THE RECORD
The Record
Thomas Anglero is an American-born Norwegian citizen of Puerto Rican heritage, based in Oslo, an AI keynote speaker and Strategic AI Advisor whose work spans three decades at the front edge of technology, from early internet telephony in the 1990s to artificial intelligence in healthcare and the boardroom today. His first language was Spanish, and he works in English and Norwegian. This page is the verified record behind that work: a sourced timeline and a press archive, each entry dated and traceable to its original publication or to an official page that anyone can check.
It exists because claims should be verifiable. Everything below is drawn from contemporaneous newspaper coverage, official conference and institutional pages, and primary broadcast and patent records. Where a detail rests on memory rather than a retrievable document, it is not stated here as fact.
The timeline
Each entry links to a source on the public record. The descriptions are deliberately plain.
1995: Among the earliest users of internet telephony. VocalTec released Internet Phone, the world’s first commercial voice-over-internet software, in February 1995. Thomas was among its earliest users and a beta tester within the product’s first days, and he went on to serve as VP of VocalTec and CEO of the global startup it spun out.
2001: CEO of Free World Dialup, one of the first peer-to-peer internet telephony ventures. CNET profiled Thomas as CEO of Free World Dialup in “Can a peer-to-peer phone network fly?” (28 February 2001), contemporaneous proof of the role and of the pioneering peer-to-peer internet-telephony work. Source: CNET, 28 Feb 2001.
2001: Interviewed live on CNN and named its “Maverick of the Day.” CNN interviewed Thomas live and one-on-one in its New York studios as CEO of Free World Dialup and named him its “Maverick of the Day” for the venture (1 March 2001). Source: the interview on YouTube.
2004: Named creator of TiOff, the subject of a US patent filing. Swedish trade publication telekom idag profiled the TiOff concept (Nr 1, February 2004). Thomas is the named inventor on a US patent application for the technology. Inventor record: Justia Patents.
2008: Named one of Norway’s “Top 10 leaders with an immigrant background.” Recognised by a Norwegian leadership foundation, reported in the national press in January 2009.
2009: Social Entrepreneur of the Year, IESE Business School (University of Navarra), for WiHood. Awarded in March 2009 for the WiHood initiative, which put computing access in the hands of children across multiple countries.
2009: Profiled by VG as an early adopter of live-streamed video review in amateur sport. Norway’s largest-circulation newspaper covered Thomas coaching a first-division women’s basketball team using internet live-streaming and video review (VG, 8 October 2009).
2012: Profiled by Aftenposten A-magasinet during the WiHood era. A feature in Norway’s leading weekend magazine (4 May 2012).
2015: Joined IBM; began keynoting as IBM Norway’s innovation director. Profiled in the business press in the people-moves pages (Finansavisen, July 2015) and billed as a keynote speaker from that year onward.
2016: Front-page coverage in Aftenposten on AI and the IBM Watson work. A front-page and inside feature in Norway’s leading newspaper (4 September 2016).
2017: Founded the IBM Watson AI Lab for Cancer at the Oslo Cancer Cluster. One of the first AI cancer labs located on a European cancer campus. Covered as a four-page document feature by VG in February 2017, which dates the opening to that month, and across the national and regional press through 2017.
2017: Delivered a TEDx talk, “Don’t fear technology, fear yourself,” at TEDxArendal. Source: TED.com official talk page.
2017: Front-page business coverage in Dagens Næringsliv. A front-page teaser and two-page feature in Norway’s leading business daily (13 March 2017), part of its series on AI and the future of work.
2019: Quoted by USA Today on OpenAI’s GPT-2 release. The US national newspaper quoted Thomas, then innovation director at IBM Norway, in its technology coverage (15 February 2019). Source: USA Today, 15 Feb 2019.
2019: Opened a panel on workplace surveillance and AI at Arendalsuka. Billed to open the debate alongside the Director of the Norwegian Data Protection Authority at Norway’s flagship civic week.
Through the IBM and Cognizant years: Nordic innovation and transformation leadership. Director of Innovation at IBM Norway and global spokesperson for IBM Watson; later Nordic Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at Cognizant, where he closed over $500 million in enterprise transformation deals. Head of Innovation at the Norwegian Tax Administration. Chairman of the board of Dansens Hus through its first pandemic year.
Today: Strategic AI Advisor, keynote speaker, and author. More than 450 keynotes across 30 countries for organisations including IBM, the WHO, the World Government Summit and the European Commission. Author of Intro to Artificial Intelligence. Host of the Clarity at the Top podcast and newsletter. World Government Summit speaker page.
The press record
Grouped by era. Print entries from the Norwegian National Library are in-copyright and held in a private archive; they are listed here as citations, by publication and date. Live web sources are linked.
Tier-1 anchors (official, checkable pages)
- TED.com official talk page, “Don’t fear technology, fear yourself.” Link.
- CNET, “Can a peer-to-peer phone network fly?”, 28 February 2001, naming Thomas as CEO of Free World Dialup. Link.
- World Government Summit official speaker page. Link.
- Justia Patents inventor record (TiOff US patent filing, Thomas named as inventor). Link.
- NOKIOS 2017 conference presentation (IBM era). Link.
- Goodreads author page (Intro to Artificial Intelligence). Link.
International press and broadcast
- CNN (USA), 1 March 2001, live one-on-one in-studio interview in New York, naming Thomas CNN’s “Maverick of the Day” as CEO of Free World Dialup. Video.
- CNET (USA), 28 February 2001, Free World Dialup, CEO profile.
- USA Today (USA), 15 February 2019, quoted on OpenAI’s GPT-2 release. Link.
- telekom idag (Sweden), February 2004, TiOff feature.
Norwegian national press, the IBM Watson era (2016 to 2019)
- Aftenposten, 4 September 2016, front page and inside feature, AI and the Watson work.
- Aftenposten, 21 September 2016, conference report.
- Dagens Næringsliv, 13 March 2017, front-page teaser and two-page feature.
- VG Helg, 11 February 2017, four-page document feature on the founding of the IBM Watson AI Lab for Cancer.
- Fædrelandsvennen, March 2017, Digitalkonferansen 2017 (lead-listed speaker).
- Agderposten, 26 August 2017, TEDxArendal preview.
Norwegian national press, earlier years
- VG, 12 January 2009, commentary.
- Aftenposten, 11 January 2009, news feature.
- Lillesands-Posten, 13 January 2009, award coverage.
- VG, 8 October 2009, live-streamed video review in amateur sport.
- Aftenposten A-magasinet, 4 May 2012, WiHood-era feature.
- Aftenposten, 8 April 1997, earliest item on record.
Conferences and speaking (selected, dated)
- World Government Summit (Dubai), official speaker.
- TEDxArendal, 2017.
- Oslo Business Forum, 2017 and 2018.
- Arendalsuka, 2019, panel opener with the Norwegian Data Protection Authority.
- EHiN 2015, Norway’s largest e-health conference.
- Ung i Finans, 2018.
- Plus dated billings through 2017 to 2019 including Sunndalskonferansen, Kongsberg Summit, PULPIT, Mjøskonferansen, Havet, the Industri conference, and others (full citations held in the archive).
Video and broadcast on the record
- CNN live one-on-one in-studio interview, 1 March 2001, New York, naming Thomas CNN’s “Maverick of the Day” as CEO of Free World Dialup. Watch.
- Norwegian Courts Administration, keynote video.
- IBM Watson AI Lab for Cancer, in-office interview.
- Atea Community 2016, stand interview.
Frequently asked questions
Did Thomas Anglero found the IBM Watson AI Lab for Cancer?
Yes. He founded the IBM Watson AI Lab for Cancer at the Oslo Cancer Cluster in 2017, one of the first AI cancer labs located on a European cancer campus. It was covered as a document feature by VG in February 2017 and across the Norwegian national press that year.
Did he really do a TED talk?
Yes. “Don’t fear technology, fear yourself” was delivered at TEDxArendal in 2017 and is on TED’s own website.
Was Thomas Anglero interviewed on CNN?
Yes. CNN interviewed him live and one-on-one in its New York studios in 2001, as CEO of Free World Dialup, and named him its “Maverick of the Day.” The interview is on the public record (1 March 2001).
What was his role in early internet telephony?
He was among the earliest users of VocalTec’s Internet Phone, the world’s first commercial VoIP software, launched in February 1995, becoming a beta tester within its first days, and later VP of VocalTec and CEO of the global startup it spun out. He was subsequently CEO of Free World Dialup, one of the first peer-to-peer internet telephony ventures, as documented by CNET in 2001.
Is the $500 million Cognizant figure real?
Yes. As Nordic Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at Cognizant, he closed over $500 million in enterprise transformation deals in total.
How many keynotes has he delivered?
More than 450 across 30 countries, for organisations including IBM, the WHO, the World Government Summit and the European Commission.