From Mbare to Google’s C-Suite: The Rise of Dr. James Manyika

Zimbabwe-born Dr. James Manyika rose from Mbare township to become Google’s Senior VP (image source)

From the crowded streets of Mbare township to the executive corridors of Silicon Valley, Dr. James Manyika’s journey is a story of resilience, education and vision. Today, the Zimbabwean-born scholar, technologist and strategist serves as Google’s Senior Vice President for Research, Technology & Society, a role he assumed in April 2023.

Born in August 1965, Manyika attended Chitsere Primary School before moving to Prince Edward School, where he excelled academically. He graduated with first-class honours in Electrical Engineering from the University of Zimbabwe in 1989.

Awarded a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship, he pursued postgraduate studies at Oxford, earning an MSc and DPhil in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. His doctoral work focused on decentralized data fusion and Bayesian networks, laying foundations for early AI research.

Manyika’s academic career included fellowships at Oxford’s Balliol College and an exchange stint at MIT, where he collaborated on robotics and autonomous systems. He also consulted for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, contributing to research on planetary exploration systems. In 1994, he co-authored the influential book Decentralized Data Fusion: An Information Theoretic Approach.

In 1997, Manyika joined McKinsey & Company, where he rose to senior partner and became chairman of the McKinsey Global Institute. For over a decade, he led groundbreaking research on the future of work, productivity and the digital economy. His insights influenced both policymakers and business leaders confronting automation and digital transformation.

In 2022, Manyika was appointed Google’s first SVP of Technology and Society, reporting directly to CEO Sundar Pichai. By 2023, his portfolio expanded to include Google Research, Google Labs, AI safety, quantum computing, and climate science initiatives. He co-authored the widely cited Why We Focus on AI (and to What End) with Google DeepMind leaders, framing the company’s philosophy on responsible AI.

Beyond corporate leadership, Manyika serves on the boards of the Council on Foreign Relations, Aspen Institute, Broad Institute, and others. He chairs the African Union’s High-Level Panel on Science and Technology and advises the U.S. government’s National AI Advisory Committee.

Passionate about education, he funds STEM programs across Africa, including mentorship schemes in Mbare, which have distributed more than 2,000 refurbished laptops to disadvantaged students.

“Talent is universal, but opportunities are not.”— Dr. James Manyika

His career embodies that ethos. From township classrooms to the tech world’s highest ranks, he has consistently championed inclusive innovation and ethical technology. Looking ahead, he aims to build research hubs in Nairobi, Lagos and Cape Town, ensuring Africa plays a central role in shaping the global digital economy.

For Zimbabwean youth, Dr. Manyika’s rise is more than inspiration—it is proof that with perseverance, education and vision, the world’s biggest stages are within reach.