Fulfilling the Promise of the Digital Age
WITSA bestowed its highest award, the Eminent Person Award to Dr. Garo H. Armen, Chairman and CEO of Agenus, Inc. for his pioneering immunotherapies to fight cancer.
In 2010, WITSA established its highest decoration called the WITSA Eminent Person Award to honor and recognize those individuals who have made a significant and profound positive difference in the lives of others.
These deserving individuals who have come from within the tech industry include the co-Fathers of the Internet Dr. Vinton Cerf and Dr. Bob Kahn, the Fathers of Wi-Fi Dr. John O'Sullivan and Dr. Terence Percival as well as Dr. Miguel Angelo Laporta Nicolelis, best known for his pioneering work surrounding brain-machine interface technology. Other recent inductees include Dato’ Hock E. Tan, President and CEO of Broadcom, and Dr. Lisa Su, President, Chief Executive Officer and Chair of Advanced Micro Devices. And from the public sector leadership, which had given WITSA illustrious recipients like WITSA’s first Eminent Person Dr. Nelson Mandela and subsequent ones like the Rt. Honorable Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, the former Prime Minister of Malaysia.
In 2024, WITSA had the distinct pleasure of adding an additional special inductee to WITSA’s honor roll of Eminent Persons.
Dr. Garo Armen is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Agenus Inc., a biotechnology company he co-founded in 1994, focused on pioneering immunotherapies to fight cancer. One of Agenus’ most groundbreaking achievements is the development of the BOT/BAL combination therapy, which has demonstrated remarkable success in difficult-to-treat cancers, including metastatic colorectal cancer. This therapy reawakens the immune system’s natural ability to fight cancer, representing a significant advancement in the treatment of cancers that were once considered insurmountable.
