Hetan Shah, Chief Executive of the British Academy, joins DSI as Visiting Professor in Practice

The DSI is delighted that Hetan Shah is joining as a Visiting Professor in Practice. Hetan brings extensive experience from senior roles across the UK's research and public policy landscape to support the growth and development of the Institute as it evolves into a Global Institute for Technology and Society.

Hetan has served as Chief Executive of the British Academy, the UK’s national academy for the humanities and social sciences, since 2020. The Academy funds research across these disciplines and plays a leading role in shaping public policy and public debate. Before joining the British Academy, Hetan served as Executive Director of the Royal Statistical Society for eight years. He also helped to found the Ada Lovelace Institute and served as the Vice Chair of the Board.

Among his non-executive roles Hetan was appointed in 2024 by the UK Parliament to the board of the National Audit Office, the UK’s independent spending watchdog. He is Chair of Our World in Data, a non-profit organisation which brings together research and data to increase understanding of the world’s largest problems and drive informed action to solve them. Hetan is a Visiting Professor at the Policy Institute at Kings College London, and a Fellow at Birkbeck, University of London. He also serves on several other advisory boards, including the UCL Policy Lab and the Resolution Foundation.

Hetan Shah, Chief Executive of the British Academy, said:

"I am delighted to join the LSE’s Data Science Institute as Visiting Professor in Practice. For AI to serve the public interest it is critical to have a social science perspective on these tools, and that is what the Institute gives us. I am hugely looking forward to working with colleagues at the DSI, including at the inaugural Global Forum for AI this autumn."