Steph Wright, Head of Scottish AI Alliance and Co-Founder of Diverse AI, was noted by the judges as being someone that clearly lives and breathes championing data and AI for good. As Head of the Scottish AI Alliance, Steph was instrumental in identifying the three pillars of the Scottish AI strategy: ethical, trustworthy, and inclusive.
The commitment by Steph to these tenets was evidenced in the 2024 Scottish AI Summit. Provocations such as “who should regulate AI” and “when will we trust AI” steered the content for the star-studded line-up. Steph Co-Founded Diverse AI, a membership organisation working to support and grow diversity in the field of AI by supporting, championing, and building diverse communities through collaborations, education, and research.
Promoting diversity and excellence
Steph has a diverse background ranging from astrophysics to genomics in academia and film and TV to dance in the arts and the third sector. A project and programme management professional, she loves to develop and build collaborations across organisations to help people with their data and AI journey.
Steph led on The Data Lab’s efforts in support of the Scottish Government in developing Scotland’s AI Strategy and she is now leading on the delivery of the strategy’s vision for Scotland to be a leader in the development and use of trustworthy, ethical, and inclusive AI. She has been recognised as one of the 100 Brilliant Women in AI Ethics in 2023 and one of the Top 10 Women in Tech in Scotland in 2023.
To build the programme for the 2024 Scottish AI Summit, Steph’s team asked serious questions about AI regulation, discrimination, diversity, and trust. This resulted in fascinating panels such as Facebook Knew I was Gay Before I Did and Reframing the narrative on the human.
In Steph’s own words: “That is one of our aims at the Scottish AI Alliance – how can we bring the people of Scotland with us on a positive AI future, and ensure that everyone is involved in the conversation? AI is a technology that will impact everybody and disproportionately negatively impact those already marginalised as well as those already negatively impacted by other forms of digitisation. How do we make sure that we don’t leave people behind because they happen to be born in a different country, are of a different gender, or come from a different background?”
Steph wants to ensure a more equitable AI future for all. She is an advocate for making sure that there are more diverse voices in the room and around the table.
When asked in a recent interview: Where do you see yourself in the next five-to-ten years? Steph responded, “I hope that in five to ten years I have made further contributions to ensuring that AI benefits all and has more diverse people working on it. I also hope I will be able to continue to be in a position that allows me to make a difference around that. I know it sounds cheesy, but I really would like to make a difference, and use whatever position I have, whatever leverage I have, to make that difference.”
