Speakers

Joanna is a technology industry veteran and the founder of the WeProtect Global Alliance. She served as the UK’s first Minister for Internet Safety & Security & UK Ambassador for Digital Industries, and Digital Economy Adviser to the Prime Minister. A life peer in the House of Lords, she champions policies that protect children online and advance ethical AI development. With over three decades of leadership experience in the tech industry, Shields built companies, products, and platforms that transformed markets and reshaped industries. She held senior executive roles at Facebook, Google, AOL, and RealNetworks. As a CEO, she led Bebo and Veon to successful acquisitions and transformed BenevolentAI into a leader in AI-driven drug discovery. Today, as the CEO of Precognition, she advises governments and companies on creating AI products and services that prioritise safety, human agency and empowerment. Shields serves on the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on AI and the Transatlantic Commission on Election Integrity and was twice elected Co-Chair of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence.