Tshilidzi Marwala (born 28 July 1971) is a South African

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

engineer, a

computer scientist A computer scientist is a scientist who specializes in the academic study of computer science. Computer scientists typically work on the theoretical side of computation. Although computer scientists can also focus their work and research on ...

, a mechanical engineer and a university administrator. He is currently Rector of the

United Nations University The is the think tank and academic arm of the United Nations. Headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, with diplomatic status as a UN institution, its mission is to help resolve list of global issues, global issues related to Human development ...

and UN Under-Secretary-General. In August 2023 Marwala was appointed to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

scientific advisory council.

Early life and education

Marwala was born on 28 July 1971 in Duthuni Village in the

Limpopo Limpopo () is the northernmost Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a ...

Province. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a Private university, private research university in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was established in 1967 by a merger between Western Reserve University and the Case Institute of Technology. Case ...

, graduating

Magna Cum Laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

, followed by a PhD in artificial intelligence from

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

in 2000.

Career

From 2000 to 2001, Marwala was a post-doctoral research associate at

Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a Public university, public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a Al ...

. In 2003, he joined the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The universit ...

and became a professor of electrical engineering in 2008. From 2013 to 2017, he was the deputy vice chancellor for research and internationalization as well as the dean of engineering at the

University of Johannesburg The University of Johannesburg, colloquially known as UJ, is a public university A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant fundi ...

. From 2018 to 2023, Marwala was the

vice-chancellor A vice-chancellor (commonly called a VC) serves as the chief executive of a university in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, other Commonwealth of Nati ...

and principal of the

. As Vice-Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg, Marwala developed and implemented the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) strategy, by introducing a compulsory artificial intelligence course and an Africa Insights course for all students, irrespective of their majors. Marwala has been Rector of the United Nations University and UN Under-Secretary-General since 1 March 2023. He was a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) committee that developed the ethical guidelines of using artificial intelligence in medicine. Marwala served as a trustee of the

Nelson Mandela Foundation The Nelson Mandela Foundation is a nonprofit organisation founded by Nelson Mandela in 1999 to promote Mandela's vision of freedom and equality for all. The chairman is Naledi Pandor. And the CEO is Dr. Mbongiseni Buthelezi. Vision The visi ...

(2020-2023) and on a board of

Nedbank Nedbank Group is a financial services group in South Africa offering wholesale and retail banking services as well as insurance, asset management, and wealth management. Nedbank Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nedbank Group. Headquarter ...

(2019-2023). He is a member of council of the University of Peace and the STS Forum Kyoto. Marwala was the Deputy Chair of South Africa’s Presidential Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution (with the President of South Africa

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician serving as the 5th and current President of South Africa since 2018. A former Anti-Apartheid Movement, anti-apartheid activist and trade union leade ...

serving as Chair). He is the Chair of the International Scientific Advisory Board for the African Centre of Excellence in the Internet of Things (ACE-IoT) based in Rwanda. The government of Namibia appointed him on the Fourth Industrial Revolution Task Team.

Research

Marwala's research interests include the theory and application of artificial intelligence to engineering and computer science such as the St. Petersburg paradox,

blockchain The blockchain is a distributed ledger with growing lists of Record (computer science), records (''blocks'') that are securely linked together via Cryptographic hash function, cryptographic hashes. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of th ...

, and poker., finance and economics, medicine like his work on pulmonary embolism epileptic activity, HIV and

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

, and political science.

Outreach and public engagement

Marwala's work and opinion have appeared in media such as ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a popular science magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organ ...

'', ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...

'',

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

, and

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

. He has also given talks at

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Cambridge Union The Cambridge Union Society, also known as the Cambridge Union, is a historic debating and free speech society in Cambridge, England, and the largest society in the University of Cambridge. The society was founded in 1815 making it the oldest ...

, and

Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest unive ...

. In 2016 Tshilidzi Marwala delivered the Bernard Price Memorial Lecture in South Africa. With

Stephen Hawking Stephen William Hawking (8January 194214March 2018) was an English theoretical physics, theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who was director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge. Between ...

and

Guy Laliberté Guy Laliberté, (born 2 September 1959) is a Canadian billionaire businessman and poker player. Along with Gilles Ste-Croix, he is the co-founder of Cirque du Soleil, which was founded in 1984. The Canadian circus company's shows have since be ...

, he was a judge of the YouTube Space Lab competition.

Personal life

Marwala is married to Jabulile Vuyiswa Manana since 2000, and together they have 3 children.

Awards and honours

Marwala is a fellow of

The World Academy of Sciences The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries (TWAS) is a North–south research partnerships, merit-based science academy established for developing countries, uniting more than 1,400 scientists in some 1 ...

(2010), African Academy of Sciences (2012),

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

(2022),

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...

(2023), and the Academy of Science of South Africa. He is the recipient of the Bronze

Order of Mapungubwe The Order of Mapungubwe is a South African civilian honour awarded by the President of South Africa. It recognises South African citizens whose achievements have international impact and serve the interests of South Africa. It is South Africa' ...

in 2004. In 2022, Marwala was awarded the IT Personality of the Year Award in South Africa for his work on the fourth Industrial Revolution. In 2020 the Science-for-Society Gold Medal from the Academy of Science of South Africa, and in 2024 the Hans Carl von Carlowitz Sustainability Award. Marwala has received honorary doctorates from the

Caucasus University Caucasus University is a private university in Tbilisi, Georgia (country), Georgia. The university was established in 2004. It is the successor to the Caucasus School of Business, founded in 1998 in partnership with Georgia State University, Atla ...

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

in Georgia, the

University of Venda The University of Venda (Univen; , ) is a South African comprehensive rural-based institution, located in Thohoyandou in Limpopo province. It was established in 1981 under the then Republic of Venda government. History The university was es ...

Tshwane University of Technology Tshwane University of Technology (TUT; ) is a higher education institution in South Africa that came into being through a merger of three technikons — Technikon Northern Gauteng, Technikon North-West and Technikon Pretoria. As the number of ...

and the

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria (, ) is a multi-campus public university, public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and ''de facto'' capital of South Africa. The university was established in 1908 as the Pretoria campus of the Johan ...

. Marwala has been a visiting fellow at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Wolfson College, Cambridge Wolfson College () is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The majority of students at the college are postgraduates. The college also admits "mature" undergraduates (aged 21 and above), with around ...

, and

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. Marwala was selected as one of the 100 most influential Africans of 2024 by New African Magazine, which noted "his extensive application of artificial intelligence concepts across multiple fields, including health care, aerospace engineering, economics, finance, and political science."

References

External links

Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marwala, Tshilidzi 1971 births Living people Under-Secretaries-General of the United Nations Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences TWAS fellows People from Thulamela Local Municipality Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Saint John's Case Western Reserve University alumni University of Pretoria alumni Science and technology in South Africa Alumni of St John's College (Johannesburg) Vice-chancellors of the University of Johannesburg South African engineers South African inventors 21st-century South African scientists South African computer scientists 21st-century inventors Fellows of the African Academy of Sciences Foreign members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge

Early life and education

Career

Research

Outreach and public engagement

Personal life

Awards and honours

See also

References

External links