MEET THE RAID 2024 SPEAKERS
More speakers are announced every week
Didier Reynders
Commissioner for Justice, European Commission
Didier Reynders
Commissioner for Justice, European Commission
A father of four, Didier Reynders was born in Liège on 6th August 1958. In 1981, he obtained a degree in law at the University of Liège. Guest lecturer at the universities of Liège and Louvain, he has never really left the academic life until he became on 1th December 2019 European Commissioner for Justice.
After presiding the Belgian railways and the Belgian Airways Agency, he was elected Deputy Chairman of the PRL (Liberal party), before becoming a Member of Parliament in 1992.
On 12th July 1999, he became Minister of Finance (until 6th December 2011) and, on 18th July 2004, (concurrently) Deputy Prime Minister (until 30th November 2019).
He was Chairman of the Mouvement Réformateur (liberal party alliance) from 11th October 2004 until 14th February 2011.
He was Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs from 6th December 2011 until 11th October 2014.
He became Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs, in charge of Beliris and Federal Cultural Institutions on 11th October 2014 (until 30th November 2019).
He has also been Minister of Defense since 9 December 2018.
Since 1th December 2019 he is European Commissioner for Justice, in charge of Rule of Law and Consumer Protection.
Anu Talus
Chair, European Data Protection Board (EDPB)
Anu Talus
Chair, European Data Protection Board (EDPB)
Anu Talus has served as the Finnish Information Commissioner since autumn 2020. She is the Head of the Office of the Information Commissioner (TSV) and the Chair of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB). Before holding these positions, she worked as Deputy Information Commissioner from August 2019 until November 2020.
Prior to her work at the IMY, Talus served as Senior Adviser at the Ministry of Justice for over ten years. At the Ministry of Justice she led the implementation of the GDPR in Finland and acted as representative of the Finnish government in the EU GDPR negotiations. Talus has also worked at the European Commission, International Data Flows and Protection Unit (DG Justice and Consumers) as Seconded National Expert (SNE).
Talus holds a Doctor of Laws degree and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Helsinki and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Vaasa
Katherine Harman-Stokes
Acting Director, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, United States Department of Justice
Katherine Harman-Stokes
Acting Director, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, United States Department of Justice
Ms. Harman-Stokes is the Acting Director of the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties (OPCL). The Office supports the Department’s Chief Privacy and Civil Liberties Officer (CPCLO) and is responsible for helping ensure that the Department’s 42 components comply with the Privacy Act of 1974, E-Government Act, and other privacy-related laws, regulations, and policies. In her role, she also has a central policy-making role in the Department’s development and evaluation of legislative, regulatory, and other policy proposals affecting privacy, both domestically and internationally. She has directly participated in international negotiations designed to harmonize high standards for protection of privacy and civil liberties in the law enforcement and national security contexts. Before joining DOJ, she was the Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) at one of the U.S. financial regulators, where she was the first CPO and the senior advisor for ensuring data protection and privacy in all agency programs and operations. She has been a consultant to multinational companies on international data protection and privacy law, with a special expertise in biometrics, and was a corporate officer and Associate General Counsel at the company that owns the GMAT exam, where she oversaw the data protection and privacy program for the company’s operations in 110 countries. She has chaired various committees and working groups in the Federal Privacy Council and has hosted data privacy symposia. She also was an attorney at Hogan & Hartson LLP (now Hogan Lovells US), received her law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law and her undergraduate degree from the American University School of International Service in Washington DC. She is a Certified Information Privacy Professional-US and Government (CIPP/US, CIPP/G).
Leonardo Cervera Navas
Director, Office of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS)
Leonardo Cervera Navas
Director, Office of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS)
Leonardo Cervera Navas is the Director of the Office of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), the Data Protection Authority of the European Union.
Law graduate of the University of Málaga and master’s degree in European Law from the University of Granada (Spain). He was a fellow at Duke University in North Carolina (US) as part of the EU Fellowship Programme of the European Commission. He also holds a post-graduate diploma in HR management by Kingston University (UK). He is Member of the Malaga Academy of Sciences (correspondent in Brussels).
Leonardo joined the European Commission in 1999 and since then he has been working in the Data Protection field in the EU institutions. In 2010, he joined the EDPS, as Head of the Human Resources, Budget and Administration Unit and he was appointed Director in 2018. As Head of the Secretariat, he is a member of the Management Board of the EDPS, responsible for advising on data protection law and policy, and he is in charge of the coordination and implementation of the strategies and policies of the institution
John Edwards
UK Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner's Office
John Edwards
UK Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner's Office
Since January 2022, John Edwards has served as the sixth UK Information Commissioner. Before this, he served as New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner for eight years, building an international reputation in data protection and privacy, including chairing the now Global Privacy Assembly. He also worked in a range of roles including as a policy advisor to the NZ Government, a lawyer for over 20 years in the public and private sector, and even had a stint as a mountaineer.
John’s vision and mission is for the ICO to be a regulator that empowers people to share information for personal and public benefit, and for organisations to use information to invest and innovate in the digital economy safely.
As a whole economy regulator, John’s laser focussed on delivering better, quicker and impactful regulatory interventions in AI and biometrics, children’s privacy and AdTech and online tracking.
John’s motto: “We spend once at the centre prompting savings for thousands of businesses across the economy.”
Tine A. Larsen
President, National Commission for Data Protection (CNPD) – Luxembourg
Tine A. Larsen
President, National Commission for Data Protection (CNPD) – Luxembourg
Tine A. Larsen was appointed one of four commissioners of Luxembourg’s Data Protection Authority as of 1st November 2014 and assumes the presidency of the collegiate body.
She holds a Master in Law with a specialisation in commercial law from the University Robert Schumann in Strasbourg, France, and an MA in International Peace and Security from King’s College London.
She took the bar exam in Luxembourg in 1999 and practised as a lawyer before joining the Luxembourg Government Administration in 2003. After two years as an attaché with the Luxembourg Army Headquarters, she joined the National Rescue Services Agency. As of 2008, she was the head of its administrative, technical and medical division.
Mrs Larsen represents Luxembourg DPA at the European Data Protection Board. She is also a member of the national “Judicial Oversight Authority” (Autorité de contrôle judiciaire), the national “Information Commission” (Commission d’Accès aux documents), as well as an advisory member of the Luxembourg Human Rights Consultative Commission.
Dr. Anna Christmann
Member of the Bundestag, Federal Government Coordinator for Aerospace, BMWK representative for the digital economy and start-ups, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action
Dr. Anna Christmann
Member of the Bundestag, Federal Government Coordinator for Aerospace, BMWK representative for the digital economy and start-ups, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action
Since 27 January 2022
Commissioner of BMWK for the Digital Economy and Start-ups
As of 5 January 2022
Federal Government Coordinator of German Aerospace Policy
Since 2017
Member of the German Bundestag
2013 -2017
Head of Office for the Minister and policy officer for fundamental policy issues in science policy at the Ministry for Science, Stuttgart
2008 – 2013
Academic working for various women’s networks and mentoring programmes, and at the Centre for Democracy at Zurich University
2008
Part of the constituency staff at the office of Theresia Bauer, Member of the State Parliament
2003
Member of ALLIANCE 90/THE GREENS
2002 - 2008
Student of political sciences, economics and mathematics (Heidelberg)
2008 - 2013
Doctoral thesis on ‘The limits of direct democracy’ at Bern University and the University of California
Werner Stengg
Member of Cabinet of EVP Margrethe Vestager - Europe fit for the Digital Age, and Commissioner for Competition, European Commission
Werner Stengg
Member of Cabinet of EVP Margrethe Vestager - Europe fit for the Digital Age, and Commissioner for Competition, European Commission
Werner Stengg, who joined the European institutions in 1996, is currently a cabinet expert on the cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, dealing with digital matters. Between 2006 and 2019, he held different head of unit positions across the European Commission, dealing with e-commerce and online platforms, public interest services, online gambling and postal services, and with the better regulation agenda.
Prior to that, he was involved in mainstreaming policy evaluation across the Commission, in the negotiation of bilateral and multilateral textile trade agreements, and in the negotiations on regulatory files in the areas of aviation and maritime transport.
He earned his doctoral degree in economics from the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration.
Dragos Tudorache
former Member of the European Parliament (MEP)
Dragos Tudorache
former Member of the European Parliament (MEP)
Dragoș Tudorache is a Member of the European Parliament and Vice-President of the Renew Europe Group. He is the LIBE rapporteur on the AI Act, and he sits on the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET), the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE), the Committee of Inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA), the Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE), and the European Parliament's Delegation for relations with the United States (D-US). He was the Chair of the Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence in the Digital Age (AIDA).
Dragos began his career in 1997 as a judge in Romania. Between 2000 and 2005, he built and led the legal departments at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the UN missions in Kosovo. After working on justice and anticorruption at the European Commission Representation in Romania, supporting the country’s EU accession, he joined the Commission as an official and, subsequently, qualified for leadership roles in EU institutions, managing a number of units and strategic projects such as the Schengen Information System, Visa Information System, and the establishment of eu-LISA. 7
During the European migration crisis, Dragos was entrusted with leading the coordination and strategy Unit in DG-Home, the European Commission Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs, until he joined the Romanian Government led by Dacian Cioloș. Between 2015 and 2017, he served as Head of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, Minister of Communications and for the Digital Society, and Minister of Interior. He was elected to the European Parliament in 2019. His current interests in the European Parliament include security and defence, artificial intelligence and new technologies, transatlantic issues, the Republic of Moldova, and internal affairs.
Brando Benifei
MEP, Member and AI Act co-rapporteur, European Parliament
Brando Benifei
MEP, Member and AI Act co-rapporteur, European Parliament
Brando Benifei is an Italian MEP serving his second term and is the Head of Delegation of Partito Democratico in the European parliament. He is Rapporteur for the Artificial Intelligence Act, as a Member of the Committee for the Internal Market and Consumer Protection. He also works on Employment, Legal and Constitutional Affairs. He was also shadow Rapporteur of the Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence in a Digital Age. In 2016 he was included by Forbes in its 30 under 30 to watch list
Kilian Gross
Head of Unit A2 Artificial Intelligence Policy Development and Coordination
Kilian Gross
Head of Unit A2 Artificial Intelligence Policy Development and Coordination
Since 16 of January 2020 Kilian Gross is Head of Unit A/2 in DG CNECT responsible for policy development and coordination with regard to Artificial Intelligence in the EU. Based on the work of the High-Level Expert Group the Unit has drafted a White Paper on Artificial Intelligence, which presents the options on how to promote the uptake of Artificial Intelligence and how to address at the same time the risks associated with certain uses of this new technology. Following a comprehensive public consultation in April 2021 the Unit proposed a legal framework aiming to address the risks generated by specific uses of AI. At the same time his Unit has updated the Coordinated Plan which supports the development and uptake of AI in the EU and searches to align national AI policies. The proposal for an AI-Act is currently negotiated with the co-legislators i.e. the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers. In parallel, the Unit ensures the implementation of the Coordinated Plan on AI.
Beside his work on AI, Kilian Gross lead the legal team, which has prepared and supported the negotiations of the proposal for a European Chips Act.
Beforehand since November 2015 Kilian Gross was a member of the Cabinet of Commissioner Oettinger. Within the Cabinet, he was mainly responsible for the Commission anti-fraud policy, DG HR and at an earlier stage for various digital files. Kilian Gross has started his career in the Commission in the Legal Service followed by five years in DG ENER where he worked on energy policy and on legal matters.
Astrid Cousin
Head of Unit 01 (Commission Priorities and Strategic Coordination), DG COMP, European Commission
Astrid Cousin
Head of Unit 01 (Commission Priorities and Strategic Coordination), DG COMP, European Commission
Astrid Cousin is currently heading the unit in charge of Commission Priorities and Strategic Coordination (unit 01) in DG Competition. Reporting directly to the Director General, she set up this newly created unit in June 2020. Prior to this post, she was head of unit on State aid to Financial Institutions (unit D4).
From 2013 to 2018, Astrid worked as member in the cabinets of Vice-President Almunia and Commissioner Vestager, where she advised on State aid matters and competition policy at large. She joined the Commission in 2009 as a banking expert in the financial crisis task force in DG Competition. Before joining the Commission, she mainly worked in the banking sector, at Fortis Bank as Director of risk regulatory affairs, and at ABN AMRO Group, as deputy head of office of the EU Affairs department.
She graduated in Political science in France and holds a master in EU law and politics.
Gabriela Ramos
Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO
Gabriela Ramos
Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO
Gabriela Ramos is the Assistant Director-General for the Social and Human Sciences of UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) where she oversees the contributions of the institution to build inclusive and peaceful societies. Her agenda includes the achievement of social inclusion and gender equality, advancing youth development; promotion of values through sports; anti-racism and anti-discriminatory agenda and ethics of artificial intelligence. Her appointment at UNESCO allows her to continue supporting an agenda of inclusive growth, and the respect of human rights and human dignity.
Prior to this position, Ms. Ramos served as the Chief of Staff and Sherpa to the G20/G7/APEC in the OECD, contributing to the global agenda as well as leading the OECD's New Approaches to Economic Challenges, Inclusive Growth Initiative, Gender Strategy, and the work on well-being and children. In 2019, she launched the Business for Inclusive Growth (B4IG) platform, bringing together 40 major multinational companies committed to reducing inequalities.
Isidro Laso Ballesteros
Cabinet Expert at Commissioner Gabriel cabinet for Innovation, Research, Education, Culture, Youth; European Commission
Isidro Laso Ballesteros
Cabinet Expert at Commissioner Gabriel cabinet for Innovation, Research, Education, Culture, Youth; European Commission
Isidro is the Cabinet Expert of Commissioner Gabriel for Innovation, research, Education, culture and Youth at the European Commission. He has been a senior official at the European Commission since 2001 with responsibilities such as head of Startup Europe for 9 years and Deputy head of Innovation Ecosystems at the European Innovation Council.
From 2015 to 2019 Isidro was also nominated “Thought Leader at United Nations ITU Agency”, and is member of several advisory boards to international networks of startups. He combines his professional activities with academic activities such as being “Cambridge University CSAP Continuing Fellow”, visiting lecturer to CEPADE (Universidad Politecnica de Madrid) and writing books and papers which are included as citations by hundreds of academics.
After graduating as an Engineer from the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, he set up two Innovative SMEs on software business in the Tech AgriFood area before becoming a strategy advisor to CEOs of large corporations. Afterwards he became director in charge of IT and Change Management Projects in a large corporation (Atos Origin). In 2001 he moved into the public sector where he has been mainly working on strategy and innovation within the European Commission
Julie Brill
Chief Privacy Officer and Corporate Vice President Global Privacy, Safety, and Regulatory Affairs, Microsoft
Julie Brill
Chief Privacy Officer and Corporate Vice President Global Privacy, Safety, and Regulatory Affairs, Microsoft
As Microsoft’s Chief Privacy Officer and Corporate Vice President of Global Privacy, Safety, and Regulatory Affairs, Julie Brill leads the company’s work in the tech policy, regulatory, and legal issues that underpin the world’s digital transformation. She is the central figure in Microsoft’s advocacy for responsible data use and policy around the globe.
Building on her distinguished public service career spanning more than three decades at the federal and state level, Brill directs Microsoft’s teams that lead privacy, digital safety, regulatory governance, law enforcement and national security, telecom, standards, and accessibility regulation. In her role, Brill also spearheads the company’s advocacy for responsible approaches to privacy, safety, and data protection around the world.
Prior to her role at Microsoft, Brill was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate. She served for six years as a Commissioner of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), from 2010 to 2016. As Commissioner, she worked tirelessly on issues of critical importance to consumers, including privacy, fair advertising practices, fighting financial fraud, and maintaining competition in all industries, with a special focus on healthcare and technology. Brill has also served as a partner and co-chair of privacy and security at the global law firm Hogan Lovells, Senior Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the North Carolina Department of Justice, and Assistant Attorney General for Consumer Protection and Antitrust for the State of Vermont. Brill also was a Lecturer-in-Law at Columbia University.
Brill has been elected to the American Law Institute and received numerous awards for her work. She was named “the Commission’s most important voice on Internet privacy and data security issues,” a Top Data Privacy Influencer in 2020, and winner of the International Association of Privacy Professionals Privacy Leadership Award in 2014, among other honors.
In addition to her role at Microsoft, Brill is active in civil society, serving as a board member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals, a board member of the IAPP AI Governance Center Advisory Board, a board member of the Center for Democracy and Technology, and Governor for The Ditchley Foundation.
Brill graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University and New York University School of Law, where she had a Root-Tilden Scholarship for her commitment to public service.
Twitter: @JulieSBrill
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-brill/
Cian O’Brien
Data Protection Commissioner, Data Protection Commission – Ireland
Cian O’Brien
Data Protection Commissioner, Data Protection Commission – Ireland
Cian O'Brien was appointed Deputy Commissioner in May 2022, in a role that centres on all large-scale Data Protection Commission inquiries and investigations. Since joining the organisation in 2019, Cian’s roles in the DPC have included Legal Researcher and Senior Regulatory Lawyer. During this time, he was responsible for providing legal advice and assistance on large scale inquiries and investigations concerning both cross-border and domestic matters. Cian also acted as an advisor to the Inquiries Committee and oversaw and implemented the DPC’s process for confirming administrative fines in Court, as provided for in the Data Protection Act 2018. He graduated from University College Dublin and the Kings Inns Dublin. Cian was called to the Bar of Ireland in 2014. He practised law as a Barrister and tutored European Union law before joining the Data Protection Commission.
Sergey Lagodinsky
Member, European Parliament
Sergey Lagodinsky
Member, European Parliament
Sergey Lagodinsky, born in 1975 in Astrakhan, Russia, is a German Member of the European Parliament in the Greens/EFA Group. He is Vice-Chair of the Legal Affairs committee as well as Substitute Member of the Civil Liberties/Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs committees.
He is the shadow rapporteur for the Artificial Intelligence Act in the joint report of the IMCO and LIBE committee in the European Parliament. He previously negotiated a number of AI-related legislative initiatives, such as the Parliament’s report on recommendations on ethical use of AI, the Parliament’s opinion on the use of AI in culture and education as well as the Parliament’s opinion on improving the use of AI for European consumers. He also negotiates the reports contained in the legislative package “European Data Strategy”, including the Data Governance Act and the Data Act.
Karolina Mojzesowicz
Deputy Head of Data Protection Unit, DG Justice, European Commission
Karolina Mojzesowicz
Deputy Head of Data Protection Unit, DG Justice, European Commission
Karolina Mojzesowicz is the Deputy Head of Unit of the unit responsible for data protection at the European Commission (DG Justice and Consumers). She was one of the Commission's representatives in the interinstitutional negotiations with Parliament and Council on the General data Protection Regulation (GDPR). She is now responsible for its implementation in the EU. Mrs Mojzesowicz previously served as a member of the European Commission's Legal Service, focusing on EU Competition law and International Trade law. In that capacity, she represented the Commission in numerous cases before the European Courts and before the WTO panels and Appellate Body. Mrs Mojzesowicz studied law in Poland, the Netherlands and Germany where she obtained her PhD in 2001.
Charlotte Deane
EPSRC Executive Chair
Charlotte Deane
EPSRC Executive Chair
Professor Charlotte Deane MBE is Executive Chair at the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
She is Professor of Structural Bioinformatics in the Department of Statistics at the University of Oxford and co-director of the Systems Approaches to Biomedical Research Centre for Doctoral Training, which she founded in 2009.
From 2022 to 2023 she was Chief AI Officer at Exscientia, a biotech company with around 450 employees, where she led its computational scientific development.
She has held numerous senior roles at the University of Oxford, including Head of the Department of Statistics and Deputy Head of the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences division. She was the Deputy Executive Chair of EPSRC from 2019 to 2021.
She served on SAGE, the UK government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and acted as UK Research and Innovation’s COVID-19 Response Director. She was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 Birthday Honours for services to COVID-19 research.
At Oxford, she leads the Oxford Protein Informatics Group. The group works on diverse problems across immunoinformatics, protein structure and small molecule drug discovery. They use statistics, artificial intelligence (AI) and computation to generate biological and medical insight.
Her work focuses on the development of novel algorithms, tools and databases that are openly available to the community. These tools are widely used web resources and are also part of several pharmaceutical drug discovery pipelines.
She is on several advisory boards and has consulted extensively with industry. She has set up a consulting arm within her own research group as a way of promoting industrial interaction and the use of the group’s software tools.
Andreas Hartl
Head of Artificial Intelligence, Data Economy, Blockchain; Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action
Andreas Hartl
Head of Artificial Intelligence, Data Economy, Blockchain; Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action
Andreas Hartl is Head of Division VIA 3 (Data Regulation and Data Economy) in the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). His division is responsible for the EU's Data Governance Act, the Open Data and Public Sector Information Directive and the Free flow on non-personal data Regulation. Jointly with the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transportation it is also in the lead for the EU Data Act.
Andreas studied law at Marburg University and took the second state exam in 2004. From 2004 until 2011 he entered employment at the Federal Network Agency, most recently involved in frequency regulation. He joined the BMWK in 2012 as Deputy Head of the division responsible for general issues of telecommunication, competitive and regulatory issues of digitization. In August 2017, he was appointed Head of Division “Artificial Intelligence, Data Economy, Blockchain”. His division was in charge inter alia for the EU AI Act, Data Governance Act and Data Act as well as the Open Data and Public Sector Information Directive, including the national implementation, and the Free flow on non-personal data Regulation. From May through December 2022 he served as Chair of the OECD Working Party Artificial Intelligence Governance (OECD WP AIGO). From October 2022 through May 2024 he was assigned as Head of Division “Telecommunications, Media Industry, Postal Services”.
Filomena Chirico
Head of Unit - Digital Markets - DG Connect, European Commission
Filomena Chirico
Head of Unit - Digital Markets - DG Connect, European Commission
Filomena Chirico leads the Unit in charge of the implementation of the Digital Markets Act in European Commission’s DG Connect Platforms Directorate. She took over this role after the successful adoption of the new EU digital regulations, the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act, for which she was responsible as advisor in the Cabinet of European Commissioner for Internal Market and Digital Thierry Breton. Previously she was case handler in the European Commission’s DG competition and advisor to Commission’s VP Jyrki Katainen for research and defence policy.
Before joining the Commission, she conducted academic work. Her main focus was on regulation and competition in the telecoms and digital sectors, including Internet governance and network neutrality, as well as on the economics of contract law. After her PhD in Institutional Economics from La Sapienza University, she held the position of assistant professor at Tilburg University and member of the Tilburg Law and Economics Center (TILEC). She holds a Master’s Degree in law from Luiss University, a Master's in Law and Economics from the universities of Rotterdam, Hamburg and Berkeley.
Besides her position in the European Commission, she is currently also visiting professor at the College of Europe in Bruges, teaching the seminar Digital regulation for the single market.
Cecilia Alvarez Rigaudias
Director of Privacy Policy Engagement, EMEA at Meta
Cecilia Alvarez Rigaudias
Director of Privacy Policy Engagement, EMEA at Meta
Cecilia Aalvarez Rigaudias is the EMEA Privacy Policy Director at Facebook since March 2019. From 2015 to 2019, she served as European Privacy Officer Lead of Pzifer, Vice-Chair of the EFPIA Data Protection Group and Chairwoman of IPPC-Europe. For an interim period, she was also the Legal Lead of the Spanish Pfizer subsidiaries. She formerly worked 18 years in a reputed Spanish law firm, leading the data protection, IT and ecommerce areas of practice as well as the LATAM Data Protection Working Group.
Cecilia was the Chairwoman of APEP (Spanish Privacy Professional Association) until June and is currently in charge of its international affairs. She is also the Spanish member of CEDPO (Confederation of European Data Protection Organisations) and member of the Leadership Council of The Sedona Conference (W-6).
She is a member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation in the section of the Law on Technologies of the Information and the Knowledge as well as Arbitrator of the European Association of Arbitration (ITC Section).
She formed part of the Volunteer Group of Privacy Experts of the OECD (Working Party on information Security and Privacy; WPISP) in charge of the 2013 review of the OECD guidelines governing the protection of privacy and transborder data flows of personal data. She formerly participated in the Group of Experts selected by the Spanish DPA to prepare the Madrid Resolution on International Privacy Standards in 2009.
Cecilia has written numerous publications on data protection and regularly lectures on data protection, IT and ecommerce at different Masters Programs and seminars.
Emmanuelle Assouan
General Directorate of Financial Stability and Operations, Banque de France
Emmanuelle Assouan
General Directorate of Financial Stability and Operations, Banque de France
Emmanuelle Assouan has been the Director General for Financial Stability and Operations – Banque de France – since January 2023. She also chairs the Banque de France Climate Change Centre.
She was previously delegated Director General in charge of Financial Stability within the Banque de France and the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution. Her areas of responsibility also covered activities related to prudential regulation of credit institutions and insurers.
Prior to financial stability, she held several positions in relation to payments and market infrastructures, but also management of foreign exchange reserves of Banque de France and implementation of monetary policy.
Emmanuelle Assouan joined the Banque de France in 1997. She is a graduate from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris.
Magali Durieux
Head of Digital Transformation, Belgian Competition Authority
Magali Durieux
Head of Digital Transformation, Belgian Competition Authority
Today: Head of Digital Transformation ( Belgian Competition Authority )
- Strategic project Coordinator (FPS Economy )
- HR & ICT Change Manager ( National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance)
- Program & ICT Account Manager ( Chancellerie du Premier Ministre )
- ICT Manager (Federal Agency for Medicines products)
- E-HR Manager (FPS Public Health)
- HR recruitment (SELOR, Unique Interim)
Today : ChairWoman (CEO) Felink
Study :
Kuldar Aas
Data Governance Programme Lead, Government CIO Office, Ministry of Justice of Estonia
Kuldar Aas
Data Governance Programme Lead, Government CIO Office, Ministry of Justice of Estonia
As the Data Governance Programme Lead, Kuldar is responsible for public sector data availability and reusability. Key topics within the Data Governance Programme include the development of a national data quality framework, the establishment of data description and publication practices, development of national data portals and secure data processing environments, the implementation of the once-only principle and the availability of good quality data for data economy and AI needs. While managing the overall programme, Kuldar is also actively providing consulting to individual sectorial data-related projects.
Kuldar is actively promoting communication and knowledge sharing among data professionals by managing the Estonian government CDO network, organising lectures and events on data governance and reuse, and being a founding member of the national Data Wisdom Network which brings together experts from both the public and private sector.
Prior to joining the Government CIO Office in February 2022, Kuldar was active in the field of digital preservation, where he set up and served for ten years as the technical coordinator for the eArchiving Building Block, an EU-wide initiative which aimed to provide interoperability for long-term reuse of data.
Yordanka Ivanova
AI Policy Development and Coordination Unit, DG CNECT, European Commission
Yordanka Ivanova
AI Policy Development and Coordination Unit, DG CNECT, European Commission
Yordanka Ivanova is a Legal and Policy Officer in the European Commission (DG CNECT, A2) in the unit responsible for Artificial Intelligence Police Development and Coordination. She is a member of the legal team who has drafted the Commission proposal for a Regulation on AI and has followed the negotiations with the European Parliament and the Council. Ms Ivanova also follows relevant international work on AI, in particular in the context of Council of Europe, UN and OECD.
Outside the Commission, Ms Ivanova has experience as a researcher and attorney-at-law, advising companies on EU regulations, including in the area of data protection, consumer protection, digital services, financial services, cybersecurity and copyright.
Priscilla Koo Wilkens
Senior Economist, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bank for International Settlements
Priscilla Koo Wilkens
Senior Economist, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bank for International Settlements
Priscilla Koo Wilkens is a Senior Economist in the Monetary and Economic Department’s Innovation and Digital Economy unit at the Bank for International Settlements. Prior to this, she served in various roles at the Central Bank of Brazil, including heading the Pix Management Division and co-leading the development of the Brazilian Credit Information System. Priscilla holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo and a master's degree in Public Administration with a concentration on Economics and Finance from Cornell University.
Anja Wyrobek
Legal Policy Advisor to MEP Birgit Sippel (LIBE Coordinator and former Vice-Chair of the AIDA Committee), European Parliament
Anja Wyrobek
Legal Policy Advisor to MEP Birgit Sippel (LIBE Coordinator and former Vice-Chair of the AIDA Committee), European Parliament
Anja Wyrobek is a legal professional respected for her extensive expertise in the intersection of law, policymaking, and emerging technologies within the domains of artificial intelligence, digitalisation and data protection. Currently based in the European Parliament, Anja Wyrobek aids her MEP who notably served as the former Vice-Chair of the Artificial Intelligence Committee in shaping legislation focusing on promoting digital rights and regulating AI for a successful digital transition
Dr Laura Caroli
Senior Policy Advisor, European Parliament
Dr Laura Caroli
Senior Policy Advisor, European Parliament
Laura Caroli is a Senior Policy Advisor at the European Parliament where she has worked since 2014 for MEP Brando Benifei (S&D), on whose behalf she has led negotiations on the AI Act at technical level. Experienced in Internal Market, AI, digital affairs as well as foreign affairs, defence and human rights. She previously worked at the Italian Parliament and the Italian think tank “Italianieuropei” in Rome. She holds a PhD in Geopolitics from the University of Trieste.
Stephen Gilbert
Professor of Medical Device Regulatory Science, Dresden University of Technology
Stephen Gilbert
Professor of Medical Device Regulatory Science, Dresden University of Technology
Stephen Gilbert is Professor of Medical Device Regulatory Science at the Else Kröner Fresenius Center for Digital Health, Technische Universität Dresden where he teaches and conducts research on regulatory science with a team of colleagues. He worked in senior MedTech and Digital Heath roles in industry for 5 years, before returning to academia in 2022.
His research goal are to advance the regulatory science of software as a medical device and AI-enabled medical devices. Innovative digital approaches to healthcare must be accompanied by innovative approaches in regulation to ensure speed to market, to maximum access of patients to life saving treatments whilst ensuring safety on market. My main research interests are in: (i) data sharing and the European Health Data Space; (ii) approaches to market approval of adaptive AI enabled medical devices; (iii) drug<->digital/AI-enabled medical device product realisation; (iv) digital/virtual twins: as an organising concept of the future of healthcare
Waldemar Gonçalves Ortunho Júnior
Chief Executive, National Data Protection Authority, Brazil
Waldemar Gonçalves Ortunho Júnior
Chief Executive, National Data Protection Authority, Brazil
Waldemar Gonçalves Ortunho Junior is an electronic engineer, graduated from Instituto Militar de Engenharia, IME. He has a postgraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Brasília, UnB.
In the academic and educational field, he represented Brazil as an advisor/instructor at the Escuela Politécnica del Ejército (ESPE) from 1996 to 1998. In addition, he was a professor for more than 20 years at several higher education institutions in the Federal District, such as IESB, Catholic University of Brasília, Faculdades Michelângelo, UniCEUB, ICESP and Faculdade Alvorada.
From 1973 to 2003, as a Brazilian Army officer, he held various operational and administrative positions in the Ministry of Defense: engineer in Army Telecommunications Directorate, head of Telecommunications Center and head of Telematics Section of the Army Command.
In 2004, he was a Grants Evaluation General Coordinator for Broadcasting Service at Ministry of Communications. He was also part of the Digital TV Management Group, responsible for choosing the Brazilian Digital Television System.
From December 2010 to January 2013, he was a Coordinator of “Brigada Braço Forte” project at Instituto Cesar.
During the major national events, 2013 Confederations Cup and 2014 World Cup, he was a Telecommunications Coordinator for FIFA Local Committee.
He was a Systems Engineering Advisor at the Ingepro consortium, a supporter of the SISFRON project, from February 2014 to August 2015.
In his last role prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer of ANPD, he was the President of Telecomunicações Brasileiras S.A. – Telebras, from January 2019 to November 2020.
Ulrich Ahle
CEO, Gaia-X
Ulrich Ahle
CEO, Gaia-X
Ulrich is a reputed executive in the IT sector, formerly Vice President and leader of the
Manufacturing and Industrie 4.0 System Integration business at Atos in Germany. He is also
founder and member of the Board of the International Data Spaces Association in Germany
and served 16 years in the Board of the prostep IVIP organization until April 2018.
After an apprenticeship as toolmaker at Hella KG, he studied Mechanical Engineering at the
University of Paderborn. In his career, Ahle held several positions as development engineer,
Director of PLM services, sales director and Vice President. He has been part of Nixdorf
Computer AG, Siemens and Atos. From January 2017 until the end of 2023 Ulrich Ahle was
Chief Executive Officer of the FIWARE Foundation headquartered in Berlin, Germany.
Starting from November 2023 Ulrich became CEO of the Gaia-X Association headquartered
in Brussels, Belgium.
Giorgio Metta
Scientific Director, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT)
Giorgio Metta
Scientific Director, Italian Institute of Technology (IIT)
Giorgio Metta is the Scientific Director of the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT). He holds an MSc with honors (1994) and a PhD (2000) in electrical engineering from the University of Genoa. From 2001 to 2002, he was a postdoctoral associate at the AI-Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He worked at the University of Genoa and was Professor of Cognitive Robotics at the University of Plymouth (UK) from 2012 to 2019. From 2020 to 2021 he was Visiting Professor at the University of Manchester, UK. Giorgio Metta served as deputy scientific director of IIT from 2016 to 2019. He serves in the Board of Directors of Gefran S.p.A. and Industrie De Nora S.p.A., two listed Italian companies. Giorgio Metta’s research activities are in the field of bioinspired systems and humanoid robotics, with a focus on the design of machines that can learn from experience; he has authored or co-authored more than 300 scientific publications and worked as PI on about a dozen international and industrial research projects. He has coordinated the development of the iCub robot for more than a decade, making it the de facto platform of choice for research in AI; there are currently more than 50 robots in the world, in research labs as far as Japan, China, Singapore, Germany, Spain, the UK and the US
Jess Merryfield
Head of Policy and Campaigns, CTSI
Jess Merryfield
Head of Policy and Campaigns, CTSI
Jessica is a Chartered Trading Standards Practitioner, with a strong sense of fairness and social justice. Jessica was appointed Head of Policy and Campaigns at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute in April 2024, bringing two decades’ experience in a variety of Trading Standards, Environmental Heath and regulatory-based roles across the public and private sector.
At CTSI, Jessica is leading on CTSI’s Policy work, including helping CTSI to drive change and build influence externally, championing the work of the Trading Standards profession and workforce. She is heavily involved in horizon scanning for new and emerging trends which will impact businesses, consumers and Trading Standards professionals working in all sectors. Jessica and her team use this information to create evidence and risk-based policies and campaigns from which CTSI can raise awareness and push for change.
Jessica is a Christian and her faith has been instrumental in guiding her to the career she has enjoyed to date, using her knowledge and skills to bring the biggest benefit to as many as possible. Jessica graduated with a degree in Environmental Health, before making the switch to Trading Standards, working her way through the qualification process until she was awarded the Diploma in Consumer Affairs and Trading Standards (DCATS) by CTSI. It is believed that Jessica is the first person in the history of both the UK Environmental Health and Trading Standards professions to hold both qualifications.
Noémi Bontridder
Member of the Information Ethics Working Group, UNESCO
Noémi Bontridder
Member of the Information Ethics Working Group, UNESCO
Noémi Bontridder is a researcher at the Research centre information, law and society, Namur Digital Institute, University of Namur, Belgium and a member of the Information Ethics Working Group, Information for all programme, UNESCO. Her research focuses on the European regulation of artificial intelligence. She is also guest lecturer at ISEN Lille – Junia and in the DU AI Ethics Officer at University of Artois.
Andy Phippen
Professor of Online Harms, University of Bournemouth
Andy Phippen
Professor of Online Harms, University of Bournemouth
Andy Phippen is a Professor of Digital Rights at the Bournemouth University and is a Visiting Professor at the University of Suffolk in the UK. He has specialised in the use of ICTs in social contexts and the intersection with legislation for almost 20 years, carrying out a large amount of grass roots research on issues such as attitudes toward privacy and data protection, internet safety and contemporary issues such as sexting, peer abuse and the impact of digital technology on wellbeing. He has presented written and oral evidence to parliamentary inquiries related to the use of ICTs in society, is widely published in the area and is a frequent media commentator on these issues.
Nell Thornton
Improvement Fellow, The Health Foundation
Nell Thornton
Improvement Fellow, The Health Foundation
Nell is an Improvement Fellow at the Health Foundation where she leads major research projects on the use of new technologies and data analytics to improve healthcare, specialising in artificial intelligence.
Nell has worked in health care for over a decade. She was previously the Senior Delivery and Business Manager for the Leeds Academic Health Partnership where she managed programmes across tech innovation and health data in collaboration with NHS providers and commissioners, universities, the local authority, and health innovation network.
Nell received a distinction in her MA Social Research from the University of Leeds where she focussed on the construction of policy narratives regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the health service.
Dr. Wassim Jouini
CTO and Head of AI, LegalPlace
Dr. Wassim Jouini
CTO and Head of AI, LegalPlace
Wassim Jouini earned his Ph.D. in AI in 2012 and has been active in the field since then. After a few years at Microsoft and later at Criteo, he currently serves as the CTO and Head of AI at LegalPlace, a dynamic scaleup in France. Alongside his responsibilities at LegalPlace, he is a dedicated Business Angel, offering support to early-stage startups in Tunisia and France
Isabel Simpson
Partner, Solicitor, KPMG
Isabel Simpson
Partner, Solicitor, KPMG
Isabel is the Head of KPMG Law’s EMA Data, Digital and Technology practice group. Isabel specialises in interpretation and application of regulation in the digital space with a focus on data protection, AI, online safety and data ethics. Isabel is the Vice Chair of the International Regulatory Strategy Group and sits on a number of industry data protection committees and working groups where she inputs on market level collaboration to inform compliance and the safe use of data, finding solutions to new legal and ethical risks
Bojana Bellamy
President, Centre for Information Policy Leadership (CIPL)
Bojana Bellamy
President, Centre for Information Policy Leadership (CIPL)
Bojana is the President of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP’s Centre for Information Policy Leadership (CIPL), a preeminent global privacy and data policy think tank located in Washington, DC, London and Brussels. At CIPL, Bojana works with global business and technology leaders, regulators, policy and lawmakers to shape global data policy and practice, and develop thought leadership and best practices for responsible and trusted use of data in the 4th Industrial Revolution. With more than 25 years of experience and deep knowledge of global data privacy and cybersecurity law, compliance and policy, Bojana has a proven industry record in designing strategy, and building and managing data privacy compliance programs. Bojana was the recipient of the 2019 International Association of Privacy Professionals’ (IAPP) Vanguard Award, which recognizes privacy professionals for outstanding leadership, knowledge and creativity in the field of privacy and data protection. In 2021 Politico recognized Bojana in its inaugural list of top Tech28 people shaping digital policy and technology in Europe and beyond. She was also one of 20 privacy experts to participate in the transatlantic “Privacy Bridge Project” from 2014-2015 that sought to develop practical solutions to bridge the gap between European and US privacy regimes.
Currently, Bojana sits on a number of advisory and industry boards, including the Mercedes-Benz Advisory Board for Integrity and Sustainability, the Internet Commission Advisory Board, the OECD’s Privacy Guidelines Expert Group and the Thomson Reuters’ Practical Law Data Protection Consultation Board, as well as the Advisory Board of the Tech, Law and Security Program (TLS) at the American University Washington College of Law. She also was selected as a member of the Global Privacy Assembly Reference Panel. Bojana participates in many industry groups and is a regular speaker at corporate and governmental events and conferences.
Prior to joining CIPL, Bojana served for 12 years as the Global Director of Data Privacy at Accenture, and worked for eight years as Principal Consultant with Privacy Laws & Business consulting and auditing projects for private and public sector clients in the UK and abroad.
Relevant Experience Prior to Joining CIPL:
- Hands-on-business experience addressing issues on big data and analytics, cybersecurity, implementing accountability and compliance programs, cross-border data transfers, interoperability of conflicting national legal requirements, changing role of corporate data privacy officers and government use of private-sector data.
- Working with corporate leaders on developing effective accountability-based governance programs and addressing other information policy challenges for organizations in managing and protecting personal data in today’s information age.
- Designed and implemented a comprehensive and effective global data privacy corporate compliance program across expanding business and over 50 geographies.
- Developed strategies for cross-border data transfer mechanisms, including developing and obtaining the regulatory approvals for Binding Corporate Rules for data privacy from European data privacy regulators.
- Advised on effective data privacy governance issues, including providing guidance on compliance, risk and information security functions.
- Performed privacy impact assessments and gap analyses against legislative requirements and industry best practices to ensure programs and strategies remain current to the changing legal landscape.
- Designed and delivered sustainable, innovative and engaging training and awareness campaigns, collaborating and leveraging other compliance, risk and information security functions.
- Managed formal and informal interactions with data privacy commissioners and regulators.
Karine Caunes
CAIDP Global Program Director (Paris), Center for AI and Digital Policy
Karine Caunes
CAIDP Global Program Director (Paris), Center for AI and Digital Policy
Karine Caunes is Global Program Director of the Center for AI and Digital Policy (caidp.org) which aims to promote a better society, more fair, more just — a world where technology promotes broad social inclusion based on fundamental rights, democratic institutions, and the rule of law.
She is the head of CAIDP Global Academic Network whose main goals are to promote well-informed AI policy and cutting-edge research; provide high-quality resources and enable networking opportunities for those working in the field of AI policy; identify emerging AI policy issues and establish ethical standards in the field.
She co-authored, together with Marc Rotenberg and Merve Hickok, the CAIDP AI and Democratic Values Index (2022), the first and only global index assessing the AI policies of 50 countries worldwide, and teaches with them an AI Policy Clinic and Advanced AI Policy Clinic in the framework of CAIDP comprehensive certification program for AI Policy
She is the Editor-in-Chief of the European Law Journal (ELJ). She holds a PhD in law from the European University Institute, was Jean Monnet Research Fellow within the Center for International and Regional Economic Law & Justice at NYU and visiting Scholar at Columbia Law School. She has taught at Sciences Po Paris, Université Paris X, Université Lyon III, France; European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation, Venice, Italy; Central European University, Budapest, Hungary; Ljubljana University, Slovenia; IE Law School, Madrid, Spain; Catolica Global School of Law, Lisbon, Portugal. She has participated in EU and nationally-funded research projects and has been a consultant for European and national institutions
Peter Craddock
Partner, Keller and Heckman
Peter Craddock
Partner, Keller and Heckman
Peter Craddock is a lawyer with a software development background, offering a unique blend of legal and technical knowledge. He is sought after by a diverse clientele, ranging from start-ups to established multinational corporations, for guidance on global data strategies and EU data litigation, including appearances before the EU Court of Justice. Based in Brussels, he helps international companies find legal solutions to technical problems and technical solutions to legal problems. Peter is a prominent voice, notably in the adtech and digital advertising space and on ePrivacy evolutions.
Peter helps drive innovation and optimise data utilisation across the EU and beyond. His strategic counsel and legal support span the critical domains of privacy and data protection, data governance, AI governance, cybersecurity, e-commerce, digital transformation, and software contracting. His dual background as a lawyer and software developer uniquely equips him with the ability to analyse the possibilities offered by data protection laws and emerging technologies through a multifaceted lens.
Peter’s commitment to client success is evident in his hands-on approach to developing compliant initiatives and smart compliance tools. Notably, Peter’s data breach risk assessment tool received a “Highly Commended” accolade at the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards 2019, and his GDPR fine calculation tool, DeFine, serves to clarify data protection financial risks for organisations worldwide.