazon/eBay store operations. I plan and execute complete marketing and social media strategies, including budget management, content planning, and campaign implementation. I also have hands-on expertise in Google PPC, Bing PPC, and Amazon PPC.

I’m an extrovert with over 10 years of multi-industry experience, skilled in Digital Marketing, Semantic SEO, Technical SEO, E-commerce management, customer service, and Amazon/eBay store operations. I plan and execute complete marketing and social m... Show more

I did my Doctorate in the field computer vision for medical images. I have been working with images and textual data within medical domain. Currently, I have been involved in several projects related to bioinformatics, ML and multi-omics in veterinary science and evolutionary hologenomics. Apart from the main projects, I am working with other computer vision projects related to medical, infrastructure and other smaller projects. My future projects will include multi-modal models within health science.

I did my Doctorate in the field computer vision for medical images. I have been working with images and textual data within medical domain. Currently, I have been involved in several projects related to bioinformatics, ML and multi-omics in veterinar... Show more

Bin Fan is the founding engineer and VP of Technology at Alluxio, Inc. Prior to Alluxio, he worked for Google to build the next-generation storage infrastructure. Bin received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University on the design and implementation of distributed systems.

Bin Fan is the founding engineer and VP of Technology at Alluxio, Inc. Prior to Alluxio, he worked for Google to build the next-generation storage infrastructure. Bin received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University on the desig... Show more

Parikshit Ardhapurkar is an HPC Engineer at C-DAC specializing in parallel computing, performance tuning, and GPU-accelerated workflows. He works with MPI, OpenMP, CUDA, Spack, ReFrame, and Apptainer to build portable and reproducible HPC stacks. His experience spans optimization of large-scale scientific applications, benchmarking modern CPU-GPU systems, and enabling automated testing pipelines under the National Supercomputing Mission.

Parikshit Ardhapurkar is an HPC Engineer at C-DAC specializing in parallel computing, performance tuning, and GPU-accelerated workflows. He works with MPI, OpenMP, CUDA, Spack, ReFrame, and Apptainer to build portable and reproducible HPC stacks. His... Show more

Leah Drew is a trauma-informed somatic leadership mentor, women’s empowerment guide, and culture-shaping consultant devoted to helping people remember who they are beneath performance, perfection, and people-pleasing so they can expand into their next level without burnout.

With a background in pain management, nervous system regulation, international teaching, embodiment & somatic work, and leadership development, Leah brings a rare blend of science, soul, and lived experience to every stage she steps onto. She supports high-achieving women, entrepreneurs, and leaders in reconnecting to their bodies, reclaiming their confidence, and leading with emotional intelligence, authenticity, and heart-led power.

Alongside her work with women's leadership, Leah consults with co-ed organizations and executive teams to enhance workplace culture and performance by creating workforces that are engaged, energized, and resilient. She helps businesses build high-performing teams by embedding practical, leadership-led wellbeing and culture practices into the everyday workflow to transform burnout cultures into environments where people feel supported, connected, motivated, and empowered to do their best work, together.

Leah is the founder of the Somatic Leadership Academy and the Mind Body Initiative, and host of the Mindful Evolution Podcast. Her work centers on healing the feminine wounds that keep women playing small & functioning from burnout, and guiding people of all genders into leadership that is grounded, embodied, and unapologetically human.

Whether she’s speaking to entrepreneurs, corporate teams, facilitators, or global communities, Leah creates experiences that are deeply felt. She doesn't just speak, she guides her audience into an experience. Through storytelling, somatic practices, and deeply human conversations, she helps audiences connect with each other, build resilience, strengthen connection, and cultivate cultures rooted in presence, purpose, and belonging.

Her mission is simple: to help people transform their pain into power, their wounds into wisdom, and their lives into expressions of their fullest potential.

Leah Drew is a trauma-informed somatic leadership mentor, women’s empowerment guide, and culture-shaping consultant devoted to helping people remember who they are beneath performance, perfection, and people-pleasing so they can expand into their nex... Show more

22 yo ICT student born and raised in Catania, regional coordinator of Wikimedia Italy in Sicily, tech enthusiast, drone pilot, DJ, 3d printer, astronomer

22 yo ICT student born and raised in Catania, regional coordinator of Wikimedia Italy in Sicily, tech enthusiast, drone pilot, DJ, 3d printer, astronomer Show more

Maneesh Singh is a seasoned IT executive with over 19 years of global experience across banking, hospitality, commercial, and healthcare industries. Currently serving as an Enterprise Systems Delivery Manager at Corpay Inc through Hexaware Technologies, Maneesh leads global technical infrastructure projects under the CTO’s office. His leadership is pivotal in driving initiatives around global observability, Splunk infrastructure modernization, mainframe monitoring integrations, and license utilization analytics through Power BI.
Before this, Maneesh was the Delivery Director at Tangent Services Corporation, where he successfully steered AWS cloud and on-premise application development initiatives, leading high-performing, cross-functional teams while optimizing quality, compliance, and risk management across delivery lifecycles.
During his decade-long tenure at NTT Data Inc., he held several impactful roles, including Sr. Technical Program Manager for Citibank NA and Service Delivery Leader for Honeywell. At Citibank, he led a $14M program overseeing regulatory, business, and tech compliance initiatives and managed large-scale applications leveraging AI/ML and NLP. At Honeywell, he championed the global rollout of the PROS AI-powered pricing tool across regions, significantly improving pricing accuracy and automation.
Earlier, Maneesh held roles as Sr. Technical Delivery Lead and Cloud & DevOps Engineer at Enterprise Holdings, where he transformed digital architecture for flagship rental websites like Enterprise, Alamo, and National. His work contributed to $200M+ in revenue while overseeing AEM upgrades and end-to-end DevOps transformation.
At Hilton Worldwide, he led critical releases and DevOps transitions, including implementing Hilton’s groundbreaking “Digital Key” technology, now a flagship contactless guest experience across thousands of properties.
Maneesh’s foundational experience began at Siemens Information Systems, where for over six years he led development of advanced medical imaging solutions (Syngo ArchNet, Syngo fastView), implementing enhancements in DICOM image processing and remote data sharing.
He holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Advanced Computing (C-DAC, Pune), a Master’s in Computer Applications (Punjab Technical University), and a Bachelor’s in Computer Science (Guru Nanak Dev University).
Maneesh is highly credentialed with multiple industry certifications, including PMI-ACP, AWS Solutions Architect Associate, Azure Fundamentals, and multiple Adobe and Splunk certifications. He is also a Senior Member of IEEE, a Fellow Member of IETE, and actively Contributes to community service as a cricket coach and coordinator at the North Atlanta Cricket Academy.

Maneesh Singh is a seasoned IT executive with over 19 years of global experience across banking, hospitality, commercial, and healthcare industries. Currently serving as an Enterprise Systems Delivery Manager at Corpay Inc through Hexaware Technologi... Show more

Data scientist and AI Engineer expert with over 5 years of experience in the AI, Data & Robotics fields. A developer behind various national-level AI & Data Solutions innovations, including Generative AI technologies such as Large Language Models, Multimodal, and Multi-Agent systems.

Data scientist and AI Engineer expert with over 5 years of experience in the AI, Data & Robotics fields. A developer behind various national-level AI & Data Solutions innovations, including Generative AI technologies such as Large Language Models, Mu... Show more