Putting AI into Action: an 'in conversation' webinar on how AI adoption can support UK businesses to become 'AI ready'

Usman Ikhlaq

Programme Manager - Artificial Intelligence, techUK

Usman joined techUK in January 2024 as Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence.

Prior to joining techUK, Usman worked as a policy, government affairs and public affairs professional in the advertising sector. He has also worked in sales and marketing and FinTech.

Usman is a graduate of the London School of Economics, BPP Law School and 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.

Varun Sarin

Managing Consultant, Credera

Varun is a Managing Consultant at Credera, with over 15 years of industry experience driving change at top global brands. Specializing in redefining operational models and integrating cutting-edge technologies like Generative AI for marketing teams, he excels in delivering impactful results and communicating purpose.

Richard Ward

Government Relations, IBM

Richard Ward is a member of IBM’s government and regulatory affairs team. Based in London, he has responsibility for policy issues affecting IBM and broader UK business. He is chair of the techUK working group on data protection and a member of other business data protection groups, including the data committee of the International Regulatory Strategy Group in the City of London. He is an inaugural member of the UK Government’s International Data Transfers Expert Council and an active participant in UK discussions concerning the Global CBPR and Free Flow of Data with Trust.

He has spent most of his career in IBM in a variety of technical, sales and management roles as well as a period in government as an advisor on regulatory policy.

He has a particular interest in data protection and the ethical deployment of AI, cyber security and on the impact of technology adoption on competitiveness. He has contributed to a number of reviews on technology adoption and productivity including the ‘Made Smarter’ review.

He holds a degree in Physics from the University of Leeds.

Iain Mackay

Director, AI Safety and Government, Faculty AI

Iain leads AI Safety at Faculty, a leading applied AI company with over ten years' experience developing and deploying AI safely and responsibly. He has delivered pioneering research for the UK AI Safety Institute and collaborates with frontier labs and others to support safe AI development. Other clients have included government agencies and the nuclear industry. Before joining Faculty, he was a UK civil servant.