The Jury

Prof. Mohamed Watfa competed in Stars of Science’s Season 4, eager to embrace every aspect of the experience as a hyperactive young innovator and eventually finishing as the runner up. A decade later, the Lebanese professor returns as a member of the jury on the show’s 14th season.

After his time on Stars of Science, Prof. Watfa combined his passion for academia and invention and founded the International School of Innovation - the first Lebanese school of its kind – back in 2015. As owner, principal, and CEO, he implemented his Stars of Science project “SHARED”, which transforms wooden desks into interactive computer systems with the use of a single computer and projector, along with self-designed smart system innovations at his school.

The tireless innovator also serves as a professor and associate dean in the Faculty of Engineering & Information Science at the University of Wollongong in Dubai, where he helps guide the next generation of Arab scientists and engineers.

Prof. Watfa was only 24 years old when he received his PhD from the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Oklahoma, U.S.A., making him one of the youngest to achieve this feat in the university’s history. He undertook his Masters degree in Engineering Science at the University of Toledo, U.S.A., and his Bachelors in Computer Science at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. 

As a member of Stars of Science Jury, Prof. Watfa advises the contestants to apply everything they’ve learned to their invention on the show and to everything else they’re working on outside of it. He believes that Stars of Science invests in people, not just their inventions, and so he proudly takes on the responsibility of helping Arab minds pursue their innovation journey.

“The market can be unforgiving and people may not cut you any slack. This is where Stars of Science’s emphasis on the person behind the product is crucial, as it prepares entrepreneurs to present their invention to the world with confidence!”