Tessa Ickx Wins Rising Tech Star of the Year 2026 at the She Goes ICT Awards in Belgium

Tessa Ickx, Data Scientist (AI) at Cegeka, has won the Rising Tech Star of the Year award at the She Goes ICT Awards, an initiative by Data News that highlights and celebrates women in Belgium’s technology sector.

The award recognizes emerging talent that stands out for technological expertise, innovation, and societal impact. The jury selected Tessa Ickx as a true tech enthusiast, driven by a clear ambition to make technology more accessible to the next generation.

A Healthy Dose of Curiosity

Tessa’s interest in technology began at an early age. As a child, she was fascinated by computers and eager to understand how things worked. During her school years, she discovered programming through initiatives such as CoderDojo, after which her interest quickly grew. She went on to participate in the Informatics Olympiad and reached the finals twice.

After completing her degree in Industrial Engineering in Computer Science, she joined Cegeka as a Data Scientist. Today, she works on artificial intelligence applications for clients and supports colleagues across multiple projects. Starting  this year, she will also take on the role of Team Lead, mentoring young graduates in the Young Graduate program and helping them grow during their first steps in the profession.

Making Technology Accessible to Young People

Alongside her professional role, Tessa is strongly committed to inspiring young people to explore technology. Every Saturday, she teaches programming classes at CodeFever, where students learn to code step by step and develop their own projects.

This experience also inspired her to develop Pixiboo: a programmable device that teaches children how to code in a playful and hands-on way. Through this initiative, she aims to make technology more tangible and inspire more girls to explore STEM.

“Interest in technology often starts at a young age,” says Tessa. “When young people get the chance to experiment and build things early on, they discover how creative technology can really be.”

Visibility and Role Models

For Tessa, visibility is an essential part of that mission. In her programming classes, she notices that girls are often less likely to choose technology or feel drawn to the field.

“When I was growing up, I didn’t really know any female programmers,” she says. “Personally, that didn’t stop me, but I realize that role models can make a real difference for many young people.”

Through her work as an AI Engineer, her commitment to education, and her entrepreneurial initiative with Pixiboo, she hopes to contribute to an environment where more young people – and especially more girls – find their way into technology.

About the She Goes ICT Awards

The She Goes ICT Awards, organized by Data News, annually spotlight women in Belgium’s ICT sector. With categories such as Leading ICT Lady and Rising Tech Star, the awards aim to increase visibility for talent and inspire more women to pursue careers in technology.