Panel Discussion
Topic: National AI Strategy
Bio
Andrew Ware is Professor of Computing at the University of South Wales in the United Kingdom. His research interest centre on the use of intelligent computer systems to help solve real world problems. Andrew is currently working on AI related projects with a number of industrial and commercial partners that include Tata Steel, National Health Service Wales Informatics Service, Wye Education, and Aurora International Consulting. Professor Ware teaches various computer related courses including artificial intelligence, data mining and computer programming. Moreover, Andrew has successfully supervised more than thirty PhD students and has been an active participant in a number of international research and teaching projects. Andrew is a Regional Director of Techno Camps, an innovative and ambitious project that seeks to engage young people with computing and its cognate subjects.
Bio
Dr Shoab Khan is of Prof Computer and Software Engineering NUST College of EME. He received his PhD from Georgia Institute of Technology USA in 1995. While in US he got extensive experience of working in several top notch technology companies like Scientific Atlanta, Picture Tel and Cisco System. In 1999 Dr Shoab Khan founded an exciting startup named Communication Enabling Technology (CET) from drawing room of his house in Pakistan. The startup raised US $17 Million in venture funding in 2000. CET had its head office in Irvine CA and development office in Islamabad. CET with Dr Khan as chief architect designed world highest density media processor chip for VoIP media gateways. For his innovate technology work, Dr Khan has 5 US patents to his credit Dr Khan has contributed 350+ international publications and a world class textbook on Digital Design of Signal Processing System published by John Wiley & Sons and followed in many universities across the globe. He is a professor of Computer Engineering at NUST College of EME. He has supervised / co-supervised 20+ PhD and 120+ MS theses to completion. He is also founding member (Chancellor / CEO) of CASE and CARE. CASE is a primer engineering and management school operating as a federally chartered degree granting institute, whereas CARE, under his leadership, has risen to be one of the most profound high technology engineering organizations in Pakistan. For his eminent industrial and academic profile, Dr Shoab has been awarded with numerous honors and awards. These include Tamgh-e-Imtiaz Pakistan, HEC best researcher award and NCR National Excellence Award in Engineering Education. He is currently serving as a member of Prime Minister Taskforces on IT and Telecommunication, Science & Technology and Knowledge Economy, Deputy Chairman of National Computing Education and Accreditation Council (NCEAC) and has served as Chairman Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) for year 2014-15.
Bio
Syed Ahmad is founder & CEO of DPL, a leading software company based in Islamabad. Like no one else, DPL is setting a trend in Pakistan defying popular culture with its own counter-culture movement called “Rebel Ethos”. DPL’s mission statement reflects this: “Liberating minds to become the model IT enterprise in the region”. Syed founded DPL in 2003 with three co-founders straight out of university. Learning from its ruthless mentor i.e. the market, DPL is now a multi-million dollar company that has top global companies as its clients in the US and Northern Europe. Syed wants to build DPL into the first large-scale IT company from Pakistan that can compete at global stage with likes of InfoSys and Accenture. In order to achieve its goals, DPL is focusing on building a team comprised of top talent and giving them an environment and culture that is no less than the Silicon Valley. DPL has already won various awards and recognition and currently going through high-growth phase.
Bio
Zain-ul-Abdin holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from Sweden with specialization in high-performance embedded computing. During his 20+ years of experience in industry & academia, he has played a key role in a number of research projects such as Smart Multicore Embedded Systems (SMECY), High Performance Embedded Computing (HiPEC), and Towards Next Generation Embedded Systems (NGES). He has worked in close collaboration with Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI) and industrial partners such as ST-Microelectronics, Ericsson, Adapteva, and Saab in these projects. In the past, he has served as Associate Professor at Halmstad University, Sweden and Director at TeleSehat Private Limited, Pakistan.
