AWS Heroes Celebrated: Meet Maurizio, Ray & Sheyla | AWS Blog

March 21, 2026 Rachel Kim – Technology Editor Technology

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced its first cohort of AWS Heroes for 2026, recognizing three individuals for their contributions to the AWS community. The program celebrates leaders who share technical knowledge, build connections, and foster growth within the cloud ecosystem.

Maurizio Argoneto, based in Pignola, Italy, is recognized as a Community Hero. As CTO and organizer of the AWS User Group Basilicata, Argoneto has focused on establishing tech communities in underserved regions. He founded an international tech conference in a small mountain village, bringing together experts and local talent. Argoneto also mentors individuals across generations, from introducing children to coding to assisting professionals in cloud architecture transitions.

Ray Goh, from Singapore, has been named an Artificial Intelligence Hero. Goh has been involved with AWS community programs since 2018, including AWS ASEAN Cloud Warrior and AWS Dev/Cloud Alliance, and was part of the inaugural AWS Community Builders cohort in 2020. He founded The Gen-C, a Generative AI Learning Community, which hosts workshops on topics like LLM fine-tuning and AI agents on AWS at libraries across Singapore. Goh has presented at major AWS events, including re:Invent and AWS Summit ASEAN, and authored content for the AWS Machine Learning Blog. He previously led a program at DBS Bank that upskilled over 3,100 employees in AWS DeepRacer and trained over 1,300 ASEAN students in LLM techniques in 2025. His work also includes skills-based CSR initiatives focused on teaching AI and machine learning to women, children, and youths.

Sheyla Leacock, an IT security professional from Panama City, Panama, is the newest Security Hero. Leacock is a mentor, technical author, and international speaker who contributes to the global cloud and cybersecurity community. She leads the AWS User Group in Panama and actively participates in AWS Community Days and regional meetups. Leacock has presented at AWS summits in Mexico and LATAM, and at AWS re:Invent PeerTalk sessions. She also delivers talks at international conferences and publishes articles on AWS cloud computing and cybersecurity, and collaborates with universities as a guest lecturer.

AWS has established the AWS Builder Center as a central hub for the AWS builder community, according to a recent announcement. Further information about the AWS Heroes program and opportunities to connect with Heroes can be found on the AWS Heroes webpage.