Thomas M. Siebel receives honorary Ph.D. from Politecnico di Torino

One of Europe’s most prestigious universities honors Siebel’s computer engineering achievements

C3 IoT CEO Thomas M. Siebel received an honorary Ph.D. from Politecnico di Torino, one of Europe’s most esteemed educational institutions with a 150-year history in theoretical and applied research in architecture and engineering. The academic honor recognizes Siebel’s worldwide leadership in computer engineering, impact on the technology industry, and his extraordinary contributions to the development of science.

“A renowned engineer and computer scientist, Tom Siebel is distinguished by his extraordinary contributions in applying new and disruptive technologies to design, develop, and commercialize innovative solutions that transform businesses for positive social and economic benefit,” said Marco Gilli, Rector and Professor of Electrical Engineering, Politecnico di Torino. “We are grateful for Tom’s close collaboration with the University and laud his commitment to higher education, research, and innovation.”

“I strongly believe the conferment of this honorary degree elevates the prestige of the Italian Education and Research System. Mr. Siebel’s strong interdisciplinary education shows that cultural enrichment and strong professional success come from the deep intermingling of humanistic and scientific disciplines. This interdisciplinary approach represents a very simple yet underappreciated idea – that culture and knowledge are not detached and separate, but productive and outstanding in their whole,” added Ms. Valeria Fedeli, Minister of Education, University, and Research, Republic of Italy.

Siebel is founder and CEO of C3 IoT, the leading software platform provider for rapidly developing and operating AI and IoT applications at industrial scale. He was founder, chairman, and CEO of Siebel Systems, a leader in application software with revenue exceeding $2 billion before merging with Oracle Corporation in 2006. He serves on the advisory boards of the engineering colleges at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and University of California, Berkeley. He is a former Princeton trustee. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2013.

S. Shankar Sastry, UC Berkeley Dean, Roy W. Carlson, Professor of Engineering, and a member of the board of directors at C3 IoT, also received an honorary degree from Politecnico di Torino in telecommunications engineering in recognition of his research achievements in the fields of non-linear and adaptive control, autonomous robotic systems, and cyber-physical systems. The academic honor also acknowledges Sastry’s leading contributions to the studies of information technology’s societal impact as Director of the Blum Center for Developing Economies and former Director of the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) at Berkeley. Sastry is Director of the Siebel Energy Institute, a global consortium for innovative and collaborative energy research.

The honorary degrees were conferred on Feb. 16 during an awards ceremony held at the Hall of Honour in the historic Castello del Valentino, a 16th century palace in Turin, Italy.