Bethan is the Innovation Policy Lead at the Government Digital Service (GDS). Here Bethan led the Artificial Intelligence for Government Review which identified the top opportunities for investment in AI in the public sector and created the first piece of consolidated government guidance on using artificial intelligence in the public sector. She also oversaw the development of the Government Technology Innovation Strategy which set out the foundations needed for government to innovation through emerging technologies.
Prior to joining GDS she spent a number of years working for boutique consultancy, Elixirr, where she played a leading role in building innovation capability, both internally and for clients, across the UK, USA and South Africa. During her time at Elixirr Bethan seconded to San Francisco to grow Elixirr’s Silicon Valley based ‘innovation network’. While in San Francisco Bethan hosted a number of corporate executive teams to help them to better understand the impact of emerging technologies on their businesses and to explore the creation of new business models as a response to the threat of disruption.
Bethan has first class degrees from the University of Oxford (MSc, Social Science of the Internet) and the University of Cambridge (BA, History).