Free
Innovation is not just about ideas - it’s about execution, investment, and impact. Innovation Landscape Day brings together global business leaders, investors, and pioneers who are shaping the next wave of breakthroughs.
Join us at Cambridge Corn Exchange for a power-packed day of insights and collaboration, where we dive into Seizing the AI Advantage - unpacking the opportunities, challenges, and game-changing strategies that define the future of AI-driven innovation.
From keynote presentations by world-leading experts to high-impact roundtable discussions, gain exclusive insights into scaling innovation, securing investment, and staying ahead in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Running throughout the day is the dynamic Innovation Alley Exhibition will play home to fifty of the brightest early-stage companies, scale ups, and larger tech companies, all offering a dynamic and interactive showcase of their solutions.
The day culminates in a prestigious Leadership Dinner, bringing together the most influential minds in business and technology for thought-provoking discussions and unparalleled networking.
Whether you're looking to sharpen your competitive edge, fuel your next big move, or forge powerful partnerships, Innovation Landscape Day is your gateway to the future. Be part of the conversation - be part of the change.
Discover the full Tuesday programme
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09:00 |
Registration and Refreshments |
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09:45 |
Opening Welcome from MC Oli Barrett MBE 
Oli Barrett MBEOli Barrett loves connecting people and ideas. He is a co-founder of The Superscalers, supporting underrepresented founders to scale their work globally. He co-founded WebMission and Clean and Cool, connecting hundreds of founders with partners and clients around the world. He is a shareholder in several companies including mental health business Calm.com and Troubadour Theatres, which creates new theatres and film studios. Oli co-founded the UK's largest schools enterprise competition, Tenner, which is now run by charity Young Enterprise. He also co-founded StartUp Britain with support from the British Prime Minister, and global literacy campaign Turn On The Subtitles (TOTS), encouraging broadcasters and tech companies to improve children's reading. He is a co-founder of Volunteer It Yourself (VIY), supporting young people to fix their own youth clubs and community buildings, gaining skills and qualifications. Oli is a regular event host and presenter for gatherings spanning technology, health, entrepreneurship, and education. He sits on the advisory boards of the Global Entrepreneurship Network, Global Tech Advocates, One Million Mentors and Founders4Schools. |
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09:55 |
Keynote 
Tim PassinghamTim is the Founder and Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting. He is also the Chairman of alternative network provider Lightning Fibre, Chairman of the IoT pollution reduction technology business Iknaia, Co-Founder and Non-Executive Director of sustainability consultancy edenseven, and a Non-Executive Director of The Carrier Club. Tim also chairs a thinktank called The Intelligent Network (TIN) which is attended by CxOs from many of the world’s largest telecommunications, cloud and content providers. He is a William Pitt Fellow of Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, where he works to bring the worlds of academia and business closer together. Tim also supports the charity Telecoms Sans Frontieres (TSF), providing first-in communications for disaster relief, where he is a Global Ambassador, and he is a Patron and Trustee of the British Exploring Society (BES). Tim was sponsored by BT while at Manchester University and graduated with a First-Class Honours and Masters in electrical and electronic engineering. After projects working with IBM, BT Japan and BT Syntegra Trading Systems, he joined BT in 1997 as a Systems Engineer working in the Global Finance organisation. In 1999, he joined Concert, BT’s joint venture with AT&T. Following roles in IP and eBusiness consulting and specialist sales working across pharmaceutical, automotive and industrial manufacturing industries, Tim moved back to BT to join their new global oil and gas practice as an Account Manager and later became the Global Account Director for BP. In 2005, Tim was appointed to lead BT’s Oil and Gas Line of Business and after two years of exceptional growth became General Manager for the Oil & Gas, Pharmaceutical and Technology Sector. He was then appointed as Director to lead the new Energy and Industry Sector. In September 2009, he went on to lead the newly structured Global Partners organisation where he led market units focused on supporting the information and communications technology needs of BT’s largest systems integrator, technology and BPO partners. In 2011, Tim was asked to take on the VP role for BT Conferencing where he transformed the business into one of the fastest growing divisions of the BT Group. In 2013, Tim moved from BT to Level3 Communications (now Lumen Technologies) to run most of their business in EMEA and to accelerate the growth of the $560 million business. After an ambitious growth initiative, he joined Colt to transform their wholesale telecommunications business. Tim Founded Cambridge Management Consulting in 2015 between roles in Level3 and Colt. In 2018, he left Colt to focus on Cambridge Management Consulting. He is now the Executive Chair of Cambridge MC where he works to help their clients have a better impact on the world. He also chairs Lightning Fibre, an alternative network provider, and Iknaia, a pollution reduction and technology company, and acts as a non-executive director for edenseven and the Carrier Club. He is committed to donating his time to charitable causes, and supports several charities, including Telecoms Sans Frontieres (TSF), where he is a Global Ambassador, and acts as a Patron and Trustee of the British Exploring Society (BES). |
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| 10:05 |
Welcome (Govt) Keynote |
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10:15 |
Keynote Steve Young, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Dell Technologies UK |
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10:25 |
AI for Leaders: Turning Innovation into Acceleration
Tim PassinghamTim is the Founder and Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting. He is also the Chairman of alternative network provider Lightning Fibre, Chairman of the IoT pollution reduction technology business Iknaia, Co-Founder and Non-Executive Director of sustainability consultancy edenseven, and a Non-Executive Director of The Carrier Club. Tim also chairs a thinktank called The Intelligent Network (TIN) which is attended by CxOs from many of the world’s largest telecommunications, cloud and content providers. He is a William Pitt Fellow of Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, where he works to bring the worlds of academia and business closer together. Tim also supports the charity Telecoms Sans Frontieres (TSF), providing first-in communications for disaster relief, where he is a Global Ambassador, and he is a Patron and Trustee of the British Exploring Society (BES). Tim was sponsored by BT while at Manchester University and graduated with a First-Class Honours and Masters in electrical and electronic engineering. After projects working with IBM, BT Japan and BT Syntegra Trading Systems, he joined BT in 1997 as a Systems Engineer working in the Global Finance organisation. In 1999, he joined Concert, BT’s joint venture with AT&T. Following roles in IP and eBusiness consulting and specialist sales working across pharmaceutical, automotive and industrial manufacturing industries, Tim moved back to BT to join their new global oil and gas practice as an Account Manager and later became the Global Account Director for BP. In 2005, Tim was appointed to lead BT’s Oil and Gas Line of Business and after two years of exceptional growth became General Manager for the Oil & Gas, Pharmaceutical and Technology Sector. He was then appointed as Director to lead the new Energy and Industry Sector. In September 2009, he went on to lead the newly structured Global Partners organisation where he led market units focused on supporting the information and communications technology needs of BT’s largest systems integrator, technology and BPO partners. In 2011, Tim was asked to take on the VP role for BT Conferencing where he transformed the business into one of the fastest growing divisions of the BT Group. In 2013, Tim moved from BT to Level3 Communications (now Lumen Technologies) to run most of their business in EMEA and to accelerate the growth of the $560 million business. After an ambitious growth initiative, he joined Colt to transform their wholesale telecommunications business. Tim Founded Cambridge Management Consulting in 2015 between roles in Level3 and Colt. In 2018, he left Colt to focus on Cambridge Management Consulting. He is now the Executive Chair of Cambridge MC where he works to help their clients have a better impact on the world. He also chairs Lightning Fibre, an alternative network provider, and Iknaia, a pollution reduction and technology company, and acts as a non-executive director for edenseven and the Carrier Club. He is committed to donating his time to charitable causes, and supports several charities, including Telecoms Sans Frontieres (TSF), where he is a Global Ambassador, and acts as a Patron and Trustee of the British Exploring Society (BES). 
Petrina Anne SteelePetrina is responsible for shaping Equinix’s Emerging Tech (AI, Quantum & Edge) and Emerging Ecosystems program globally. She spent the last 4 years curating Equinix's global connected, autonomous vehicles and smart transport strategy, including integrating emerging technologies that include IoT, cloud technologies, 5G, AI and complex data sharing. Her global role is focused on new ecosystem discovery and curation, pursuit strategy & customer engagement & on-boarding, which covers research into the application of emerging technologies within industry segments and technology partner alignment. Further speakers to be announced |
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11:15 |
Refreshment Break |
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11:45 |
Keynote: Seizing the AI Advantage in humanoid robotics 
Tim EnsorTim Ensor is EVP and General Manager for Cambridge Consultant’s Intelligent Services Business Unit. He is responsible globally for CC’s business and client relationships in AI and Digital Services Tim works with senior clients across many sectors to help them achieve business growth by identifying, developing and deploying world-changing innovation based on deep tech. Prior to CC, Tim has had a string of commercial leadership roles in high-growth technology and consulting businesses working in fields including AI, robotics, telecoms, energy, consumer goods and logistics. He’s a frequent public speaker and event chair focusing on the latest developments at the intersection of technology and business. He has a Master of Engineering from University of Bath and MBA from University of Cambridge. |
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11:55 |
Delivering Public Good and Private Capacity with Transformational Tech 
Karen McLuskieKaren McLuskie is at the forefront of technology policy in Government. She pioneered digital diplomacy and counter-disinformation threat strategy before becoming the first diplomat with a fronter tech portfolio. Later she led tech policy at the Department of Business and Trade before taking on this year the Tech Adoption Review for the National Tech Advisor as part of the Government’s newly published Industrial Strategy. Outside of government, she is the chair of UK Responsible AI’s business advisory board and pursues her passion for convening wide conversations on AI, bridging everything from music and law, history and geopolitics. 
Philip MiltonPhilip Milton is the Head of Economic Public Policy for the UK at Meta where he covers issues including AI, Ads and Fraud. As well as representing Meta with policy makers including government Ministers, Regulators and Officials he leads Meta’s collaborative work with other industries on these issues. Previously Philip worked for Channel 4, and at the departments for Business and Culture, Media and Sport. 
Max Beverton-PalmerMax Beverton-Palmer is Head of Public Policy, UK at NVIDIA, where he leads the company's government affairs and public policy initiatives across the United Kingdom. In this role, he’s responsible for NVIDIA's engagement with the UK government and the wider UK policy making community on critical AI policy matters, including the development of sovereign AI infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, and strategic partnerships that position the UK as a global leader in artificial intelligence. With a fifteen plus year career spanning senior roles at Meta, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Sky, and Ofcom, Max has shaped digital policy and strategy at the intersection of government, industry, and civil society. He is also a Continuing Policy Fellow at the Cambridge Centre for Science and Policy. 
Hind ZianeHind Ziane is a political strategist, entrepreneur, TV analyst and international speaker from France. After working in American and French politics, she decided to create her own business, Génération Politique, a tech company dedicated to the public sector, in 2018. Hind started her career at the age of 18 when she joined the team of a Barack Obama appointee at the Department of Energy. She worked for more than 3 years with institutions such as the White House, the UNESCO or the House of Representatives and then went on to create her business. Hind Ziane is an analyst on French and international TV. She speaks on TVabout French and American politics, as well as government and technology. Shewas featured on CNN, the BBC world service, LCI, France 24, France Info, FranceTV and many other national and international TV channels. Hind has also been a professional speaker since 2020. She spoke about technology and government at the world’s biggest conferences. |
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13:00 |
Lunch |
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14:00 |
Keynote 
Dr. Margaret HeffernanDr. Margaret Heffernan produced programmes for the BBC for 13 years. She then moved to the US where she spearheaded multimedia productions for Intuit, The Learning Company and Standard&Poors. She was Chief Executive of InfoMation Corporation, ZineZone Corporation and then iCast Corporation, was named one of the “Top 25” by Streaming Media magazine and one of the “Top 100 Media Executives” by The Hollywood Reporter. The author of six books, Margaret’s third book, Willful Blindness : Why We Ignore the Obvious at our Peril was named one of the most important business books of the decade by the Financial Times. In 2015, she was awarded the Transmission Prize for A Bigger Prize: Why Competition isn’t Everything and How We Do Better, described as “meticulously researched…engagingly written…universally relevant and hard to fault.” Her TED talks have been seen by over 13 million people and in 2015 TED published Beyond Measure: The Big Impact of Small Changes. In 2020, she published Uncharted: How to map the future , which quickly became a bestseller and was nominated for the Financial Times Best Business Book award, was one of Bloomberg’s Best Books of 2021 and was chosen as the “Medium Best of the Best” business book. 2025 saw the publication of Embracing Uncertainty: How Writers, Musicians and Artists Thrive in an Unpredictable World, described as ‘a timely, insightful book….Heffernan highlights what it takes to excel in turbulent times.’ In 2024, she was inducted into the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame, in recognition of her lasting impact on management thinking. She is a Professor of Practice at the University of Bath, Lead Faculty for the Forward Institute’s Responsible Leadership Programme and, through Merryck & Co., mentors CEOs and senior executives of major global organizations. She chairs the board of DACS and is a parish councillor.
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14:25 |
AI and the Future of Work: Unlocking Global Productivity 
Usman IkhlaqUsman joined techUK in January 2024 as Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence. He leads techUK’s AI Adoption programme, supporting members of all sizes and sectors in adopting AI at scale. His work involves identifying barriers to adoption, exploring solutions, and helping to unlock AI’s transformative potential, particularly its benefits for people, the economy, society, and the planet. He is also committed to advancing the UK’s AI sector and ensuring the UK remains a global leader in AI by working closely with techUK members, the UK Government, regulators, and devolved and local authorities. Since joining techUK, Usman has delivered a regular drumbeat of activity to engage members and advance techUK's AI programme. This has included two campaign weeks, the creation of the AI Adoption Hub (now the AI Hub), the AI Leader's Event Series, the Putting AI into Action webinar series and the Industrial AI sprint campaign. Before joining techUK, Usman worked as a policy, regulatory and government/public affairs professional in the advertising sector. He has also worked in sales, marketing, and FinTech. Usman holds an MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), a GDL and LLB from BPP Law School, and a BA from Queen Mary University of London. When he isn’t working, Usman enjoys spending time with his family and friends. He also has a keen interest in running, reading and travelling. 
Dr Abigail GilbertDr Gilbert is Co-Executive Director of the Institute for the Future of Work. In her role Abby ensures that IFOW has a strategic research agenda. Within this, she works to advise businesses and regulators, through IFOW's Responsible AI Sandbox, and government departments, such as the AI Safety Institute, to think through the impacts of algorithmic systems on work at the individual, firm and system level. Abby is a Policy Board Member of the University of Manchester Work and Equalities Institute, and a founding member of the Global Partnership on AI's Enterprise AI Steering Committee. 
Euan CameronEuan is PwC’s AI and emerging technology leader. He works closely with colleagues across PwC to identify opportunities to enhance value through the development and deployment of AI and other emerging technologies. This includes client facing solutions, enhancing our existing product suite and creating material efficiency in back office processes. A key part of his role is to help bridge the gap between business problems and technical solutions, spending time with clients and colleagues across all parts of the firm to help them demystify AI and data science, understand the technological ‘art of the possible’ and recognise the use cases to which it can be applied. He is also part of the leadership team responsible for developing PwC’s strategy and approach to generative and agentic AI. This includes both harnessing the significant business opportunities these technologies present as well as designing the appropriate governance and controls to ensure safe use. Prior to his current role, Euan worked as a strategy consultant for 20 years at Strategy& with a specific focus on the application of advanced analytics to complex business problems. Euan holds an MEng from the University of Cambridge and an MBA from INSEAD. 
Hanna Naima McCloskeyHanna (she/her) is of Algerian-British heritage and the Founder & CEO of Fearless Futures. She has worked for the UN, NGOs and the Royal Bank of Scotland, across communications, research and finance roles; and has lived, studied and worked in Israel-Palestine, Italy, USA, Sudan, Syria and the UK. She has a BA in English from the University of Cambridge and an MA in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, with a specialism in Conflict Management. Hanna is a passionate, compassionate and challenging educator, who brings nuanced and complex ideas in engaging and animating ways to participants, with a commitment, whether in the classroom or Fearless Futures consultancy for robust action. |
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15:15 |
Refreshment Break | |||
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15:45 |
The Growth Challenge: How to Scale Responsibly 
Emilie van der LandeWith a background in law and cybersecurity, Emilie seeks to advance responsible and human-centered innovation. Her areas of focus include digital identity, data privacy, and cyber strategy. 
Jakob MökanderJakob is the Director of Science & Technology Policy at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) and an International Fellow at the Digital Ethics Center (DEC), Yale University. At TBI, Jakob leads a global team of policy researchers to develop actionable recommendations on science and tech policy to political leaders in 35+ countries across the globe. His academic research focuses on how organizations can design and use AI systems in ways that are ethical, legal, and safe. Jakob holds a PhD from the Oxford Internet Institute (OII). Prior to joining TBI, Jakob worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in their Risk and Resilience practice. He has also been a visiting scholar at Princeton University’s Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP), and a research fellow at the Centre for the Governance of AI (GovAI). 
Ray Eitel-PorterRay is an expert in Responsible AI and AI Governance, and the author of Governing the Machine – How to navigate the risks of AI and unlock its true potential (forthcoming, Bloomsbury October 2025). He is Senior Adviser for Responsible AI to Accenture and, through Lumyz Advisory, provides independent consulting. Ray is a Senior Research Associate for Responsible AI at the Intellectual Forum, Jesus College Cambridge, and has led ethical AI research collaborations with Stanford, MIT, The Alan Turing Institute and the Institute for AI Ethics at Oxford University. He advises on principles and policy, governance, areas of risk (such as bias, explainability, reliability and sustainability), controls, capabilities and supporting platforms and technologies. 
Daniel QuirkeDaniel Quirke is Senior Public Policy Manager at Wayve, a London-based company pioneering AI to solve self-driving. Wayve is building the Embodied AI software that gives vehicles the safe driving intelligence to drive anywhere. Daniel works with policy partners around the world on the future regulatory framework for automated vehicles. Prior to joining Wayve, Daniel has worked across a range of technology, innovation and economic policy roles for the UK government, the Catapult network and London local and regional government. |
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| 16:30 |
Fireside chat |
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| 17:00 |
Closing session |
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| 17:10 |
Closing remarks |
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| 17:20 | Event close |
*draft agenda, subject to change
Innovation Alley
The dynamic Innovation Alley Exhibition will play home to fifty of the brightest early-stage companies, scale ups, and larger tech companies, all offering a dynamic and interactive showcase of their solutions. Explore the ongoing disruption of the technology sector and see the latest innovative ideas and solutions.
Tech Futures
Following its successful debut at Cambridge Tech Week 2024, the Tech Futures initiative is set to expand significantly in 2025. Aimed at students from sixth forms, skills bootcamps, colleges, and universities, the programme will offer opportunities facilitated by Form the Future to attend conference sessions, engage in hands-on tech activities, explore Innovation Alley, connect with exhibitors, network with industry delegates, and participate in a three-day hackathon, HackEd, delivered by TechEducators.
Workshops and Roundtables
For details of Workshops and Roundtables running alongside the main programme please follow this link. All expressions of interest must be received by 31 August.
Tuesday 10:00-11:00 Unlocking Investment Potential in Female Founders
Hosted by UBS
Only 2% of venture capital funding goes to women-led companies globally, despite female founders generating 2.5x more revenue per dollar invested. The entrepreneurial ecosystem is ripe for transformation, with the potential for equal gender participation in entrepreneurship to unlock global GDP by an estimated rise from 3-6%. Despite systemic barriers continuing to limit female founders' access to capital we see some positive indicators in the right direction.
UBS is hosting a panel discussion during Cambridge Tech Week to explore the opportunities to fund more women founders, revolutionize investment strategies, explore what is working and what’s not and discuss what more can be done to unlock the full economic potential of women-led businesses. The discussion will be run by Emma Wheeler, Head of Women’s Wealth at UBS, and our panellists of female founders and venture capitalists who will share their valuable experience during the workshop.
Tuesday 16:00-17:00 Seeing Around Corners: Strategies for Investing in Frontier Technologies
Hosted by Edenbase
Join us for an exclusive LP Roundtable at Cambridge Tech Week with seasoned entrepreneurs and investors Daniel Doll-Steinberg and Eric Van Der Kleij from EdenBase, a venture investment platform and ecosystem.
Daniel and Eric bring deep entrepreneurial and investment experience having built and exited multiple ventures, managed capital as a family office and created ecosystems that have supported the growth of more than one-third of the UK’s unicorns. In addition, Daniel is a Bloomberg Book of the Year nominated author in the “People in Leadership” category for Unsupervised: Navigating and Influencing a World Controlled by Powerful New Technologies.
In this interactive discussion, we will explore:
- What counts as a frontier technology—and why these breakthroughs matter now
- How to approach early-stage investing in these technologies and where value can be generated for investors
- The critical factors for success when backing frontier technology ventures
This roundtable offers a rare opportunity to gain insights directly from leaders who have not only invested in but actively shaped the ecosystems around some of the most transformative technologies of our time.
Daniel Doll-Steinberg
Eric Van der Kleij
Tuesday 16:30 – 18:00 Technology Adoption For Leaders
Hosted by Cambridge Management Consulting
Join us for an exclusive event tailored for senior technology leaders in large corporations. The Technology Adoption For Leaders event offers a unique peer-to-peer platform to explore the planning, strategy, and practical application of deep tech in the corporate world.
- What is the impact of AI on enterprise technology, and how can it improve efficiency?
- How do you discover, and adopt, the technology solutions that will transform your organisation?
- What is the best way to sustainably future proof your business and its supply chain?
- How do you look at intrapreneurship within your organisation?
This is your chance to build valuable relationships, exchange groundbreaking ideas, and gain insights from experts who excel at transforming deep tech into world-first organisations.
Interested in being part of this transformative experience? Interested parties should complete this form by no later than 31 August, ideally sooner as spaces are strictly limited. Please note that places are limited to leadership-level corporate users.
Networking Events
We understand that networking is one of the most important reasons for people to attend events like Cambridge Tech week.
On Tuesday, the day culminates with a prestigious dinner - Accelerating Innovation: The Tech Leaders’ Dinner - bringing together the most influential minds in business and technology for thought-provoking discussions and unparalleled networking.
Held in St Catharine’s College, drinks commence at 6pm, with dinner at 7pm.
Anyone interested in attending should book their tickets whilst spaces are still available.
Featured Fringe events
Part of the success of Cambridge Tech Week is the involvement from the broader community who run complimentary Fringe events throughout the week.
Here we highlight some of the key Fringe events for you to consider, running on the Tuesday:
Tuesday is proudly supported by
Diamond Sponsors
