Gaia Marcus

Director of the Ada Lovelace Institute since June 2024, following an open recruitment process run by the Nuffield Foundation and the interim directorship of Francine Bennett. Came to the role from senior UK civil-service positions on data and AI policy: most recently Deputy Director (Advanced Analytics and Local Capabilities) in the Spatial Data Unit at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and earlier Deputy Director (Strategy for the Integrated Data Service) at the Office for National Statistics, Head of Engagement for Civil Service Reform at the Cabinet Office, and Head of National Data Strategy at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport — where she led the government's overall strategy for delivering the societal and economic benefits of data and data-driven technologies while ensuring public trust in their use. Before government she held data-strategy and participatory-research roles at Parkinson's UK, Centrepoint — where she delivered the UK's first open data source and national helpline for youth homelessness — and the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, and serves on the Samaritans' Board of Trustees. Holds an MA in Understanding and Securing Human Rights from the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London, and a BA in History from University College London.