H.E. Ambassador Philip Thigo, MBS, is an award-winning technology and public policy leader serving as the Republic of Kenya’s Special Envoy on Technology, the first role of its kind in Africa.
He has been recognized by Apolitical as one of the world’s 100 most influential people in digital government in 2018 and as a world-leading figure in AI in Government in 2025 and 2026. He is also a Mozilla RISE25 honoree, an AfricaCom top 100 Technology and Telecommunications leader, and a recipient of Kenya’s Presidential Commendation, Moran of the Order of the Burning Spear.
Amb. Thigo serves on the Executive Steering Group of the AI Hub for Sustainable Development, is a founding steering committee member of the Coalition for Digital Environmental Sustainability (CODES), serves as a Board Member of NASA’s Earth Observations for Sustainable Development Goals, chairs the Board of iamtheCODE, and was appointed by the UN Secretary-General to the High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence.
He has authored and co-authored foresight, policy, and research publications with institutions such as the Brookings Institution and the World Economic Forum.
He has held senior roles across international organizations, non-profits, and social ventures in Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America, including as founding Director for Africa at Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona State University.
