Manoj Saxena

Manoj Saxena is a globally recognised leader in artificial intelligence, best known for his role as the Founder, CEO and Chairman of Trustwise, an award-winning AI safety company focused on making agentic AI systems more secure in real time, while also lowering costs and reducing environmental impact. Through his work developing ethical AI systems, Manoj Saxena has established himself as a leading practitioner, educator and investor at the forefront of responsible AI innovation. As a prominent voice on responsible AI and emerging technologies, Manoj is a sought-after speaker at global conferences, recently serving as a Security AI panellist at the 2026 Citi AI Conference. He is hired for his ability to translate complex AI concepts into practical business insight, making him an ideal speaker for executive forums, financial services events and innovation summits focused on the future of technology and governance.

Manoj’s academic foundation includes an MMS from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, followed by an MBA in Marketing and Strategy from Michigan State University. This combination of technical expertise and strategic insight laid the foundation for his early entrepreneurial career, during which he founded two venture-backed software companies, Exterprise and Webify, both of which were subsequently acquired by Commerce One and IBM, respectively. Manoj’s later leadership roles, including Senior Vice President at Commerce One, gave him deep exposure to digital commerce and large-scale systems, experience that now underpins his ability to speak authoritatively on AI adoption and transformation. Manoj reached global prominence as the first General Manager of IBM Watson, where he played a key role in advancing one of the world’s most recognised AI platforms. He later founded CognitiveScale and took on multiple leadership roles, including Chairman positions and advisory roles across organisations such as SparkCognition and the London Stock Exchange Group.

In 2017, Manoj founded the Responsible AI Institute, an international non-profit organisation focused on driving forward human-centred, ethical and trustworthy artificial intelligence. Alongside his entrepreneurial ventures, Manoj also serves as Director of the Saxena Family Foundation and is a lecturer at The University of Texas at Austin, where he teaches a course on the design of ethical artificial intelligence systems. In addition, he contributes as a fellow at the University of Cambridge, supporting a programme focused on ‘Responsible Leadership in an Age of AI’. These diverse experiences across business, AI and education allow Manoj to bring real-world governance, ethics and deployment insights into his keynote talks.