Championing Equality in AI

Championing Equality in AI brings together policymakers, industry leaders, technologists, academics and legal experts from across Europe for a focused discussion on how AI is shaping equality, accountability and opportunity in practice. Across three high level panels, we will highlight the progress being made, persisting regulatory and representation gaps, and scope for international collaboration in ensuring AI systems are fair, inclusive and transparent throughout their lifecycle.

Welcome

Opening remarks: Cecilia Jastrzembska, organiser, UKAI Women In AI

Keynote: Mary Kemp, Award Winning Speaker and Founder, AI Potential

Fireside Chat: Aaron Kalvani, Independent Strategist and Advisor to the UN on AI, UK Ambassador, Global Council on Responsible AI with Cecilia Jastrzembska

Panel 1: From Breakthroughs to Backfires: The Real-World Impacts of AI. The Good, The Bad, and the Necessary

Chair: Ivana Bartoletti – VP, Global Data Privacy Officer, Wipro; Visiting Policy Fellow, University of Oxford, Co-Founder, Women Leading AI

AI now influences decisions that determine access to jobs, healthcare and finance. This session explores where AI is delivering genuine social benefit, where it risks entrenching bias, and how responsible design can deliver systems that work for everyone.

Speakers:

Katy Cherry, CEO HTL, UN Women UK
Cherilyn Mawby, Strategy Consultant, PWC, UN Women UK
Maninder Paul, Women Defining AI

Panel 2: The Role of AI and Gender-Based Violence: Equality, Consequences and Accountability

Chair: Claire Roberts – AI and Ethics Consultant, Full Fathom Five

From content moderation to predictive policing, AI already mediates safety and risk in the digital world. This discussion examines how AI intersects with gender-based violence, the safeguards required, and the shared responsibility of those building and deploying these tools.

Speakers:

Dr Sarah Wyer, Researcher on Bias in AI Data, Durham University
Clara Hawking, Head of Artificial Intelligence, Globeducate
Cecilia Jastrzembska, Senior Policy Advisor

Panel 3: Allyship in AI: Leading Systems that Work for All

Chair: Tim Flagg, CEO, UKAI

True equality in AI requires leadership that bridges technical innovation and cultural change. This closing discussion explores how leaders and allies can actively embed equality into design, procurement and to build AI systems which act as social equalisers rather than amplifying pre existing biases.

Speakers:

Lee Chambers, Founder, Male Allies UK; UN Changemaker of the Year 2023
Panny Antoniou, Executive Director, Centre for International Security and Defence Studies
Lea Rattei, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant

Closing Remarks: Zahra Shah