Speakers

Keynote Speakers

Ahmad Halabi

Managing Director
Resecurity Inc.

Ahmad Halabi

Hall-of-Fame hacker, widely recognized vulnerability and offensive cybersecurity researcher who discovered over 2,000 vulnerabilities and helped secure over 200 private, public and government organizations worldwide.

Mr. Halabi is a well-known thought leader in the penetration testing and bug bounty field, ranking as one of the Top 50 Hackers in the World and top ethical hacker by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), IBM & UAE.

Iain Winfield

Chief Technology Officer – EMEA – Artificial Intelligence and HPC Solutions
Hitachi Vantara

Iain Winfield

As a Field CTO specializing in Artificial Intelligence and Hybrid Multi-Cloud solutions, Iain leverages over 24 years of expertise to help enterprises harness the power of AI for real-world impact. With a deep understanding of AI infrastructure, machine learning frameworks, and cloud-scale deployments, Iain is a trusted advisor for organizations looking to accelerate innovation and operational efficiency. His strategic vision and hands-on technical acumen enable businesses to navigate the complexities of AI adoption, from data-driven decision-making to large-scale model deployments. Passionate about transforming AI potential into tangible outcomes, Iain partners with enterprises to drive growth, optimize performance, and unlock new possibilities in the AI era.

Panelists

Panel Discussion 1: Ethical AI and Governance

Iain Winfield

Chief Technology Officer – EMEA – Artificial Intelligence and HPC Solutions
Hitachi Vantara

Iain Winfield

Mohammed Sharif

Regional Manager – KSA
Logitech for Business

Mohammed Sharif

Tahir Latif

Expert AI Regulatory Advisor
Dubai International Financial Centre

Tahir Latif

Tahir is a globally recognised leader in Data Privacy & AI Governance, known for his exceptional expertise and leadership. With a distinguished career spanning various industries including banking & financial services, healthcare & life sciences, travel & tourism, government & defense, petrochemical, telco, retail, and automotive, Tahir has successfully directed and advised complex digital transformation and compliance programs. His focus on embedding privacy and ethical AI best practices has earned him the trust of governments, regulatory authorities, and executive boards worldwide.

Panel Discussion 2: Cybersecurity: Safeguarding the New Technological Frontier Through AI-Enhanced Cyber Resilience

Mandar Patil

Senior Vice President – International Market & Customer Success
Cyble

Mandar Patil

Mandar Patil leads Cyble’s international market expansion efforts, emphasizing customer satisfaction and the development of strategic partnerships. His extensive experience in the cybersecurity field is crucial in driving Cyble’s growth on a global scale. Prior to joining Cyble, Mandar held key positions at Paladion Networks, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, IBM, and Smokescreen, where he made significant contributions to enhancing operational effectiveness and customer engagement.

Mayuresh Kothari

Technical Director
Secureworks, a Sophos company

Mayuresh Kothari

Mayuresh Kothari is an engineer by education with a Bachelors in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering. He got into Cybersecurity by accident but now considers it Serendipity. His experience since then has been working for large cyber security vendors such as McAfee/Intel Security where he started in product development before moving to pre-sales, Symantec, CrowdStrike and now at Secureworks. Security as a part of the IT discipline is probably one of the most interesting pursuits because it tries to manage the mandate of protecting the organization while staying as invisible as possible to the end-user. This is what makes his life as a Cyber Security practitioner interesting.

On a personal front, he lives in Dubai with his wife and 2 kids, a boy and a girl, aged 6 and 2 respectively. So, most of his free time is spent juggling between being a girl dad and boy dad, so his skill set now includes Braids, Bluey and Lego Tecnic.

Eng. Naveed Ahmed

Cybersecurity Risk Expert
Saudi Data & AI Authority (SDAIA)

Eng. Naveed Ahmed

Naveed is a Cyber Security and IT Governance expert with over 24 years of experience.

Naveed is a multi-certified management cadre professional with a core focus in Information Security Management, Cyber Security, Cloud Security, Risk Management, IT Governance, Cyber Forensics, IS Audits and IT Processes consulting. His wide range of experience covers also the design and deployment of solutions protecting networks, systems, cloud environments and information assets for diverse companies and organizations in different verticals.

He has directly contributed to the achievement of business goals by reducing information risk through the strategizing, fostering and sustainment of strong Information security management and cloud security practices.

He is currently working for a Saudi Government entity as a Cybersecurity expert & consultant. Here he has been credited with strategizing & implementing their GRC framework.

He has in the past, held positions of CISO, Information security manager, Information Security Consultant for leading organizations in the GCC region and has serviced a global client base.

Naveed strongly believes that knowledge and experience has to be disseminated and towards this, has spoken at various conferences and seminars. He is been a task force member for ISACA’s Asia Pacific CACS and has been a reviewer of their CISM manuals. He was also associated with CSA as a reviewer of their CCSK v5 (Certificate in Cloud Security Knowledge) training content. He is currently
also serving in the capacity of the GRA coordinator for the Riyadh ISACA chapter.

Wolfgang Kroj

General Manager – Sales – Middle East and Africa
Hitachi Vantara

Wolfgang Kroj

With an impressive 45-year journey in the IT industry, Wolfgang Kroj is a seasoned leader known for shaping high-performance teams and driving innovation across global markets. Having held senior leadership roles at Sun Microsystems and Oracle, he led the EMEA Systems Presales Team, fostering excellence across the region.

Now at Hitachi Vantara, Wolfgang has been instrumental in developing and leading teams across Central Europe, Turkey, South Africa, and now the Middle East. His deep expertise in business transformation, leadership, and cultural intelligence makes him a sought-after voice in the industry.

As a business coach, Wolfgang is passionate about helping organizations and individuals navigate change and unlock their full potential.

Join Wolfgang as he shares insights from decades of industry leadership, offering game-changing strategies for growth and success in today’s fast-evolving digital landscape.

Salman Mushtaq Qureshi

Cybersecurity Expert

Salman Mushtaq Qureshi

With over 20 years of experience in Cybersecurity and Information Technology, Salman has a proven track record in managing Security Operations Centers (SOC), IT infrastructure, and networks.

His journey began in hands-on technical roles, advancing to senior management positions in specialized cybersecurity consulting, working with diverse sectors including Government, Defense, and Financial Services.