AUC is partnering with Robin, the data science and artificial intelligence arm of Beltone Holdings, to launch a one-year program led by the Department of Mathematical and Actuarial Science that will focus on student training, employment, academic engagement and research collaboration. 

“Data science and artificial intelligence are reshaping economies and industries and redefining the future of work,” said AUC Provost Ehab Abdel-Rahman. “This partnership with Robin builds on AUC’s strong academic foundation in data science, mathematics and analytics, particularly through the Department of Mathematics and Actuarial Science and the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, both of which have a proven track record of academic excellence and strong alignment with market needs.” 

Since 2023, AUC students have worked on pivotal development projects for Robin, and over 15 AUC alums have been hired in the past two years. At AUC, Robin has hosted an AI Analytics and Data workshop and AI Hackathon, as well as partnered in publishing research in the data science field. The official agreement will formalize the relationship between the University and the subsidiary to strengthen further partnerships. 

“Partnering with The American University in Cairo is a strategic step in building a sustainable pipeline of data science and AI talent,” said Basma Rady, managing director of Robin. “AUC’s academic depth and MACT’s technical rigor make it a natural partner as we work to translate advanced analytics and AI research into real economic and business impact. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to developing talent and applied research that is relevant, practical and scalable.”

This agreement shows how industry-academia collaboration is essential for creating the strongest career professionals. Students will be able to develop skills both in the classroom and the field, responding to real-world market needs. Over the next year, Robin will bring in guest lecturers and hold seminars, aligning curriculum to current industry trends. They will also continue providing support for students and academics interested in research, including the supervision of senior projects. On the career side of the partnership, Robin plans to host structured training opportunities, career-focused workshops and mock interviews. They will also provide internship opportunities that provide potential pathways into long-term employment. 

“Through this collaboration with Robin, we aim to equip our students with advanced skills, hands-on experience, and direct exposure to real-world applications, while reinforcing AUC’s role as a leading hub for talent development and applied research aligned with industry requirements,” Abdel-Rahman said.

Every year, commencement speakers share words of wisdom with a new graduating class. This year's undergraduate and graduate speakers both work at the highest levels of the global stage. Read more about them below.

Amina Khalil '09

Amina Khalil '09 is the 2026 undergraduate commencement speaker. Khalil is known for her versatile range and depth as an actor, earning critical acclaim for her performances in Asham, Sukkar Mor and more. 

 After graduating from AUC with a Bachelor of Arts, she continued to refine her craft in advance acting training at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York and Moscow Art Theatre.

Between films and television series, Khalil is known for addressing socially relevant and underrepresented issues through her acting, using storytelling to create meaningful public dialogue.

Her work stretches beyond the theater, advocating for reproductive health, and the rights of women and girls as an Honorary Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund in Egypt.

Ahmed Farouk Ghoneim

Ahmed Farouk Ghoneim is the 2026 graduate commencement speaker. Ghoneim serves as CEO of the Grand Egyptian Museum, alongside working as a professor of economics at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science of Cairo University and a research fellow at the Economic Research Forum. 

A widely cited expert in political economy and trade policy, Ghoenim has served as a consultant for the World Bank, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Arab League. 

Ghoneim has held several executive positions throughout his career, notably serving as an advisor to Egypt’s Ministers of Trade and Industry on foreign trade and international agreements; Egypt’s Cultural Counselor and Head of the Educational Mission in Germany, Austria and other countries; and formerly serving as the first CEO of the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization (NMEC). 

Ghoneim holds a PhD in economics from the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg in Germany and a master’s degree in development economics from the International Institute of Social Studies in the Netherlands.

Ghoneim sits on various boards, currently serving as a board member of NMEC, GEM, the Supreme Council of Antiquities, the Tourism and Antiquities Support Fund, the Egyptian General Authority for Tourism Activation, Edita Food Industries, Delta Insurance, the Export Development Bank of Egypt, a representative of the National Bank of Egypt, a member of the board of trustees of the Export Academy and a member of the foreign trade committee at the Federation of Egyptian Industries. 

The undergraduate commencement 2026 is set for Saturday February 14, 2026 hosted in the Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor Football and Track Stadium at AUC New Cairo. The graduate commencement 2026 is set for Sunday, February 15, 2026 and will be hosted in Bassily Auditorium.

Rawan Alsaddig was baking cookies when her neighborhood in Khartoum was bombed on Eid Al-Fitr in 2023.

“It felt like an earthquake,” she recalls. “We were being bombed, but I didn’t know from where.”

The eldest of eight, Alsaddig watched over her younger siblings as the bombardment lasted more than four hours. She called relatives abroad to say goodbye, unsure if she would survive. When the bombing stopped, she couldn’t speak for a day. Her family packed what they could carry and fled.

Nearly three years later, Alsaddig now lives in Cairo, pursuing a Master of Global Public Health at AUC, where survival turned into direction. “After that night, it was a blessing seeing my family again,” she says.

There is little written about Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King’s 1959 trip to Egypt. Not only did the civil rights leaders travel to Cairo, but they visited AUC to reunite with one of King’s oldest friends, James Beshai ’47, who served as a psychology instructor at AUC in the 1950s.

Their correspondence is preserved in AUC’s Rare Books and Special Collections Library and AUC: 100 Years, 100 Stories by Andrew Humphreys, tracing a friendship shaped by faith, race and global politics.

"For the many who were lucky as I was to be his friend and classmate, he is the most unforgettable man in my life.” 

On a campus where routines repeat and faces become familiar fast, twins live in a constant state of mistaken identity. Lecture halls, hallways, cafés — AUC’s shared spaces become a stage for double takes, awkward waves and conversations that begin mid-sentence with the wrong person. For twins, being mixed up isn’t occasional; it’s part of daily life.

Celebrating the launch of the paperback edition of A Surgeon and a Maverick: The Life and Pioneering Work of Magdi Yacoub, AUC Press hosted a conversation between world-renowned cardiothoracic surgeon Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub and Ahmed Elghandour ’16, host of the hit YouTube series, Da7ee7. Based on an exclusive interview with AUCToday as well as insights shared during the discussion, Yacoub reflects on medicine, ethics, science and philanthropy.

How do you see the role of education in shaping not just skilled professionals, but compassionate, socially responsible individuals?

I am very optimistic because I see a lot of talent in young people. They have the right ideas, but it is absolutely essential to give them opportunities to develop and understand what the important things in life are – the real values. Education gives them a chance not only to discover their own talents — because each one has a talent — but also to talk about values, which seem to have shifted in general. People focus on making money and often miss the point: the real value of serving the community.

People focus on making money and often miss the point: the real value of serving the community.

What made you decide to publish a book?

My daughter and others wanted me to publish a book, but I initially refused to write my life story. I don’t think I’m special; I’m just performing my job. If I can do it, anybody can. I was eventually convinced because people said, “You owe it to the young generation.” A Surgeon and a Maverick was written by professional journalists, Simon Pearson and Fiona Gorman, from The Times newspaper in London. What attracted me to them was that they saw the human aspect of life. 

What’s one thing people might be surprised to learn about you outside of medicine?

I enjoy farming and gardening, and particularly like growing plants, flowers, orchids and oranges. I also believe the arts are extremely important for science and medicine; research shows that people who study music or painting perform better in their work. I love listening to classical music and going to the opera.

Will AI replace doctors?

Absolutely not. AI answers questions, but humans must ask the right questions. If you ask the wrong question and get the right answer, it is a disaster. The human brain is very intricate, so you must know what you are after. Artificial intelligence can do a lot through imaging, localizing things tremendously accurately, but it is a tool and not a replacement for our brains, which are still superior.

Artificial intelligence can do a lot ... but it is a tool and not a replacement for our brains, which are still superior.

If you could send one message from the heart to young people reading your story, what would it be?

PPH: passion, persistence and humility. Find your passion and pursue it with continuity and persistence. Don’t ask everyone what to do. Be humble.