Speakers

Julia is Chief Scientific Adviser in the Department for Business Innovation, Science and Trade where she provides science and engineering advice and independent challenge to Ministers and senior policy officials, championing evidence-based decision-making and building internal capability. She works across government and with industry and academia to promote innovation and growth, showcasing UK strengths on an international stage. This builds on her international industrial career in the aerospace, defence, security sector, in which she held the position of Chief Technologist with BAE SYSTEMS. She has a background in leading transformative engineering and technology strategies, forging regional and international partnerships with innovators, businesses, academics, regulators and customers to transition disruptive technology into competitive products. Specific areas of focus have included AI and autonomous systems including drones, networked sensing and navigation, robotics and automation, advanced manufacturing, materials and quantum technologies, simulation and training, systems integration and safety. She has supported UK science and technology through a range of advisory roles with organisations including (past and present) NATO Science and Technology Board, bp, UK Atomic Energy Authority, Innovate UK, UKRI Science & Technology Facilities Council, National Quantum Computing Centre, National Physical Laboratory and the Royal Society. She is an advocate for STEM and for diversity and inclusion. She holds a PhD in Physics from Nottingham University, is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. She holds an Honorary Professorship at the University of Manchester and an honorary doctorate from Cranfield University.