Our team

Abdulaziz AlTelmissani is a medical laboratory scientist and program coordinator with a multidisciplinary background in biomedical research, bioinformatics and academic program administration.

At KAUST Academy, he contributes to planning and coordinating scientific and professional training programs, supporting their delivery across diverse initiatives.

His earlier experience includes research collaboration with the University of Toronto on maternal health equity, laboratory training in microbiology and molecular diagnostics, and serving as Point Chief Marshal at several international motorsport events. He holds a bachelor’s degree with honors in Medical Laboratory Sciences from King Abdulaziz University.

Ahmed Alhawsawi is a communications and business professional with a strong background in program coordination, project management and corporate communication.

At KAUST Academy, he supports the delivery of leadership, entrepreneurship and digital skills programs, and builds partnerships with universities and organizations.

His earlier experience includes senior project coordination at AlSharif Group Holding, teaching at SABIS schools, and project leadership roles in the corporate and service sectors. He holds a BA in Communication Studies with a minor in Business Administration.

Ali Habibullah is an AI Research Engineer at KAUST and the academic lead of the KAUST Academy Artificial Intelligence Specialization, which drew more than 30,000 applications across its 2025 and 2026 cohorts.

He has helped teach machine learning to more than 1,000 students and co-authored papers at CVPR and NeurIPS 2026. He holds a BSc in Computer Science from King Abdulaziz University.

Christina Ray Williams is a higher education professional with over ten years of experience supporting Saudi students in their efforts to attend global institutions. Over the course of her career, she has cultivated expertise in holistic student advising, career guidance, event planning and logistics, strategic planning, people management, relationship management and stakeholder engagement, monitoring and evaluation, and data management.

Before joining KAUST Academy, Christina worked at the Institute of International Education (IIE) on the KAUST Gifted Student Program (KGSP), where she led a team of advisors that supported Saudi students’ university applications. She has also worked with the Heritage Commission of the Ministry of Culture to design and implement capacity-building training.

Christina has a BA in Political Science from The George Washington University, an MA in Human Rights from the University of London and an Executive Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Georgetown University. She is an avid reader and lifelong learner, both of which have fostered her personal and professional growth.

Emad Surour has been a Program Administrator at KAUST Academy since August 2024. He oversees the Academy’s degree partnership programs with the Ministry of Interior, and leads cohort execution planning, contract management, teaching and logistics coordination, and program reporting to KAUST leadership.

He previously worked as an Administrative Specialist at HBQ Café, where he led a team of about 20 staff and used sales data from across the branches to improve operations. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems from Taibah University in Madinah.

Khalid Alsaedi is a Program Coordinator for Professional Programs at KAUST Academy, which he joined in August 2026. He supports the planning, coordination and delivery of the Academy’s professional development programs, working closely with internal teams, partners and vendors to keep each program on schedule and give participants a high-quality learning experience.

Before joining KAUST, Khalid was a Project Coordinator at SEA Ventures Group, where he managed startup incubation projects for the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Global Center for Arabic Calligraphy under the Ministry of Culture. His background also includes product management, performance management and quality assurance. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Languages and Translation from Taibah University and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).

Mahmoud Ellouh is an Educational Technology Specialist in cybersecurity at KAUST Academy, where he leads instructional and operational work across the cybersecurity programs. His work focuses on SIEM and AI for cybersecurity, network security and digital forensics, with an emphasis on curriculum delivery, research mentorship and student engagement.

Before joining KAUST, he co-founded and worked as lab engineer at the Interdisciplinary Research Center for Intelligent Secure Systems (IRC-ISS) at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), contributing to research in AI-driven security, container orchestration and intelligent threat detection. He also gained hands-on experience as a junior cloud engineer at EBTCO in Riyadh during his cooperative training.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and Cybersecurity from KFUPM, and supports digital transformation and emerging technology initiatives for strategic partners through the Academy’s Academic Office.

Mohamed N. AlAli Aldehaishi has been Academy Programs Manager at KAUST Academy since April 2023, and has worked at KAUST since 2008.

He spent his first 15 years at KAUST in Human Resources: as an Onboarding Coordinator, a Human Resources Advisor, on project assignments with the Strategy & Policy and Compensation & Benefits teams, as HR Learning & Development Team Lead, where he planned and delivered learning journeys, and as a Human Resources Specialist, the main HR contact for employees and departments.

Earlier, he was Northwest Regional Personnel Officer at Almarai Company from 2005 to 2008, and he began his career in hospitality with Saudi Hotels & Resorts Areas Co. (Makarem) and Westin Hotels & Resorts.

Mohammad Alshiekh is an AI researcher, engineer and lecturer specializing in computer vision, autonomous systems, speech technologies and applied machine learning. He is a data scientist at Mozn, developing AI solutions for fraud prevention, Arabic speech-to-text and large-scale remote sensing.

He is also an AI lecturer and former head tutor at KAUST Academy, where he has taught AI, computer vision, natural language processing and cybersecurity to hundreds of students through hands-on, project-based learning.

He previously led the AI and communications division of the UAS2030 autonomous drone team, which won first place overall and Best in Mission at the Student Unmanned Aerial Systems Competition 2024. He holds a degree in Software Engineering with a concentration in AI and machine learning from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.

Mohammed Al-Nasser is a management and partnerships professional with expertise in strategic collaboration and government relations.

At KAUST Academy, he leads the development of postgraduate diploma and executive training programs with national entities, in scientific and technical fields such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence.

Before joining KAUST Academy, he worked in Government Affairs at KAUST, building institutional relationships and coordinating high-level engagements with ministries and national agencies. With an MBA and an engineering background, he brings strategic insight and operational experience to applied education and national capacity building aligned with Saudi Vision 2030.

Dr. Mohammed Farouk Ahmed is Academic Lead for AI and Emerging Technologies at KAUST Academy. He has more than 20 years of experience in academic research, enterprise technology and applied AI education. He holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Alberta. His published research spans wireless communications, distributed estimation, beamforming and machine learning for networked systems.

His industry and applied research work includes cloud data and AI platforms, machine learning for rail and aviation operations, and adaptive methods for wireless networks. Across these projects, he has worked at different technology readiness levels, from proof of concept and testbed validation to enterprise implementation and operational use.

At KAUST Academy, Dr. Ahmed develops and delivers programs for executive and technical audiences in AI leadership, digital transformation, data engineering, large language models and MLOps. His teaching connects strategy and investment decisions with architecture, governance, practical exercises and implementation planning. He helps leaders and practitioners turn promising AI ideas into practical decisions, deployable solutions and real-world value.

Najla Qari is an Academy Operations Advisor at KAUST Academy, where she supports the Academy’s operations, workforce planning and hiring. She manages the contracting and payment process for program instructors, teaching assistants and other administrative contracts.

With more than 12 years at KAUST, she has built broad experience across human resources, organizational development, benefits, data and contract management, workforce planning, policy and procedure, finance services and business operations. This cross-functional background lets her connect people, process and financial perspectives in her work.

She holds a Certified Associate CIPD Level 5 in People Management, an HR Analytics Professional certification and a bachelor’s degree in English Language.

Saeed Balhareth is a KAUST Enrichment for Youth (KEY) Specialist at KAUST Academy. Before joining the Academy, he worked at Takamol Holding, where he managed learning and development projects with Saudi government ministries and authorities. The programs were delivered across Saudi Arabia and internationally and reached more than 5,000 participants.

His experience spans project management, employee development and programs that build the capabilities of Saudi professionals. At Takamol Holding, he worked with government stakeholders and training partners to plan and deliver programs tailored to their needs, and advised on government learning programs, from shaping their approach to overseeing delivery. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the United Kingdom.

Suhaib Alghamdi is a Program Administrator for Pre-University Programs at KAUST Academy, where he works with the team to design, plan and manage learning programs for gifted students across Saudi Arabia. Before taking on this role, he was a Teaching Assistant on KAUST Academy’s bioinformatics courses, helping students build new skills and complete their projects.

Suhaib earned an honors degree in Information Technology, specializing in software engineering, from King Abdulaziz University. In 2025 he was one of about 190 participants, out of roughly 19,000 applicants, to complete the KAUST Academy Specialization Program, training in bioinformatics at the University of Cambridge on a research project using bulk and single-cell RNA sequencing data. He has worked professionally with educational, biological and aviation data, and is passionate about using data to solve real-world problems.