Honorary Doctorates for July 2026 revealed
Artificial Intelligence pioneer Dr Fatmah Baothman and gaming industry leading light Simon Iwaniszak will receive Honorary Doctorates from the University of Huddersfield in July.
Dr Fatmah Baothman received her PhD in AI from the University in 2003, becoming the first woman from the Middle East to receive a PhD in the subject. She has subsequently held multiple global leadership positions in AI, is a former member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on the Future of AI, and currently a member of UNGEGN on Legislative and policy aspects.
Simon Iwaniszak founded Red Kite Games, one of the UK’s leading game development companies, at the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3MBIC) on campus in 2003 and has earned some of the gaming industries leading accolades including being named as Best Boss in 2023.
Dr Fatmah Baothman
AI PIONEER
Graduated from Huddersfield as the first woman from the Middle East to achieve PhD in AI.
Previously educated in her native Saudi Arabia and the US, Dr Baothman was awarded her PhD for her thesis, ‘Phonology-Based Automatic Speech Recognition for Arabic’, with distinction by Huddersfield’s School of Computing and Engineering in 2003.
Dr Baothman has led research and development as an Associate Professor of Modern AI at King Abdulaziz University in Saudi Arabia for over 30 years, and has published more than 70 papers. She founded the Artificial Intelligence Society, the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia. As a CEO, she led several companies and established AI start-ups.
At the forefront of the ethical and inclusive use of AI globally, Dr Boathman has earned international recognition & prizes in areas including academia, government policy, blockchain, and the future of digital economies.
Simon Iwaniszak
UK GAMING INDUSTRY LEADER
Simon began Red Kite Games at the 3MBIC at the University of Huddersfield.
Before establishing Red Kite Games in 2012, Simon Iwaniszak worked on several critically acclaimed franchises including Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption while working for Rockstar Games.
He has supported the University as an Affiliate Partner and has hired a large number of its talented graduates in Red Kite Games’ 90-strong workforce.
Simon has won some of the UK games industry’s most prestigious leadership awards including the GI.biz UK Best Boss award, and the TIGA Outstanding Leadership award.