Prof. Dr. Mpho Primus
Prof. Mpho Primus is an NRF-rated computer scientist with a passion for using emerging technologies to bring access and opportunity to the broadest and deepest levels of society.
Her research expertise lies in the fields of theoretical computer science, sustainable AI, and computational linguistics. She is also the co-director of the Institute for Intelligent Systems at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Prof. Primus has extensive experience developing strategies to roll out technical innovations on a large scale, gained via her work for the South African Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, SAP Research Africa, Wits University and the University of Johannesburg.
Prof. Primus earned a PhD in computer science from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg where she was a L’Oreal Women in Science Scholar and is a recipient of the South African Department of Science and Technology, Women in Science Award. She is also a recipient of the 2022 NRF Research Excellence Award for Early Career/Emerging Researchers.
Dr. Philipp-Alexander Primus
Through his pioneering work as the Head Researcher and Project Leader at the University of Potsdam Transfer GmbH, Dr. Primus has been instrumental in spearheading joint industrial research initiatives focused on green hydrogen production and renewable energy technologies. His projects, such as "H2O-Pro" and "KatCe," funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) of Germany, exemplify a concerted effort to align institutional research with SME, leveraging synergies of public-private partnerships.
Dr. Primus's endeavours are aimed at fostering collaboration between academia, industry, and government institutions to drive innovation and infrastructure development in the renewable energy sector.
His work is characterized by a holistic approach to complex questions and he is well-versed in first principles thinking.