Dell Technologies Forum South Africa – Unpacking the technologies shaping the future
The Dell Technologies Forum South Africa was recently held at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit and International Convention Centre, where the global technology company shared valuable insights and resources with attendees.
The event was the largest to date in the EMEA region – with over 2,800 registered attendees – and featured talks by industry leaders from South Africa’s top tech companies.
The largest theme of the event was the evolution of AI, including its potential benefits and how Dell Technologies is at the forefront of its implementation.
“South African companies are at a tipping point,” said Habib Mahakian, Vice President for Southern and Sub-Saharan Africa, Dell Technologies.
“The ambition to enhance processes, customer experience, and decision-making through AI is clear, but turning that ambition into large-scale, reliable, and ethical AI applications remains a significant challenge.”
“At Dell Technologies, we are committed to helping organisations bridge these gaps with the right technology, expertise, and industry collaborations,” said Mahakian.
Opening industry leader presentations
Adrian McDonald, Dell Technologies EMEA President, conducting one of the opening talks.
Among the many notable speakers at the event was Adrian McDonald, Dell Technologies EMEA President.
McDonald opened the forum with an overview of how Dell Technologies’ portfolio of solutions has integrated cutting-edge technologies that modernise workplaces and data centres.
He noted how AI is and will become a cornerstone of most modern systems, from private companies to government, and across all echelons of management.
“I don’t know a government ministry anywhere in the world that thinks they have too much money. How do we provide better citizen services at lower cost? The answer is the application of AI,” he said.
He added that the adoption of agentic and generative AI in the healthcare sector has already been rapid and could lead to massive medical advances in the future.
“I do genuinely believe that we are going to cure most human diseases within the next 10 years,” said McDonald.
Other notable presentations featured industry leaders such as:
- Mohanned Amin – SVP CEEMETA, Dell Technologies
- Jochem Melis – CIO Infrastructure and Cloud, Absa
- Professor Benjamin Rosmen – Professor at the University of the Witwatersrand
- And many more.
Breakout sessions and demos
Prelen Govender, Senior Solutions Architect at Dell Technologies, discusses NVIDIA Enterprise AI.
Following the opening presentations, the forum then transitioned into multiple breakout sessions held at the convention centre’s three large halls.
These included engaging and insightful conversations from leading companies such as NVIDIA, AMD, and NTT about topics such as:
- The Dell AI Factory
- Modern Data Centres and Multicloud
- Private-cloud deployment
- AI security
- And many more
In total, there were over twenty breakout sessions throughout the day.
Between these sessions, attendees also had the chance to visit engaging demo presentations relating to the sessions.
This included everything from tech demos of new AI applications, to racing chair demos for some Kyalami-relevant entertainment.
The Dell Technologies Forum South Africa was a must-attend event for industry-leading professionals and tech enthusiasts alike – and the 2026 event promises to be even better.
Click here to learn more about the Dell Technologies Forum South Africa.
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