AI researcher
I am a senior researcher and research scholar, studying the relationship between people and online technology. I help organisations to build and use emerging technologies and artificial intelligence in a socially-responsible way.
About me
My work has always focused on connecting with people. I started out in public engagement, before moving into user research and participatory design. My experience includes projects across the private, public and charitable sectors. Today, I’m based at a global design and innovation consultancy, and am a 2021 responsible technology mentor for All Tech Is Human. I’m also a research scholar in digital anthropology and user experience at the Ronin Institute.
My research specialism is artificial intelligence (AI), particularly data and privacy. Most recently, I’ve been studying the exchange of privacy and convenience in the use of smart speakers in the UK.
Key skills
- Corporate digital responsibility
- Qualitative research and analysis
- AI ethics and privacy
- Mixed methods research
- User experience (UX) research
- Leadership
- Teamwork
- Problem-solving
- Insights and recommendations
- Communication
- Project management
Recent work
Smart speaker ownership continues to grow, reducing the boundaries between corporations and consumers. More than one in five people in the UK now have access to at least one artificially intelligent (AI) smart speaker in their home (Quadrangle, 2020). For the people living with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri, smart speaker assistants offer convenience in many aspects of home-life. However, what are the dangers of having a smart speaker in your home that’s always listening?
Using mobile ethnography and surveys, I am looking at how privacy and convenience are being exchanged. I aim to understand what, if anything, has changed since GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). How do the themes of privacy and convenience affect how people interact with their AI smart speakers?
Speaking
I speak to a range of audiences including technologists, academics and the general public.
I particularly enjoy speaking about:
- AI smart speakers and smart homes
- AI ethics and privacy
- Corporate digital responsibility
