Charlie has worked with startups, governments, charities, universities and multinational corporations as a data scientist, technical consultant and researcher. He has a PhD in bioinformatics, where he examined the role of rare codons in protein folding. He completed a post doc at the University of Bristol on whole-cell models of Escherichia coli. He was previously the Technical Lead on the GSMA’s AI for Impact project, looking at the application of mobile network data for international and humanitarian development, where he worked on standards for sharing mobile location data anonymously, scoped and led implementations using mobile data for transport planning, and contributed to industry-wide ethical guidelines for responsible AI. At AIBIO he is the resident research software engineer, based at Aberystwyth University. He chairs the AI-ready Bioscience Datasets (AIRBDS) working group and sits on the RRI and Ethics working group.

Conor Houghton is a computational cognitive scientist with a particular interest in linguistics, neurolinguistics and artificial intelligence. He is a member of the Intelligent Systems Laboratory in Bristol University. His research has varied from particle physics to experimental neuroscience, but he has recently become interested in simple agent models of language change. He is a member of the Ethics of Research Committees at Bristol University and the Alan Turing Institute and is a former Faculty Research Ethics Officer.

Iwona is a Senior Lecturer at the Engineering School in the College of Arts, Technology and Environment at the University of the West of England (UWE) in Bristol, UK. Holding a PhD in Environmental Engineering, most of her research is affiliated with the Bristol Robotics Laboratory (BRL) and focused on bioenergy and bioelectrochemistry. Iwona’s work includes resource recovery from waste streams and technology implementation in real-world environments. With a diverse background spanning biology, electrochemistry, and engineering, the primary focus of her work is on multidisciplinarity and innovation across the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) spectrum, from idea to implementation. Iwona was lead researcher in Urine-tricity Project, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which focused on off-grid, self-sustainable sanitation systems. Ranked among the 2% top-cited scientists in the world in the Stanford/Elsevier list in 2022-23, Iwona’s interests include innovation in converting waste into energy in real implementation environments, including environmental and sustainable robotics, as well as the recovery of water and nutrients from wastewater, electrosynthesis, and sensing. She is particularly interested in integrating multidisciplinarity and bioinspiration represented by Bioelectrochemical Systems to tackle today’s global challenges.

Maria (Mary) Temenou is the Network Manager for the AIBIO-UK project. She holds two Master’s degrees from the University of Nottingham and is certified in PRINCE2 Foundation and Practitioner project management. Her previous experience in organising large-scale events has equipped her with essential skills for effective network management. In her current role, Mary oversees project activities, collaborates with partners, manages funding calls, distributes awards, and engages with the public. She plays a pivotal role in supporting the management team to ensure the project’s success.

Patrick is a Professor in Synthetic Genomics at the University of Manchester and a world-leading expert in synthetic chromosomes, with a highly interdisciplinary research group. Patrick founded Edinburgh Genome Foundry and is the international coordinator for the (Sc2.0) Consortium. He regularly provides advice and consultancies to the Cabinet office, the Foreign Office and the Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technologies. He holds prestigious visiting professorships with MIT (US), MRC LMB at Cambridge (UK), Hong Kong University and Chinese Academy of Sciences (China) and his current funding includes EPSRC fellowship and ERC Consolidator Award.

Reyer is the Head of the Graduate School at the Aberystwyth University and has a chair in Computer Science. Reyer has 20+ years collaborative research experience with clinical/biology experts covering the development of machine learning and medical/biological image/data analysis techniques. More recently, he has also been working at the interface with digital repositories and represents Aberystwyth University at Supercomputing Wales. Current funding includes UKRI Centre for Doctoral Training in Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Advanced Computing (EP/S023992/1), Miscanthus AI- Plant Selection and Breeding for Net Zero (EP/Y005430/1).

Dr Yang Lu is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at Loughborough University, with expertise in artificial intelligence, privacy, and digital transformation for social good. Her academic journey began at the University of Melbourne, where her PhD research focused on AI-driven privacy mechanisms for health data exchange across hospital systems. Her research involves interdisciplinary collaborations funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), the UK Space Agency (UKSA), and the United Nations, advancing both scientific innovation and policy-relevant impact, and ensuring that digital technologies are inclusive, sustainable, and aligned with principles of ecological justice. In collaboration with the Alan Turing Institute, she has applied AI to analyse epilepsy patient records, uncovering socio-economic barriers to NHS access, work that deepened her commitment to equitable digital health. More broadly, she works across diverse domains including equitable energy consumption, sustainable food systems, space, and digital rights. Her overarching research interests encompass human-centred AI, trust and ethics in technology, and intelligent systems for behaviour change.