Francis deSouza

Francis deSouza

American entrepreneur and business executive

Francis Aurelio deSouza (born December 2, 1970) is an American entrepreneur and business executive. He is the CEO of Illumina, Inc., a company that develops, manufactures, and markets integrated systems for the analysis of genetic variation and biological function.

Early life and education

Francis deSouza was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and grew up in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he earned both a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.

Career

Early career

DeSouza began his career at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center, where he worked on software development and networking technologies. He later joined Microsoft, where he was involved in the development of Internet Explorer and other internet technologies.

Entrepreneurship

In 1998, deSouza founded Flash Communications, a company that developed instant messaging software for corporate customers. The company was acquired by Microsoft in 1998, and deSouza joined Microsoft as part of the acquisition.

Symantec

DeSouza joined Symantec in 2001, where he held various leadership roles, including President of Products and Services. During his tenure, he was responsible for overseeing the company's enterprise security, consumer security, and storage and availability management businesses.

Illumina, Inc.

In 2013, deSouza joined Illumina, Inc. as President, and in 2016, he was appointed CEO. Under his leadership, Illumina has continued to be a leader in the field of genomics and DNA sequencing.

Personal life

DeSouza is known for his philanthropic efforts and has been involved in various initiatives to promote education and healthcare in underserved communities.

See also

• Illumina, Inc.
• Genomics
• DNA sequencing
• Symantec