Keivan Navaie

Chair Professor of Intelligent Networks at Lancaster University’s School of Computing and Communications

Speaker

Keivan Navaie is Chair Professor of Intelligent Networks at Lancaster University’s School of Computing and Communications and a member of the Independent Scientific Advisory Committee at the Alan Turing Institute, where he oversees delivery of the UK government’s £100 million BridgeAI programme. He previously served as Principal AI Technology Advisor in the UK regulatory sector regulators. He is also Program Lead for MATS Research (Machine Alignment, Transparency, and Security), a leading non-profit research program that enables experienced researchers to pursue ambitious, long-horizon work on AI safety, security, and alignment.

His work sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, risk, regulation, privacy, and complex technological systems. His research spans trustworthy and privacy-preserving AI, agentic AI, generative AI governance, data protection, and the responsible development of AI-enabled communications and critical infrastructure. He has contributed to regulatory approaches to generative AI and has examined issues including transparency, accountability, fairness, model unlearning, web scraping, and the lawful use of personal data in AI systems.

His recent work focuses on AI safety and alignment, examining how increasingly capable AI systems can be developed, evaluated, and governed so that they remain reliable, controllable, and aligned with human objectives, including in high-stakes and potentially catastrophic scenarios. His work also examines the epistemics of AI safety and alignment: how evidence, uncertainty, assumptions, and different forms of expertise should inform decisions about advanced AI systems.Keivan has advised government bodies and technology organizations on AI governance, safety, and regulatory compliance. He is particularly interested in how organizations can identify, assess, and allocate responsibility for AI-related risks, and in the practical limitations of current regulatory, assurance, and liability frameworks.

In recognition of his contributions, he is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), a Chartered Engineer in the UK, and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA).