A Moral Reimagination of Big Tech and AI

With Joanna Kavenna (author of ZED and SEVEN) and Oxford academics and alumni, including:

• Carissa Véliz (of Privacy is Power, and Prophecy)
• Grace Sai (CEO and Co-Founder of Unravel Carbon and Skoll Scholar Alum)
• Nick Andreou (Head of AI at Better Society Capital)
• Michael Woolridge (of The Road to Conscious Machines, and Royal Institute Christmas Lectures, 2023)
• Vladislav Vyazovskiy (of Could Humans Hibernate?, and What Sleep Is)

Facilitators:

• Anette Mikes (Convenor of Oxford Ministry for the Future; Associate Professor, Saïd Business School)
• Mary Johnstone-Louis (Senior Fellow in Management Practice, Saïd Business School)

Venue: Nelson Mandela Lecture Theatre, Saïd Business School

Time: 10 March 17:00-19:00

(Doors Open at 16:00 for refreshments and mingle hosted by the Skoll Centre in The Nest)

Joanna Kavenna is the author of several critically acclaimed works of fiction and nonfiction. Her novel Inglorious won the Orange Award for New Writing. In ZED -- a darkly comic takedown of tech-utopias offered by Big Tech, A.I. and predictive algorithms – Joanna asks profound questions about who we are, what we owe to one another, and what makes us human. Joanna’s writing has appeared in publications such as The New Yorker and The New York Times.

Carissa Véliz is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Institute for Ethics in AI, and Tutorial Fellow at Hertford College. She is the author of Privacy Is Power (an Economist Book of the Year, 2020) and the editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Digital Ethics. Véliz received the 2021 Herbert A. Simon Award for Outstanding Research in Computing and Philosophy from the International Association of Computing and Philosophy. She has advised the UK and Spanish governments on issues related to digital technologies, among other public and private institutions.

Grace Sai is Co-Founder and CEO of Unravel Carbon, a climate-tech startup helping enterprises decarbonise their operations and value chains through data science, consumer-grade products, and deep climate expertise. She is a serial entrepreneur, having previously founded and led two venture-backed companies, both of which were acquired. Grace has also served as Managing Partner of Found Ventures, an early-stage fund investing in technology startups across Southeast Asia. A pioneer in Asia’s startup ecosystem, Grace is a Kauffman Fellow and has been recognised as a Gen.T Leader by Singapore Tatler (2018), one of Women’s Weekly’s Great Women of Our Time (2017), and a UN Women Entrepreneurship Day Ambassador. She holds an MBA with Distinction from the University of Oxford, where she was a Skoll Scholar, and a Master’s with Distinction in Organisational Psychodynamics from INSEAD. She currently serves on the advisory board of the Skoll Centre.

Nick Andreou is Head of AI at Better Society Capital, where he works at the intersection of technology, impact investing, and impact measurement to help grow the social investment market. He previously worked at the organisation from 2021–2023, and rejoined in 2025 as an Impact Manager before moving into his current role. Nick is also the founder of Impact Edge Consulting, advising early-stage investors and mission-driven startups on using impact as a source of competitive advantage. Earlier in his career, he was Head of Insight and Impact at Balloon Ventures and a researcher at the University of Nottingham. He holds a PhD from the University of Nottingham and an MBA from Oxford Saïd Business School, and is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Oxford’s Skoll Centre.

Michael Wooldridge is Ashall Professor of Foundations of Artificial Intelligence, and Senior Research Fellow, Hertford College.

Vladislav Vyazovskiy is Professor of Sleep Physiology, and Tutorial Fellow in Medicine, Hertford College.

Anette Mikes is Associate Professor of Accounting, and Tutorial Fellow of Management at Hertford College, and co-founder and convenor of the Oxford Ministry for the Future.

Mary Johnston-Louis is Senior Fellow in Management Practice, Saïd Business School, a regular contributor of Forbes.com, and Board Chair, B Lab UK.

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