Professor Dame Wendy Hall, DBE, FRS, FREng, a leading authority in artificial intelligence (AI) and computer science will deliver Swansea University’s annual Zienkiewicz Lecture.
The lecture will take place on at 4pm on Wednesday, 20 November at the Great Hall at Swansea University’s Bay Campus. Following the lecture, there will be a Q&A session, as well as an informal reception.
Titled The Geopolitics of the Internet and Its Implications for the Governance of AI, Dame Wendy’s lecture will explore the future of the internet through the perspective of geopolitics and data governance. She will argue that through this lens we see at least four internets, maybe more, rather than just one interconnected ecosystem. Dame Wendy will also explore what aspects of the governance of cyberspace must be protected the most for us to continue to use the technical infrastructure of the internet that we all rely on to support cloud and data services, and how this is all playing out in the age of AI.
The Zienkiewicz Lecture, named in honour of Swansea University's computational engineering pioneer Professor Olgierd Zienkiewicz, invites leading figures in science and engineering to present their work on contemporary issues. Now in its eighth year, the series remains a platform for cutting-edge research and its impact on society.
A pioneer in web science, Dame Wendy co-chaired the UK government's AI Review and was appointed to the United Nations' AI advisory body in 2023. She is currently the Regius Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southampton and Director of the Web Science Institute. Her research has significantly contributed to multimedia, hypermedia, and AI governance.
Dame Wendy’s extensive recognition includes her appointment as Dame Commander of the British Empire in 2009 and her election as a Fellow of the Royal Society the same year. She has held prominent roles such as President of the Association for Computing Machinery and Senior Vice President of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Her leadership extends to various national and international bodies, and she serves as Editor-in-Chief of Royal Society Open Science.
A champion for women in science, engineering, and technology, Dame Wendy has inspired the next generation of women in STEM fields through her advocacy and leadership.
The Zienkiewicz lecture is free and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to register via Eventbrite in advance.
The lecture will also be livestreamed on YouTube.