MORE SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED EVERY WEEK
Esko Aho
Chairman of the Board and Former Prime Minister of Finland
Esko Aho
Chairman of the Board and Former Prime Minister of Finland
Mr. Esko Aho served as a Member of the Finnish Parliament from 1983 to 2003. He led the Centre Party from 1990 to 2002 and held the office of Prime Minister of Finland from 1991 to 1995.
Following his political career, Mr. Aho was President of the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra from 2004 to 2008. He then joined Nokia Corporation as Executive Vice President of Corporate Relations and Responsibility and served on the company's Executive Board until 2012.
From 2013 to 2019, Mr. Aho was Executive Chairman of the Board at the East Office of Finnish Industries. He also chaired the Board of Cini a Oy from 2017 to 2023. He was a member of JPMorgan's Advisory Council for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa from 2019 to 2024. Additionally, he was an elected member of the Executive Board of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) between 2013 and 2019, where he served for four years as Chair of the ICC Executive Board Policy and Commissions Committee.
Currently, Mr. Aho serves as Chairman of the Board at the China Office of Finnish Industries and acts as an advisor to a number of international and domestic companies and organizations. He is also an invited member of the Club de Madrid, an independent organization composed of former heads of state and government committed to promoting democracy worldwide.
Mr. Aho has also been active in academia. He was a Resident Fellow and later a Senior Fellow at Harvard University, and from 2015 to 2022, he served as Executive in Residence atAalto University. In 2017-2018, he was a Visiting Professor at Sciences Po in Paris. He holds honorary doctorates from the University ofVaasa and the University of Alberta.
In addition to his work in politics, business, and academia, Mr. Aho is also an author and publisher. He has published 15 books in different languages under the Verbatum label and is the author of eight books.
Wojciech Wiewiorowski
European Data Protection Supervisor
Wojciech Wiewiorowski
European Data Protection Supervisor
European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) since December 2019.
Adjunct professor in the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Gdańsk. He was among others adviser in the field of e-government and information society for the Minister of Interior and Administration, the Director of the Informatisation Department at the Ministry of Interior and Administration. He also represented Poland in committee on Interoperability Solutions for European Public Administrations (the ISA Committee) assisting the European Commission.
The Inspector General for the Protection of Personal Data (Polish Data Protection Commissioner) 2010-2014 and the Vice Chair of the Working Party Art. 29 in 2014. In December 2014, he was appointed Assistant European Data Protection Supervisor. After the death of the Supervisor - Giovanni Buttarelli in August 2019 - he replaced Mr. Buttarelli as acting EDPS.
His areas of scientific activity include first of all Polish and European IT law, processing and security of information, legal information retrieval systems, informatisation of public administration, and application of new IT tools (semantic web, legal ontologies, cloud, blockchain) in legal information processing.
John Edwards
UK Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner's Office
John Edwards
UK Information Commissioner, Information Commissioner's Office
Since January 2022, John Edwards has served as the sixth UK Information Commissioner. Before this, he served as New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner for eight years, building an international reputation in data protection and privacy, including chairing the now Global Privacy Assembly. He also worked in a range of roles including as a policy advisor to the NZ Government, a lawyer for over 20 years in the public and private sector, and even had a stint as a mountaineer.
John’s vision and mission is for the ICO to be a regulator that empowers people to share information for personal and public benefit, and for organisations to use information to invest and innovate in the digital economy safely.
As a whole economy regulator, John’s laser focussed on delivering better, quicker and impactful regulatory interventions in AI and biometrics, children’s privacy and AdTech and online tracking.
John’s motto: “We spend once at the centre prompting savings for thousands of businesses across the economy.”
Daniel Guarnera
Director, Bureau of Competition, Federal Trade Commission
Daniel Guarnera
Director, Bureau of Competition, Federal Trade Commission
Dan Guarnera serves as Director of the Bureau of Competition at the Federal Trade Commission. In this role he manages the FTC’s law enforcement actions against anticompetitive mergers and business conduct, including investigations and litigations in markets such as healthcare, technology, consumer goods, and energy.
Prior to joining the FTC, Guarnera served as chief of the Civil Conduct Task Force at the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division. During his tenure, the Task Force filed significant enforcement actions in technology, agriculture, and labor markets, including high profile monopolization cases. Guarnera also served at DOJ as a trial attorney and counsel to the Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division. He previously worked as special counsel to U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley; in private practice; and as a clerk for the Honorable Diane S. Sykes on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
Guarnera holds bachelor’s degrees from American University, a law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law, and an MBA from the Darden School of Business.
Kilian Gross
Head of Unit A2 Artificial Intelligence Policy Development and Coordination
Kilian Gross
Head of Unit A2 Artificial Intelligence Policy Development and Coordination
Since 16 of January 2020 Kilian Gross is Head of Unit A/2 in DG CNECT responsible for policy development and coordination with regard to Artificial Intelligence in the EU. Based on the work of the High-Level Expert Group the Unit has drafted a White Paper on Artificial Intelligence, which presents the options on how to promote the uptake of Artificial Intelligence and how to address at the same time the risks associated with certain uses of this new technology. Following a comprehensive public consultation in April 2021 the Unit proposed a legal framework aiming to address the risks generated by specific uses of AI. At the same time his Unit has updated the Coordinated Plan which supports the development and uptake of AI in the EU and searches to align national AI policies. The proposal for an AI-Act is currently negotiated with the co-legislators i.e. the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers. In parallel, the Unit ensures the implementation of the Coordinated Plan on AI.
Beside his work on AI, Kilian Gross lead the legal team, which has prepared and supported the negotiations of the proposal for a European Chips Act.
Beforehand since November 2015 Kilian Gross was a member of the Cabinet of Commissioner Oettinger. Within the Cabinet, he was mainly responsible for the Commission anti-fraud policy, DG HR and at an earlier stage for various digital files. Kilian Gross has started his career in the Commission in the Legal Service followed by five years in DG ENER where he worked on energy policy and on legal matters.
Danilo Türk
Former President of Slovenia, and President, Club of Madrid
Danilo Türk
Former President of Slovenia, and President, Club of Madrid
Danilo Türk, former President of Slovenia, currently serves as President of Club de Madrid and is a member of the Board of Directors.
He graduated from the University of Ljubljana in 1975 with a degree in law and later obtained his PhD with a thesis on the principle of non-intervention in international law in 1982.
President Türk became Director of the Institute on International Law at the University of Ljubljana in 1983. Additionally, he was a member of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, a UN body of independent experts. In that capacity he served, between 1986 and 1992, as the UN Special Rapporteur on the realization of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. In 1990-1991, Türk took part in the drafting of the Constitution of Slovenia by preparing the draft chapter related to human rights and fundamental freedoms.
From 1992 to 2000, he became the first Slovene Permanent Representative to the UN in New York, and represented Slovenia on the UN Security Council in 1998 and 1999. In 2000, he was invited by Kofi Annan, then Secretary-General, to serve as UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs (2000-2005). In 2005, he returned to Slovenia as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Ljubljana. He was elected as President in 2007 as an independent, being supported by several political parties. Dr. Türk chaired the Global High Level Panel on Water and Peace between 2015 and 2016, which published the report “A Matter of Survival” (2017). In 2016, he was one of the candidates for the post of the Secretary-General of the UN.
Since 2013, has been a Member of Club de Madrid and, in October 2019, he was elected by the General Assembly as the organization’s President for the period 2020-2022. In 2022, Türk was named one of the 12 Eminent individuals invited to be part of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Board on Effective Multilateralism Comprises, which will be asked to build on the ideas in Our Common Agenda to make concrete suggestions for more effective multilateral arrangements across a range of key global issues.
Camilla Bustani
Director, International, Ofcom (UK communications regulator)
Camilla Bustani
Director, International, Ofcom (UK communications regulator)
Camilla Bustani is Director, International at Ofcom, where she is responsible for Ofcom’s international strategy across the sectors it regulates. She has been actively engaged in European and global regulatory debates in the communications sectors for nearly 20 years, with a particular interest in models of regulation and the development of multilateral regulatory networks. Prior to Ofcom, she worked as a lawyer in the communications, media and technology practice at Clifford Chance LLP in London, where she advised governments and regulators in developing countries on regulatory reform in the telecoms sector
Ahmed Baladi
Partner and the co-chair of Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation Practice Group, Gibson Dunn
Ahmed Baladi
Partner and the co-chair of Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation Practice Group, Gibson Dunn
Ahmed Baladi is a partner in the Paris office of Gibson Dunn. He specializes in Information Technology & Digital Disruption, Data Privacy and Cybersecurity.
His practice covers:
- Strategic digital transformation, such as acquisition or development of innovative solutions (lnternet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Fintech, big data and cloud-based solutions);
- Data privacy and cybersecurity, including compliance and governance projects in light of the GDPR, cross-border litigation requiring data transfer and BCR;
- Complex commercial transactions, particularly in the technology, energy, aerospace and pharmaceutical industries.
Ahmed Baladi is an active member of the Fondation Prospective et Innovation and regularly speaks at Sino-European conferences including the BOAO Forum and the International Capital Conference (ICC).
Prof Pasquale Stanzione
President, Italian Data Protection Authority
Prof Pasquale Stanzione
President, Italian Data Protection Authority
Pasquale Stanzione has been the President of Garante, the Italian Data Protection Authority, since 2020.
After graduating in Law (cum laude) in 1968 at ‘Federico II’ University of Naples, Italy, Prof. Stanzione held the position of private law full Professor at the University of Salerno for more than 40 years, where he also was the dean of the Law faculty and chaired the Civil Law Department and the Institute for Civil and Economic Relationships as well as the PhD program in “personal rights under a comparative perspective” .
As a lawyer, he was admitted to practise before the Italian Court of Cassation and was appointed as a member of the Chairing Board of Administrative Judges. He is a member of the Société de législation comparée.
Prof. Stanzione has authored over 200 books and scientific papers and has coordinated several research projects in Italy and abroad; he contributes regularly to leading scientific journals.
In 2021, he was awarded the ‘Knight Grand Cross’, Italy’s highest honour, by the President of the Italian Republic.
Brando Benifei
MEP, Member and AI Act co-rapporteur, European Parliament
Brando Benifei
MEP, Member and AI Act co-rapporteur, European Parliament
Brando Benifei is an Italian MEP serving his second term and is the Head of Delegation of Partito Democratico in the European parliament. He is Rapporteur for the Artificial Intelligence Act, as a Member of the Committee for the Internal Market and Consumer Protection. He also works on Employment, Legal and Constitutional Affairs. He was also shadow Rapporteur of the Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence in a Digital Age. In 2016 he was included by Forbes in its 30 under 30 to watch list
Malgorzata Nikowska
Head of Unit for AI Innovation and Policy Coordination, AI Office, European Commission
Malgorzata Nikowska
Head of Unit for AI Innovation and Policy Coordination, AI Office, European Commission
Gosia Nikowska is Head of Unit for AI Innovation and Policy Coordination in AI Office in the European Commission. She has been working in the European Commission since 2004 and has occupied various functions from audit and control to inter-institutional affairs to technology and AI. She graduated from the Warsaw School of Economics and the Polish National School of Public Administration.
Cian O’Brien
Data Protection Commissioner, Data Protection Commission – Ireland
Cian O’Brien
Data Protection Commissioner, Data Protection Commission – Ireland
Cian O'Brien joined the Data Protection Commission of Ireland in 2019 and was appointed Director and Deputy Commissioner in 2022. Cian’s role focuses on the DPC’s large-scale inquiries and cross-border complaints. He graduated from University College Dublin and the Kings Inns Dublin, and was called to the Bar of Ireland in 2014. He practised law as a Barrister and tutored European Union law before joining the DPC.
Kate Jones
CEO, Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum – UK
Kate Jones
CEO, Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum – UK
Kate Jones has been Chief Executive Officer of the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF) since May 2023.
Kate’s knowledge of digital regulation stems from her immediate background as an expert consultant and researcher on the governance of emerging technologies, with particular regard to human rights law, public international law and diplomacy. In this field, her roles included Associate Fellow with the International Law Programme at Chatham House, Senior Associate with Oxford Information Labs, and membership of the advisory board of an AI ethics company. She has published and spoken widely on aspects of national and international tech governance, with specialisms in artificial intelligence, disinformation and foreign interference, and the role of technical standards.
In her work, Kate brings to bear her many years of experience as a legal adviser and diplomat with the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, including as Legal Adviser to the UK Mission to the United Nations in Geneva and UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. She also draws on her experience of leadership, skills and technical expertise gained as Director of Oxford University’s Diplomatic Studies Programme and as Course Director and Advisory Board member of the Centre for Political and Diplomatic Studies. Kate took her undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in law at the University of Oxford and qualified as a UK solicitor at Norton Rose.
Henri-Olivier Fliche
Director of Fintech & Innovation, ACPR
Henri-Olivier Fliche
Director of Fintech & Innovation, ACPR
Olivier Fliche is the Director of Fintech & Innovation at the ACPR, the French banking and insurance supervisory authority. He is in charge of the Fintech-Innovation Hub, which is the gateway for financial innovative project holders in the banking and insurance sectors, and coordinates with the Banque de France –the French central bank– and the French financial market supervisory authority (AMF). Together with the AMF, the Fintech-Innovation Hub steers the Fintech Forum, the body for consultation and dialogue with the French FinTech industry. Olivier Fliche is also responsible for the suptech mission of the ACPR, which aims at building on innovative technologies to improve the tools used for supervisory purposes.
Olivier Fliche started his career at the French Finance Ministry. After a secondment to the European Commission to help start the Solvency II project, he joined the supervisory authority where he held positions of Director of prudential insurance supervision and later of Director of business conduct supervision. Olivier Fliche holds a degree of the École Polytechnique and a degree of the Institut d’études politiques de Paris. He is also a qualified actuary (Institut des Actuaires).
Chiara Riondino
of Unit for the Future of Work and Youth Employment, DG EMPL, European Commission
Chiara Riondino
of Unit for the Future of Work and Youth Employment, DG EMPL, European Commission
Chiara Riondino is Head of Future of Work and Youth Employment in the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission, where she is responsible for initiatives related to the digital transformation of the workplace, including artificial intelligence and algorithmic management in the workplace, and platform work. Chiara is also responsible for policies and initiatives related to youth employment, such as the Youth Guarantee and quality traineeships.
Chiara held a number of positions in DG Employment, including Head of vocational education and training and policy coordinator for employment policies and fair working conditions. Prior to joining the Commission, Chiara worked both in the private and in the public sector, including as a consultant in Accenture and as a manager at the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance.
Karolina Mojzesowicz
Deputy Head of Data Protection Unit, DG Justice, European Commission
Karolina Mojzesowicz
Deputy Head of Data Protection Unit, DG Justice, European Commission
Karolina Mojzesowicz is the Deputy Head of Unit of the unit responsible for data protection at the European Commission (DG Justice and Consumers). She was one of the Commission's representatives in the interinstitutional negotiations with Parliament and Council on the General data Protection Regulation (GDPR). She is now responsible for its implementation in the EU. Mrs Mojzesowicz previously served as a member of the European Commission's Legal Service, focusing on EU Competition law and International Trade law. In that capacity, she represented the Commission in numerous cases before the European Courts and before the WTO panels and Appellate Body. Mrs Mojzesowicz studied law in Poland, the Netherlands and Germany where she obtained her PhD in 2001.
Mattias Levin
Head of Digital Finance Unit, DG FISMA, European Commission
Mattias Levin
Head of Digital Finance Unit, DG FISMA, European Commission
Mattias Levin is the acting head of unit of the Digital Finance unit of the European Commission’s Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union DG ("FISMA"). At FISMA, he has previously worked on regulation related to banks, investment firms, conglomerates and financial market infrastructures. Before joining DG FISMA, he was a member of the Bureau of European Policy Advisers (BEPA), a think tank attached to the President of the European Commission. Prior to joining the Commission, Mattias was a Research Fellow at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS). Mattias studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Lund University and the Institut d’Etudes Politiques of Strasbourg.
Dr. Rainer Hoffmann
Chief Data Officer (CDO), Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW)
Dr. Rainer Hoffmann
Chief Data Officer (CDO), Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW)
Dr. Rainer Hoffmann leads group-wide data and AI initiatives at EnBW, serving as the strategic link between the executive board and distributed teams. With a background spanning over a decade at EnBW, he previously headed Data & Analytics Excellence and led AI transformation projects. A recognized expert in responsible AI, he lectures at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and advises companies on data strategy. Rainer holds a Ph.D. in Operations Research and has studied at KIT Karlsruhe, additionally following lectures at MIT, UCLA, and the University of Toronto.
Dr. Hedi Karray
Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence, European Innovation Council (EIC)
Dr. Hedi Karray
Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence, European Innovation Council (EIC)
Dr. Hedi KARRAY is the programme manager for Artificial intelligence at the European Innovation Council (EIC) since 2024. He is an experienced professional in semantic AI and ontology-based engineering, with over fifteen years in applied informatics. He holds a Ph.D. in applied informatics from the University of Franche-Comté, France, a Master’s in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management from the Business Administration Institute of Besançon, and the Habilitation to Lead Research (HDR) from the National Polytechnic Institute of Toulouse.
Before joining the EIC, Hedi was a Full Professor of Applied Informatics at the University of Technology of Tarbes (UTTOP) in France. He led the international master’s programme on Industry 4.0 and the Planning, Interoperability, and Coordination of dynamic Systems (PICS) research group, contributing to research in ontology-based reasoning, semantic interoperability, and AI-driven decision support systems. He has published over 100 papers in international journals and conferences.
Hedi was a visiting professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo (UB), focusing on ontological research. Hedi has been actively involved in the professional community, serving as the president of the French chapter of the IEEE Systems, Man, and Cybernetics Society and co-founding the Industrial Ontologies Foundry hosted by NIST.
Through his previous collaborative research projects and consulting work with companies like TotalEnergies, Airbus, Thales, etc. Hedi has helped to apply academic research in industrial settings and has provided invaluable insights into the deployment of Semantic AI in complex industrial environments, contributing to the digital transformation of key sectors. He is committed to responsible AI and advancing the global AI ecosystem, with a focus on technologies that benefit both industry and society. Hedi's work continues to influence the future of AI in Europe and globally.
Silvia Gerboles
Expert Senior Group Legal Counsel and Data Protection Officer, Ericsson
Silvia Gerboles
Expert Senior Group Legal Counsel and Data Protection Officer, Ericsson
Silvia is Expert Senior Group Legal Counsel in Ericsson Global Privacy Office, with over 25 years’ experience in data protection, privacy and cybersecurity. Within Ericsson Group Silvia leads Global Privacy Customer matters, and the International Data Transfers mechanisms and global transborder data flows; currently involved in Data Governance and Data Usage in Ericsson Global programs and implementation of AI regulations. She also serves as Data Protection Officer for some Ericsson Group Companies.
Silvia is based in Madrid and has previously served in consultancy Firms and Law Firms. Member of the Madrid Bar Association, she holds an LLM and a master´s degree in IP Law from IE. Silvia is also Certified Data Protection Officer by the Spanish Supervisory Authority (AEPD) and holds several international certifications on Privacy.
Silvia is a regular lecturer on Data Privacy, IT and TMT, at different Master Programs and Seminars, and she has written several publications on data protection, IT and Commercial.
Matti Ruotsala
Chairman of the Board, Caruna Networks Oy
Matti Ruotsala
Chairman of the Board, Caruna Networks Oy
Jörn Messner
VP Innovation & Tech Factory, Lufthansa Group
Jörn Messner
VP Innovation & Tech Factory, Lufthansa Group
I've spent over 20 years trying to make airplanes take off on time and the IT world a little less chaotic. Along the way, I've learned that digitalization isn't just a buzzword – it can actually be quite useful when done right.
At Eurowings, I experienced what it means to navigate a company through a crisis and how agile team structures can empower people. As Managing Director of Lufthansa Industry Solutions, I led the company through strategic transformation, internationalization, and significant growth. Now, as VP Innovation & TechFactory at Lufthansa Group, I'm driving the digital future of airline operations – with a firm belief that technology only creates value when it serves people.
What excites me most is seeing people grow beyond themselves when they are trusted and given the opportunity. And when all else fails, well, there's always something new to learn
Sarah Jacquier Pelissier
Board Member, Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (ARCEP) – France
Sarah Jacquier Pelissier
Board Member, Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (ARCEP) – France
Sarah Jacquier Pelissier holds a PhD in law from the Université Paris-Panthéon-Assas, and a Master’s in telecommunications and new media management from the Université Paris Dauphine. She began her career in 2001 as a lawyer with the firms Baker & McKenzie and later Hogan Lovells. In 2010, she was appointed legal director of HADOPI before joining the European Commission in 2014, as the national expert seconded to the Directorate-General for Communication Networks, Content and Technology (DG CNECT). In the "copyright" unit, she contributed to the reform of the neighbouring right of press publishers.
Since 2018, she has been an advisor on platform and digital law to the head of the legal and international affairs department of the Ministry of Culture. She is a member of the control commission of the Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée (France’s National Centre for Cinema/CNC) Regulatory oversight committee since 2021.
Sarah Jacquier Pelissier has been appointed to the Arcep Executive Board by Decree of the President of the Republic, dated 23 March 2023 and is replacing Monique Liebert-Champagne
Gwendal Le Grand
Deputy Head of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) Secretariat
Gwendal Le Grand
Deputy Head of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) Secretariat
Gwendal Le Grand is the deputy head of Secretariat of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), which he joined in October 2021. The EDPB Secretariat is in charge of providing legal support for the drafting of EDPB documents, making available IT solutions to ensure communications between all the European national data protection authorities, handling EDPB media relations, and organising all EDPB meetings. He is also particularly involved in the Coordinated Enforcement Framework (CEF), and the Support Pool of Experts (SPE) which aim to assist national supervisory authorities in the framework of their investigations and enforcement activities of significant common interest. He was previously the Deputy Secretary-General at the French data protection authority CNIL (Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés), and was also the coordinator of the technology expert subgroup of the EDPB. He started his career in academia as an associate professor in networking and security. Gwendal received his PhD in computer science from the University of Paris 6 in July 2001.
Miguel Valle Del Olmo
Digital Transformation Attaché, Permanent Representation of Spain in the EU
Miguel Valle Del Olmo
Digital Transformation Attaché, Permanent Representation of Spain in the EU
Miguel Valle Del Olmo is a Digital Transformation Attaché in the Spanish Permanent Representation and deals with European digital initiatives. He has been in charge of the negotiation regarding the AI Act and involved in the deal on the Regulation.
Miguel has been working in the Spanish public administration for more than 10 years, in the development of public policies regarding digitalization, including:
Deputy Director for AI (Secretary of State for Digitalization and AI).
Implementation of the Spanish AI Strategy (since 2020).
National and international regulatory development.
Support for electronic communications networks deployment.
Participation in international fora (EU, OECD WP-AIGO vicechair, OECD WP-CISP, ITU)
He is a Telecommunications Engineer (Polytechnic University of Madrid, 2006).
Monika Tomczak-Gorlikowska
Group Head of Privacy, Digital & Regulatory, Prosus Group
Monika Tomczak-Gorlikowska
Group Head of Privacy, Digital & Regulatory, Prosus Group
Monika Tomczak-Górlikowska is the Global Head of Privacy, Digital & Regulatory for the Prosus Group - a multinational consumer internet group with headquarters in Europe and one of the largest technology investors in the world. Monika also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). Monika began her career at the Legal Service of the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU in Brussels. She is now based in Amsterdam and previously was the Senior Data Privacy Legal Counsel at Shell International Limited in London. Monika is a licensed attorney (adwokat) with over 25-years in practice. Prior to her in-house tenures she was in private practice, including at the offices of Miller, Canfield in Poland. She holds a Master of European Law degree (LLM cum laude) from the Law Department of the College of Europe in Brugge (Belgium). Monika has also served as Co-Chair of the Steering Committee of the Forum on International Privacy Law and a member of the IAPP European Advisory Board. Monika is also hexalingual: she speaks English, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish and Portuguese fluently.
Guénolé Carré
Policy Officer, European Tech Alliance (EUTA).
Guénolé Carré
Policy Officer, European Tech Alliance (EUTA).
Guénolé Carré is currently a Policy Officer at the European Tech Alliance (EUTA). The EUTA represents Europe’s leading digital champions and scale-ups. Founded and headquartered in Europe, our members provide innovative products and services to over 1 billion users worldwide. Guénolé has experience in consultancy, and worked in the European Parliament and the French Digital Affairs Ministry.
Nicolas de Bouville
Privacy Policy Manager, Meta
Nicolas de Bouville
Privacy Policy Manager, Meta
Nicolas de Bouville has a background in international and European law. He studied at the University of Amsterdam, from which he holds a Master's degree in international and European Law and at Nanterre University, from which he holds a Master's degree in technology and information society law.
Nicolas started his career at the French data protection authority, the CNIL, in the international and European affairs department. In this role, he dealt with a variety of topics related to data protection, including international data transfers and the negotiations of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
In 2017, Nicolas joined Meta, where he is currently in the Privacy Policy team. He is actively following the developments of the EU AI Act.
Joanna Conway
Internet Regulation (Legal) and Legal ambassador for Cyber & Strategic Risk, Deloitte
Joanna Conway
Internet Regulation (Legal) and Legal ambassador for Cyber & Strategic Risk, Deloitte
Joey is a Digital Regulation partner at Deloitte and a leader in Deloitte’s global digital regulation offering. She works with some of the world’s best known technology and media companies to support them to comply effectively, sustainably and efficiently with the wave of global digital regulations. With legal and risk management specialisms, she advises across online content, AI, data, user protection and fair competition laws and regulation. She advises on specific regulatory requirements and readiness, strategy and governance, risk and compliance and works closely with trust and safety, compliance, legal and business stakeholders. She designs and operationalises compliance functions and capabilities to cope with regulations at scale, including designing compliance functions and governance models and putting in place the risk management required under such regulations to risk assess and mitigate risks on an ongoing basis.
Joey is an experienced TMT, IP, regulation and compliance lawyer with c.20 years experience in private practice as a litigator and law firm partner before joining Deloitte’s global digital regulation team. as a partner in Deloitte Legal in 2021 and from FY26 in SRTA.
Nicole Isaac
Vice President of Global Public Policy, Cisco
Nicole Isaac
Vice President of Global Public Policy, Cisco
As Vice President of Global Public Policy for Government Affairs, Nicole Isaac leads a team of experts that drive Cisco’s policy agenda to bolster ICT adoption around the world and to enable Cisco’s purpose to power an inclusive future for all.
Prior to joining Cisco, Nicole spent more than 20 years in the government, corporate, legal, and nonprofit sectors. In addition to senior roles at Google, Meta, and LinkedIn, her background in government is wide- ranging. After beginning her career as counsel in the U.S. House of Representatives, she became a foreign law clerk at the Constitutional Court of South Africa before joining the office of U.S. Senate Assistant Majority Leader Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) as floor counsel. For five years of the Obama administration, Nicole was the deputy director for legislative affairs to then-Vice President Joe Biden and later served as a special assistant to President Barack Obama in the White House’s Office of Legislative Affairs.
Passionate about empowering others, Nicole was the founder and CEO of Code the Streets, Inc.—a nonprofit organization designed to increase access to educational and mentoring resources for inner-city youth through technology. She has also been a trustee with World Learning Inc. and a board member of the Joseph R. Biden Foundation. She was recently appointed to serve as a commissioner to the United States Commission on the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad, which protects and preserves historic properties and monuments across Eastern and Central Europe.
Nicole grew up in the Bronx, New York and received her Bachelor of Arts from Brown University, Master of Arts from Columbia University, Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and Master of Studies (LLM equivalent) from the University of Oxford.
Andrea Batalla Eguidazu
Senior Counsel, Data Privacy, Cyber and AI, Baxter International
Andrea Batalla Eguidazu
Senior Counsel, Data Privacy, Cyber and AI, Baxter International
Andrea Batalla Eguidazu brings over a decade of expertise in data protection, privacy and cybersecurity to Baxter’s Global Privacy Office. Based in the UK, Andrea leads strategic global projects, leveraging her profound understanding of data protection laws in the life science space and her extensive experience advising international organizations. She is a member of Baxter’s AI Governance Team and plays a central role in developing Baxter’s data protection program across LATAM and APAC as the Head of Privacy for these regions.
With experience gained at esteemed law firms such as DLA Piper and Cooley across Spain, Amsterdam, and London, Andrea's career has been marked by a passion for navigating the intricate landscape of data protection. Her journey has seen her specialize in life sciences and innovative technologies such as AI, online platforms, and digital health products.
With a holistic view of data protection laws, Andrea is a trusted advisor, driving forward Baxter's privacy initiatives with diligence, insight, and a deep-seated dedication to excellence.
Marianne Jarlaud
Deputy Head of Innovation & Digital Finance, Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), France
Marianne Jarlaud
Deputy Head of Innovation & Digital Finance, Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), France
Marianne Jarlaud is currently Deputy Head of the Innovation and Digital Finance Division within the Regulation and International Affairs Department of the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF).
She joined the AMF in 2017.
She represents the AMF in European and international political forums dedicated to investor protection and the regulation of market intermediaries from 2017 to 2022 and, since 2022, to financial innovation.
Since 2022, she has been closely involved in regulatory developments affecting the crypto-asset industry at European level, as well as in the preparation of new regulations concerning innovation in financial markets, such as the European open finance framework and the European regulation on artificial intelligence.
Before joining the AMF, Ms Jarlaud worked for eight years as a compliance officer covering the wealth management, private equity, market and investment banking activities of French and international financial institutions. She graduated from ESSEC in 2010 and holds a Master 2 degree in financial criminal law.
Helena Koning
SVP, Assistant General Counsel - Europe Data Protection Officer and Global Privacy Compliance Assurance
Helena Koning
SVP, Assistant General Counsel - Europe Data Protection Officer and Global Privacy Compliance Assurance
Helena is Mastercard’s Europe Data Protection Officer (DPO) leading the Europe Privacy and Data Protection Team and the Global Privacy Compliance Assurance program to ensure Mastercard continues to comply with the global data laws and regulations. She has been with the company since June 2017.
Prior to joining Mastercard, Helena worked as Senior Privacy Officer at Standard Chartered and at ADP in Singapore, where she led their Privacy Compliance Program and outreach activities for the Asia Pacific Region. Prior to that, Helena worked as General Counsel at the Dutch Data Protection Authority in the Netherlands, where she managed the legal department responsible for enforcement, litigation and compliance. Helena started her career as an international attorney working in Allen & Overy’s Amsterdam and New York offices assisting clients with competition law and finance matters.
Helena graduated from Leiden University in business and international law and was admitted to the Amsterdam bar. She is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/A and CIPM) and was a member of the IAPP Asia Advisory Board. She served as an expert on the B2G Data Sharing Expert Group establishing recommendations for the European Commission on data sharing.
In her spare time, Helena enjoys the outdoors and teaches yoga.
Valerie Hoess
Head of European Affairs, Commerzbank
Valerie Hoess
Head of European Affairs, Commerzbank
Valérie has been Head of European Affairs for Commerzbank AG since January 2024. Before that, she held different roles in the Public Affairs team at Deutsche Bank AG, covering a variety of policy areas: from sustainability and retail financial services to innovation and anti-money laundering.
In 2021, she became Head of Digital & Anti-Money Laundering Policy for Deutsche Bank, responsible for the bank’s strategic positioning on issues including AI, cloud, data, and cybersecurity in a global capacity. Over the last years, she has been an active member of various industry associations and public-private fora on national and international level.
Before joining Deutsche Bank in 2016, Valérie was a member of the Internal Audit team at Gen Re working on German and international topics internally as well as with the External Auditors. This gave her the opportunity to develop a controls perspective with EU and U.S. focus. She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in German and European Business Law, as well as a degree in Business Administration.
Rūta Merkevičiūtė
Head of the Digital Finance Unit, European Banking Authority
Rūta Merkevičiūtė
Head of the Digital Finance Unit, European Banking Authority
Rūta Merkevičiūtė is the Head of the Digital Finance Unit at the European Banking Authority which is responsible for the EBA’s work on monitoring financial innovation and identifying areas where a regulatory and supervisory response might be needed. She is also leading the EBA’s work on crypto-assets with a focus on the Markets in Crypto-assets Regulation (MICAR). Until recently, she led the work on the Digital operational resilience for the financial sector (DORA).
Previously, she was Director of Financial Services and Markets Supervision Department at the Bank of Lithuania, that was responsible for capital markets and prudential supervision of less significant financial institutions and financial services. Rūta has professional legal qualification as an attorney-at law and has been working both in private sector and financial sector’s supervision for the past 18 years
Dr. Claus-Dieter Ulmer
Group Data Privacy Officer, Deutsche Telekom
Dr. Claus-Dieter Ulmer
Group Data Privacy Officer, Deutsche Telekom
Dr. Claus-Dieter Ulmer, Senior Vice President Group Privacy, has been the Global Data Privacy Officer with Deutsche Telekom Group since 2002.
Ulmer has made many publications in national and international specialized press and published “The Data-Protection-Handbook Telecommunication”.
He has been speaker for many high-level conferences and is lecturer for the Data Protection and IT-Security Academy in Ulm, which is a training institute for certified Data Protection Officers.
Ulmer is representing the German Industry Association (BDI) in the advisory board of the Data Protection Foundation of Germany.
He supports startup companies and new visionary ideas in the digital area. E.g. Motionlogic, a company providing traffic information on basis of anonymous location data.
Ulmer has also supported governmental delegations of several states and companies with strategic advice for data privacy management. He is member of the task force of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Privacy.
Fernando Hortal Foronda
Digital Policy Officer, BEUC – the European Consumer Organisation
Fernando Hortal Foronda
Digital Policy Officer, BEUC – the European Consumer Organisation
Fernando Hortal Foronda is a Policy Officer at BEUC – The European Consumer Organisation. He holds a BSc degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics jointly awarded hby University Pompeu Fabra, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and a MSc in European Studies by the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Fernando’s experience include roles in academic and European institutions, consultancy, and the NGO sector. At BEUC, Fernando is responsible for platform regulation.
Christian Schroeder
Partner, Orrick
Christian Schroeder
Partner, Orrick
Christian leads Orrick’s Cyber, Privacy & Data Innovation Group in Europe, advising global clients on the legal and regulatory challenges of artificial intelligence, and data law more generally.
He helps organizations navigate the cyber, privacy and AI implications of new products and services, ensuring compliance with international data protection standards and anticipating enforcement trends. Christian provides strategic guidance on the responsible development, deployment, and use of digital products, including risk assessments, internal and external data transfers, and product launches.
Christian is recommended for AI by Legal 500 Germany (2025) and ranked as a leading Data Privacy Practitioner in Germany by both Chambers and Legal 500 (both 2025).
He regularly publishes and gives seminars on the most current developments in relation to AI. Furthermore, Christian authors the international data transfers chapter in Germany’s leading GDPR commentary (Kühling/Buchner, 4th ed.) and co-authors the Corporate Privacy Handbook.
As an active member of the Sedona Conference, he helps shape cross-border privacy standards and frequently collaborates with regulators, industry peers, and academics.
Christian’s thought leadership and global perspective make him a trusted advisor for companies navigating complex privacy, cybersecurity, and AI challenges
Vera Lukic
Partner, Gibson Dunn
Vera Lukic
Partner, Gibson Dunn
Vera Lukic is a partner in the Paris office of Gibson Dunn where she serves as a member of the firm's Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, Strategic Sourcing and Commercial Contracts and Technology Transactions practice groups.
Vera has developed an extensive expertise in Europe in a broad range of matters related to technology and innovation, acting as a strategic advisor to clients for their complex transactions, including outsourcing projects in regulated industries, as well as managing contractual disputes, such as licensing compliance issues, and digital-related projects, including in relation to artificial intelligence. She regularly advises on technology aspects of M&A and PE transactions.
Vera also specializes in data protection and cybersecurity, assisting companies on their global privacy compliance programs, such as compliance with the GDPR, ePrivacy Directive and AI Act, and representing clients in investigations and inquiries by regulators. She assists clients, across jurisdictions and a wide array of sectors, navigating the numerous European regulations and developments in privacy, data, cybersecurity, and AI, identifying opportunities and managing impacts on their business.
Vera is recognized as a notable practitioner for her work in the technology sector in Europe. She has received several accolades:
- Chambers Europe has ranked Vera in its Information Technology category, with clients’ feedback highlighting that she is an “excellent expert”, “highly available”, “reactive”, “efficient” with “quick understanding of the customer’s needs”.
- Legal 500 EMEA has distinguished Vera among the French market’s “Leading Partners”, endorsed by clients and peers alike, in two categories “IT/Internet” and “Data Privacy/Data Protection”. In previous editions, clients already alluded to her as a “key name”; “very involved”; “always very available” and as having “a very business-oriented approach ”.
- Best Lawyers in France has named her its Lawyer of the Year 2022 for Technology Law and Lawyer of the Year 2024 for Outsourcing, and has consistently recommended her for Information Technology, Privacy and Data Security Laws since 2020.
- In recognition of her outstanding legal expertise and contributions to the field, Vera has been featured in the “Who’s Who in France” since 2022.
Admitted to the Paris Bar in 2007, Vera graduated in 2004 from University of Paris XI Jean Monnet, where she received a Master I in Business Law and a Master II in IT/Digital Law.
Vera speaks French and English fluently.
Chris Foreman
Fellow, Centre for Information Policy Leadership
Chris Foreman
Fellow, Centre for Information Policy Leadership
Chris has 20+ years’ experience in global privacy, cybersecurity, data governance, trademark infringement litigtion, and EU pharmaceutical law.
Chris was the Chief Privacy Officer at Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA (known as “MSD” outside of the US and Canada), retiring just before this Summer. Heading the Global Privacy Office, he led a team responsible for the governance of the Global Privacy Program, which has approved EU Binding Corporate Rules. Prior to working in privacy, Chris held several leading roles in MSD’s Office of the General Counsel and worked as a corporate lawyer at two private law firms in Washington, DC, New York and Brussels.
Chris has served on a number of external boards, including the Information Accountability Foundation, dplegal, and the International Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Privacy Consortium. He was an active member of the EFPIA Data Governance Working Group, helping to draft its EU Code of Conduct on Scientific Research and Pharmacovigilance Reporting.
Chris has spoken widely at privacy and legal conferences, webinars and roundtables on topics such as the complexities of international data transfers between the Europe and the United States and the European Health Data Space. In addition, he was a faculty member at the University of Georgia Law School teaching Comparative Privacy Law.
He is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/E), Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) and Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP).
Jane Horvath
Partner, Gibson Dunn
Jane Horvath
Partner, Gibson Dunn
Jane Horvath is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson Dunn. She is a Co-Chair of both the firm’s Tech and Innovation Industry Group and the Privacy, Cybersecurity and Data Innovation Practice Group, and a member of the Administrative Law and Regulatory, Artificial Intelligence, Crisis Management, Litigation and Media, Entertainment and Technology Practice Groups. Having previously served as Apple’s Chief Privacy Officer, Google’s Global Privacy Counsel and the DOJ’s first Chief Privacy Counsel and Civil Liberties Officer, among other positions, Jane draws from more than two decades of privacy and legal experience, offering unique in-house counsel and regulatory perspectives to counsel clients as they manage complex technical issues on a global regulatory scale.
In recognition of her expertise and contributions to the field, Jane has received several accolades. Jane was recognized in 2025 by The Best Lawyers in America© for Privacy and Data Security Law. She was also named to Legal 500’s Hall of Fame in 2024 for Media, Technology, and Telecoms. Jane has earned rankings as a top lawyer in Privacy & Data Security from both Chambers USA and Chambers Global guides for 2024-2025. Lawdragon named her among its 500 Leading Global Cyber Lawyers guide (2024-2025) and included her in its 100 Leading AI & Legal Tech Advisors list (2024-2025). The Future of Privacy Forum honored Jane with their Career Achievement Award, which is awarded to “private sector leaders who have made major contributions to advancing the values of data protection.” Politico included Jane as one of the top Rulemakers in the Tech28, their annual ranking of the 28 power players behind Europe’s tech revolution.
Jane returned to Gibson Dunn after serving as Apple’s Chief Privacy Officer, where she led the company’s regulatory, policy and product strategy on all privacy- and cybersecurity-related legal matters. In this role, Jane shaped and implemented worldwide data protection laws, including in jurisdictions with omnibus privacy laws, such as the European Union, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China and Japan, as well as jurisdictions considering similar laws, such as the United States and Vietnam. Jane’s practice focuses on counseling involving privacy, cybersecurity and data strategies – particularly those at the forefront of new regulation – and advocacy and strategy with global regulators and policy makers on these same issues. She brings hands-on practical experience building privacy, cybersecurity and data solutions at the edge of innovation and at a global scale. Jane has extensive knowledge regarding encryption and related global laws and has been deeply involved in providing comments in response to the European Union Digital Markets Act and pending competition legislation in the United States, Japan and Australia. She has extensive experience implementing encryption into different product applications and defending encryption against U.S. and global government access requests – issues that are top of mind right now for technology companies. Additionally Jane has an immense understanding of government surveillance and data localization laws.
Recent experience includes:
- advising clients, management and product teams in developing product and business strategies that involve privacy and data architecture, encryption and offensive security and data localization and advocating for the adoption of those strategies with key regulators and policymakers around the globe;
- implementing networks, data solutions and technology in China and navigating Chinese privacy laws and the interaction with U.S. and global national security, privacy and regulatory considerations;
- developing global strategies and solutions for companies in relation to pending competition, AI, privacy and other regulation in the UK, EU, Japan and other global markets;
- advising companies on the implementation of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act;
- advising companies on cybersecurity oversight and risk, along with other critical risk areas, such as managing data storage and workforces in China and global data network architecture and localization; and
- drafting key privacy legislation, such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and related amendments.
Before joining Apple, Jane was Global Privacy Counsel at Google from 2007 to 2011. Jane served as the U.S. Department of Justice’s first Chief Privacy Counsel and Civil Liberties Officer from 2006 to 2007, and, in that capacity, worked on the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, an executive agency established in the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007. While at the DOJ, she was also a member of the High-Level Contact Group and leader of the U.S. delegation of experts tasked with exploring common ground between the European Union’s Third Pillar data protection principles and U.S. federal privacy laws. From 1995 to 2001, Jane was the General Counsel of Digital City Inc., an America Online, Inc. (AOL) subsidiary, and Assistant General Counsel to AOL, where she helped draft the company’s first privacy policies. Jane started her legal career as an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in 1991.
Jane is a recognized thought-leader in the areas of privacy and technology, frequently appearing as a keynote speaker and on panels hosted by global regulators and leading policy organizations. She is routinely sought out by public boards, executives, and policy makers for strategic advice on privacy and cybersecurity matters. Jane was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland as a Special Advocate for the Data Protection Review Court (DPRC), part of a process reviewing complaints about U.S. signals intelligence collection violating applicable U.S. law. Jane currently serves as a board member on the board of directors for the Future of Privacy Forum, an organization that serves as a catalyst for privacy leadership and scholarship, advancing principled data practices in support of emerging technologies. Jane is also a member of the Aspen Global Cybersecurity Group, an organization committed to preserving peace and freedom online and addressing pressing international cybersecurity challenges.
Jane received her J.D. from the University of Virginia and her Bachelor of Science from the College of William and Mary.
Nick Seeber
Partner & Global Internet Regulation Lead, Deloitte
Nick Seeber
Partner & Global Internet Regulation Lead, Deloitte
Nick leads Deloitte’s global Digital Regulation offering, established to help clients respond to the strategic, practical and operational challenges presented by new rules for the Internet, AI and other digital technologies. These laws and regulations in EU, UK, US and globally bring new obligations around online safety (especially for children), fair competition, consumer protection, AI, digital privacy, ownership of digital assets, access to digital services and much more.
Deloitte’s Digital Regulation team is global and multi-disciplinary, with a breadth of capabilities, including risk and compliance specialists, legal and regulation experts, economists, strategists, technologists, auditors and transformation leads. We work with clients across digital platforms, government departments, regulators, financial services, and the ecosystem of affected organisations who have a stake in the future of the Internet.
Nick has worked at Deloitte since 2010 and has extensive experience in regulatory transformation, data strategy and the Media and Telecoms sectors. He is a member of Deloitte’s global TMT leadership team, responsible for global TMT Regulation.
Nick has a degree in History of Science from the University of Cambridge.
Cecilia Alvarez Rigaudias
Director of Privacy Policy Engagement, EMEA at Meta
Cecilia Alvarez Rigaudias
Director of Privacy Policy Engagement, EMEA at Meta
Cecilia Aalvarez Rigaudias is the EMEA Privacy Policy Director at Facebook since March 2019. From 2015 to 2019, she served as European Privacy Officer Lead of Pzifer, Vice-Chair of the EFPIA Data Protection Group and Chairwoman of IPPC-Europe. For an interim period, she was also the Legal Lead of the Spanish Pfizer subsidiaries. She formerly worked 18 years in a reputed Spanish law firm, leading the data protection, IT and ecommerce areas of practice as well as the LATAM Data Protection Working Group.
Cecilia was the Chairwoman of APEP (Spanish Privacy Professional Association) until June and is currently in charge of its international affairs. She is also the Spanish member of CEDPO (Confederation of European Data Protection Organisations) and member of the Leadership Council of The Sedona Conference (W-6).
She is a member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation in the section of the Law on Technologies of the Information and the Knowledge as well as Arbitrator of the European Association of Arbitration (ITC Section).
She formed part of the Volunteer Group of Privacy Experts of the OECD (Working Party on information Security and Privacy; WPISP) in charge of the 2013 review of the OECD guidelines governing the protection of privacy and transborder data flows of personal data. She formerly participated in the Group of Experts selected by the Spanish DPA to prepare the Madrid Resolution on International Privacy Standards in 2009.
Cecilia has written numerous publications on data protection and regularly lectures on data protection, IT and ecommerce at different Masters Programs and seminars.
John Kavanagh
Privacy and Security, Public Policy Europe, TikTok
John Kavanagh
Privacy and Security, Public Policy Europe, TikTok
John is the data protection and security expert within TikTok’s European Government Relations and Public Policy team since 2023. He covers data protection across a number of areas such as user transparency, data sovereignty and cross-border data transfers, trade, digital advertising, privacy enhancing technologies, and cybersecurity. He is active across Europe, covering both EU-level data developments and national-level initiatives.
John was previously a director at the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), where he spent 10 years across a number of policy areas – including central government liaison on major data-centric projects, the drafting of the DPA2018 and the later ongoing reforms.
John has been an active international participant in regulatory forums, including representing the ICO at the Global Privacy Assembly throughout its chairmanship of the assembly, and now represents TikTok in business forums across Europe.
Leanda Barrington-Leach
Executive Director, 5Rights
Leanda Barrington-Leach
Executive Director, 5Rights
Leanda Barrington-Leach is the Executive Director at 5Rights. Leanda joined 5Rights from the European External Action Service where she was Adviser to the Secretary General focusing on Strategic Communications and the fight against Disinformation. She previously worked in EU advocacy as a consultant and for non-profits, always with a focus on human rights. Leanda volunteers as an Adviser to Plan International, supporting their work on children’s rights in EU foreign policy.
Guido Lobrano
Director General for Europe, Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)
Guido Lobrano
Director General for Europe, Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)
Guido Lobrano is Senior Vice President and Director General for Europe at ITI – the global association of the tech industry. Guido is based in Brussels, where he opened ITI’s first office in Europe.
Since 2017, he leads ITI’s engagement on the European Union’s activities impacting technology and innovation. He is in charge of the organisation’s activities on EU initiatives in areas such as Artificial Intelligence and data, privacy & cybersecurity,platform issues, environment & sustainability policy, and coordinates the work of ITI’s global team of experts on the EU international and trade activities.
Before joining ITI, Guido worked at BusinessEurope, the confederation of European industry. He was in charge of digital and tech policy and was leading the coordination of BusinessEurope’s Legal Affairs and Internal Market teams. Throughout his career, Guido covered many crucial policy debates from a cross-industry perspective, including the adoption of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Cyber Security Act, The Digital Markets Act as well as transatlantic data flows, from the Safe Harbor invalidation to Privacy Shield and the recent EU-US Data Privacy Framework.”
Matteo Quattrocchi
Head of EU AI Policy, Cisco
Matteo Quattrocchi
Head of EU AI Policy, Cisco
Matteo is the Head of EU AI Policy for Cisco’s EU Office, in addition to focusing on other key policy areas such as IP, Competition, and Platforms.
He joined Cisco’s Brussels Government Affairs Team in May 2024. He was previously Director, Policy EMEA at BSA, The Software Alliance, leading its work on AI.
Matteo has been based in Brussels since 2013, having worked in consultancy and at the U.S. Mission to the EU. Matteo holds a master’s degree in EU Law from LUISS University, and an LLM in International Legal Studies from Georgetown University.
Boniface de Champris
Senior Policy Manager, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA Europe)
Boniface de Champris
Senior Policy Manager, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA Europe)
Boniface de Champris is Policy Manager at the Computer & Communications Industry Association’s Brussels office, primarily responsible for CCIA’s advocacy in the area of artificial intelligence (AI).
Boniface came to CCIA Europe in 2023 from a public affairs agency, where he worked on both EU and French digital policy files (such as content moderation, data flows, data protection, and platform liability) for a wide range of clients. Previously he was a trainee in the WTO team of the European Commission’s Legal Service.
De Champris has a master’s degree in European interdisciplinary studies from the College of Europe, a master in French and German law from the University of Paris Nanterre, as well as an LLM from the University of Potsdam. Boniface also holds an executive master in law and artificial intelligence from the Brussels School of Competition. He is fluent in French, German, and English.
Matthew Newman
Global Chief Correspondent, MLex
Matthew Newman
Global Chief Correspondent, MLex
Matthew is a chief correspondent for MLex and writes about data protection, privacy, telecoms, cyber security and artificial intelligence. Matthew began his journalism career in 1991 in community newspapers. He worked as a reporter in Riga, Latvia in 1993 and then moved to Chicago where he covered local news. In 1995, he became a personal finance reporter for Dow Jones Newswires, and was then transferred to Brussels in 1999. He specialized in EU regulatory affairs, including trade and telecom issues. He began covering competition for Bloomberg News as an EU court reporter in 2004. In 2010, he was named spokesman for Viviane Reding, the EU’s justice commissioner. In January 2012, he helped launch the commission’s proposal to overall data protection rules.
Matthew began working at MLex in April 2012 and has covered mergers, antitrust and state-aid cases. He spent a year studying French, history and communications in Grenoble, France in 1988 and 1989 and is a graduate of Boston University with degrees in history and journalism. He earned a diploma in competition law from King’s College in 2016.
Mikołaj Barczentewicz
Associate Professor in Law and Research Director of the Law and Technology Hub, University of Surrey
Mikołaj Barczentewicz
Associate Professor in Law and Research Director of the Law and Technology Hub, University of Surrey
Mikołaj Barczentewicz is an Associate Professor in Law and the Research Director of the Law and Technology Hub at the University of Surrey. He writes about how EU law influences the tech industry at EUTechReg.com. His research spans privacy law, general technology regulation, and legal philosophy.
Natascha Gerlach
Director of Privacy Policy, Center of information Policy Leadership (CIPL)
Natascha Gerlach
Director of Privacy Policy, Center of information Policy Leadership (CIPL)
Natascha Gerlach holds the position of Director of Privacy Policy for the Center of information Policy Leadership (CIPL) in Brussels. Her work is focused on a range of privacy and data related topics including cross-border data flows, AI, Privacy Enhancing Technologies, children’s data privacy, data ethics and data governance. Before joining CIPL, Natascha was a Senior Attorney with Cleary Gottlieb in their Brussels office, where she headed Cleary’s European eDiscovery group leveraging her experience in US eDiscovery by implementing new technologies and operationalizing the team. Natascha was also a senior member of Cleary’s Data Privacy group and advised clients on a wide array of data privacy issues, with a special focus on the cross section of international discovery and data protection. Natascha is Chair Emerita of The Sedona Conference Working Group 6 on International Electronic Information Management, Discovery and Disclosure (WG6) Steering Committee. She is on the advisory board for the Georgetown Law AEDI, was on the ABA CBI Steering Committee since its inception in 2017 and is a founding member of the IDLF. Natascha publishes regularly on data protection topics and is a frequent speaker at relevant conferences.