25 Keynote Speakers on AI Ethics in Europe: A Compiled Directory for 2026
- Jonno White
- Mar 23
- 18 min read
Updated: Jul 29
This directory lists 25 AI ethics keynote speakers based in Europe, grouped into policy and regulation voices, academic and philosophical voices, enterprise practitioners, and communication, audit and sustainability specialists. Every entry states the person's current role and links to the official profile page used to check it.
The right choice depends on whether your audience needs the EU AI Act explained, philosophical depth, operating controls, algorithmic auditing, or a clear public explanation of how AI affects people and institutions. Those are four different sessions. Choosing between them is a more useful first decision than comparing individual names.
Last updated 28 July 2026.
Why the Timing Matters Right Now
The European regulatory position changed in the last week of July 2026, which matters directly if you are briefing a speaker this month. Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, the Digital Omnibus on AI, was published in the Official Journal on 24 July 2026 and entered into force on 27 July 2026. It defers the AI Act obligations for Annex III high-risk systems from 2 August 2026 to 2 December 2027, and the Annex I product-embedded high-risk obligations from 2 August 2027 to 2 August 2028.
Most of the Act's transparency duties still start on 2 August 2026, together with the governance and penalty provisions. A speaker still presenting the pre-omnibus timeline will give your audience the wrong dates. That is now a reasonable question to ask before you book, and it is worth asking in writing.
Why AI Ethics Speakers Matter in Europe in 2026
AI ethics is no longer a side conversation for European organisations. It now sits inside decisions about procurement, data, people, product design, leadership accountability and regulatory readiness. A useful keynote should help an audience understand not only what the rules say, but how judgement, culture and operating systems shape what happens after the event.
The 2026 Stanford AI Index reports that documented AI incidents rose to 362 in 2025 from 233 in 2024. Its summary states, "Documented AI incidents continued to rise". IBM reported on 8 June 2026 that 77 per cent of surveyed organisations said AI adoption had already outpaced their governance capabilities, while only 11 per cent of the 2,000 senior technology executives surveyed believed they were fully ready for the scale of AI agent deployment expected in the next year.
Those two figures describe the gap a good keynote has to close. Incidents are rising, governance is behind deployment, and the people held accountable for AI often do not control it. Your audience does not need to be told that AI ethics matters. They need help deciding who owns what, and by when.
How This Directory Was Compiled
This is a compiled directory. The order carries no judgement of merit, and the numbers exist only so you can refer to an entry.
Each entry was checked in one way, and only one way. The person's current role was read from an official institutional or personal profile page, and that page is linked directly beneath the entry so you can check it yourself in one click. Where a previously published role had changed, the entry was updated to the current role rather than the better known one. A sample of entries was re-checked on 28 July 2026.
An earlier version of this page listed 35 people. Ten names were removed where the current role, the relevance to AI ethics, or a realistic booking path could not be established. Reducing the count was the honest outcome of checking, not an editorial preference for a shorter list.
Availability, format and commercial booking arrangements vary considerably, especially for institutional officials and full-time academics. Confirm any engagement directly with the speaker or their authorised representative. If an entry here is wrong or out of date, email jonno@consultclarity.org and it will be checked against the source and corrected.
Which Group Should You Start With
The directory contains four policy and regulation voices, nine academic and philosophical voices, six enterprise practitioners, and six speakers focused on communication, auditing or sustainability. That split describes the entries on this page and nothing wider. It was compiled from the list below, not from a survey of the European market.
Start with policy and regulation when your audience needs the current law explained by people close to the institutions that write and enforce it. The trade-off is availability, because several of these speakers hold positions where appearing at your event depends on institutional approval rather than a commercial booking.
Start with the academic and philosophical group when the event needs conceptual depth, research evidence and rigour on fairness, privacy and rights. The trade-off is pitch. A speaker who is superb in front of research peers may aim above a general business audience unless you brief them carefully.
Start with enterprise and practice when leaders need operating models, controls, standards and implementation lessons they can use on Monday. The trade-off is vocabulary, because these speakers sometimes assume a governance fluency the room does not yet have.
Start with communication, audit and sustainability when the audience needs complex ideas made accessible, or when the event centres on auditing, public understanding, sustainability or geopolitical impact. The trade-off is depth on article-level compliance detail, which is usually not where these speakers are strongest.
Policy and Regulation
Choose this group when the audience needs the EU AI Act, public policy, regulation or democratic accountability explained by people close to the institutions and debates shaping Europe.
1. Marietje Schaake
Marietje Schaake connects European technology policy with democracy, power and human rights.
A former Member of the European Parliament, she now works as a non-resident fellow at Stanford's Cyber Policy Center and a fellow at the Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. Her book The Tech Coup examines how private technology power can outpace democratic control.
Best suited to policy conferences, board audiences and events exploring digital sovereignty, democracy and platform power.
2. Kay Firth-Butterfield
Kay Firth-Butterfield brings a long view of responsible AI governance across government, business and civil society.
She is the CEO of Good Tech Advisory and previously served as the World Economic Forum's inaugural Head of AI and Machine Learning. Her work is especially relevant when an audience needs to move beyond principles and understand how institutions can shape technology around human outcomes.
Best suited to global leadership summits, cross-sector forums and executive audiences building responsible AI strategy.
3. Kai Zenner
Kai Zenner offers a close view of how European digital policy is negotiated and translated into law.
He serves as Head of Office and Digital Policy Adviser for MEP Axel Voss and is a Fellow of Practice at the TUM Think Tank. His experience spans the EU AI Act, data policy and the institutional process behind Europe's digital rulebook, which makes him a useful choice for audiences trying to understand why the omnibus timeline moved.
Best suited to Brussels events, legal and compliance audiences, and conferences needing practical EU policy context.
4. Lucilla Sioli
Lucilla Sioli provides direct institutional insight into Europe's AI strategy and the implementation of the EU AI Act.
She is Director of the EU AI Office within the European Commission's Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology. Her remit includes coordinating European AI strategy, implementation of the AI Act and international collaboration on trustworthy AI. Availability may depend on institutional approval rather than a commercial speaker booking.
Best suited to policy summits, regulated-industry forums and events seeking an official European Commission perspective.
Academic and Philosophical
Choose this group when the event needs conceptual depth, research evidence and a rigorous examination of fairness, privacy, responsibility, rights or human flourishing.
5. Luciano Floridi
Luciano Floridi gives audiences a rigorous philosophical framework for understanding digital ethics and the ethics of AI.
He is the John K. Castle Professor in the Practice of Cognitive Science and founding director of Yale's Digital Ethics Center. His research covers the philosophy of information, digital ethics, AI ethics and the philosophy of technology.
Best suited to university events, senior policy audiences and conferences seeking a deep conceptual foundation.
6. Virginia Dignum
Virginia Dignum links responsible AI principles with the engineering and governance of autonomous systems.
She is Professor of Responsible Artificial Intelligence and Director of the AI Policy Lab at Umeå University. She also serves on the United Nations High-Level Advisory Body on AI. Her work helps technical and policy audiences understand how values, regulation and system design fit together.
Best suited to technical leadership conferences, public policy events and audiences working on autonomous or agentic systems.
7. Carissa Véliz
Carissa Véliz makes privacy, prediction and digital power understandable for broad leadership audiences.
She is Associate Professor at the University of Oxford's Institute for Ethics in AI and the author of Privacy Is Power. Her work is particularly useful for events examining how data collection, prediction and automated decisions affect freedom and organisational responsibility.
Best suited to privacy conferences, leadership events and public audiences exploring data power and human autonomy.
8. Sandra Wachter
Sandra Wachter focuses on the legal and technical questions behind fairness, explainability and accountability.
She is Professor of Technology and Regulation at the Oxford Internet Institute and Humboldt Professor of Technology and Regulation at the Hasso Plattner Institute. Her research helps audiences examine when automated decisions are fair, what meaningful explanations require and how governance can be made operational.
Best suited to legal, technical and risk audiences dealing with algorithmic accountability and explainability.
9. Shannon Vallor
Shannon Vallor explores the character, judgement and institutions needed to live well with AI.
She holds the Baillie Gifford Chair in the Ethics of Data and Artificial Intelligence at the University of Edinburgh. Her work brings moral philosophy into practical conversations about technology, leadership and human flourishing.
Best suited to leadership conferences, universities and events connecting AI with values, judgement and human capability.
10. Joanna Bryson
Joanna Bryson brings a technically informed perspective to accountability, regulation and the social effects of AI.
She is Professor of Ethics and Technology at the Hertie School in Berlin. Her research examines intelligence, cooperation and the political consequences of digital systems, making her a strong fit where audiences need both technical understanding and public policy analysis.
Best suited to government, academic and technology audiences examining accountability and institutional design.
11. Mark Coeckelbergh
Mark Coeckelbergh explains how AI changes human relationships, work, politics and everyday life.
He is Professor of Philosophy of Media and Technology at the University of Vienna. His work covers AI ethics, robotics, climate and political philosophy, with a strong focus on how technology reshapes relationships and social practices.
Best suited to future of work events, universities and public forums seeking a human-centred philosophical lens.
12. Mireille Hildebrandt
Mireille Hildebrandt brings legal depth to questions about computation, rights and the rule of law.
She is Emeritus Professor at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, where she held the chair on Interfacing Law and Technology, and Emeritus Professor of Smart Environments, Data Protection and the Rule of Law at Radboud University. Her work examines how data-driven systems affect legal protection, interpretation and human agency. That makes her especially relevant for audiences concerned with constitutional and legal safeguards.
Best suited to legal conferences, judicial audiences and events focused on rights, regulation and computational systems.
13. Christoph Lütge
Christoph Lütge connects business ethics, responsible innovation and organisational decision-making.
He is Professor and Chair of Business Ethics at the Technical University of Munich and directs its Institute for Ethics in Artificial Intelligence. His work is useful for corporate audiences weighing competitiveness, governance and ethical responsibility together.
Best suited to corporate ethics events, board programmes and technology conferences seeking a business-oriented academic voice.
Enterprise and Practice
Choose this group when leaders need governance models, standards, controls and implementation lessons that move responsible AI into everyday organisational practice.
14. Ivana Bartoletti
Ivana Bartoletti translates responsible AI, privacy and regulation into enterprise governance.
She is Vice President and Global Chief Privacy and AI Governance Officer at Wipro. Her work sits at the intersection of business strategy, law and society, with a focus on embedding legal safeguards, privacy and ethical principles into AI at scale.
Best suited to boards, privacy conferences and enterprise audiences building governance across large organisations.
15. Maria Luciana Axente
Maria Luciana Axente helps leaders turn responsible AI from a principle into an operating capability.
She is the founder and CEO of Responsible Intelligence and previously led AI public policy and ethics work at PwC UK. Her experience spans corporate governance, public policy and international advisory work, with a strong emphasis on blind spots, human impact and practical accountability.
Best suited to executive audiences, professional services events and conferences seeking an applied governance roadmap.
16. Sue Turner OBE
Sue Turner gives leaders a practical route into AI governance without assuming deep technical knowledge.
She founded AI Governance Limited to help organisations understand, govern and use AI responsibly. Her background combines executive leadership, law, AI and data science, and she serves as a Professor in Practice for AI and Technologies at the University of Bristol Business School.
Best suited to board development, public sector and nonprofit audiences needing practical governance education.
17. Stephanie Hare
Stephanie Hare makes technology ethics clear, grounded and accessible to non-technical audiences.
She is a researcher, broadcaster and author whose work focuses on technology, politics and history. Her book Technology Is Not Neutral gives audiences a practical way to ask who benefits, who bears risk and which values are being built into a system.
Best suited to general conference audiences, media events and leadership teams needing plain-language technology ethics.
18. Meeri Haataja
Meeri Haataja focuses on how organisations operationalise AI governance across systems, models and regulations.
She is the CEO and founder of Saidot, a European AI governance platform company. Her work is especially relevant for audiences moving from policy documents to inventories, risk assessments, controls and ongoing governance processes.
Best suited to enterprise AI events, governance teams and technical leaders implementing oversight at scale.
19. Ansgar Koene
Ansgar Koene bridges AI regulation, technical standards and the human impact of automated systems.
He is EY's Global AI Ethics and Regulatory Leader and a part-time Senior Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham. His work spans policymakers, regulators, industry leaders and standards bodies, helping audiences connect governance requirements with technical practice.
Best suited to standards, regulatory and industry events with mixed policy and technical audiences.
Communication, Audit and Sustainability
Choose this group when the audience needs complex ideas made accessible, or when the event focuses on auditing, public understanding, sustainability, work or geopolitical impact.
20. Hannah Fry
Hannah Fry makes algorithms, data and human judgement understandable to large public audiences.
She joined the University of Cambridge in January 2025 as its first Professor of the Public Understanding of Mathematics, and is a widely recognised broadcaster and author. Her strength is translating complex systems into memorable stories while keeping the human consequences in view.
Best suited to large conferences, public events and mixed audiences needing engaging explanation rather than compliance detail.
21. Gemma Galdon-Clavell
Gemma Galdon-Clavell brings hands-on algorithmic auditing and accountability into the AI ethics conversation.
She is the founder and CEO of Eticas, an independent algorithmic auditing organisation working in this field since 2012. Her work focuses on testing high-stakes systems in practice, identifying harms and translating rights and values into measurable audit work.
Best suited to audit, risk and public interest technology events seeking concrete examples of accountability in practice.
22. Gina Neff
Gina Neff examines how AI changes work, institutions and the way societies make decisions.
She is Executive Director of the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at the University of Cambridge and Professor of Responsible AI at Queen Mary University of London. Her work helps audiences connect AI adoption with labour, organisational change and democratic accountability.
Best suited to future of work events, policy conferences and leadership audiences managing organisational change.
23. Aimee van Wynsberghe
Aimee van Wynsberghe connects applied AI ethics with sustainability, robotics and responsible innovation.
She is Alexander von Humboldt Professor for Applied Ethics of Artificial Intelligence and Director of the Institute for Science and Ethics at the University of Bonn. She also founded the Bonn Sustainable AI Lab, giving her a distinctive angle on environmental and social responsibility.
Best suited to sustainability, robotics and responsible innovation conferences seeking an applied ethics perspective.
24. Verity Harding
Verity Harding helps leaders understand AI as a political, democratic and geopolitical choice.
She directs the AI and Geopolitics Project at the University of Cambridge's Bennett School of Public Policy and founded Formation Advisory. Her work is useful when an audience needs to see that AI governance is not only technical compliance, but also a question of power, public institutions and democratic participation.
Best suited to policy, geopolitical and leadership events exploring the societal choices behind AI.
25. Sarah Spiekermann-Hoff
Sarah Spiekermann-Hoff connects digital ethics with value-sensitive design and responsible business practice.
She leads the Institute for Information Systems and Society at WU Vienna. Her research and teaching focus on digital ethics, privacy, responsible innovation and how organisations can build values into technology design rather than adding ethics after deployment.
Best suited to product, innovation and business audiences working on responsible design and digital values.
A Practical Way to Choose the Right Speaker
Start with the audience's decision, not the speaker's reputation. A board that must assign accountability for AI needs a different session from a public conference trying to explain algorithms, or a legal audience interpreting the EU AI Act. Write one sentence describing what people should understand or do differently after the keynote, then shortlist the speakers whose current work matches that outcome.
Then test each candidate against four questions, in order. The first is level: can they explain the issue at your audience's level rather than at the level of their own peers? The second is decisions: do they connect ethics to choices people in the room actually make, or do they stop at principles?
The third question is jurisdiction and sector. Is their current role and expertise relevant to where your audience operates and what it is regulated by? The fourth is evidence: can they supply a current session description and a recent recording without a chase?
These four checks usually matter more than a long list of credentials. A speaker who fails the third question is the most common expensive mistake, because the talk is genuinely good and the room still cannot use it.
A Worked Example
The following walkthrough is an illustration of the method. It is not an account of a specific client engagement, and it names no real organisation.
Suppose you are programming a one-day event in October 2026 for 200 people. The audience splits roughly evenly between compliance officers and product leads at mid-sized European software companies. Your board has asked for one thing: a defensible answer to who signs off on AI risk.
Write the outcome sentence first. It might read: by the end of the day, every attendee can name the person in their own organisation who owns AI risk sign-off, and the three questions that person must be able to answer. That sentence immediately rules out a purely philosophical keynote, however good, because it will not produce a named owner.
Now apply the four questions. Audience level rules out a speaker who pitches primarily to academic peers. Connection to real decisions favours the enterprise and practice group. Jurisdictional relevance favours someone who can explain what actually changed on 27 July 2026 and what still starts on 2 August 2026.
That reasoning produces a two-part shortlist rather than a single name. A policy or regulation voice opens the day and establishes the current legal position. An enterprise practitioner closes it with the governance mechanics. You then pair the keynote with a ninety-minute workshop whose only output is a one-page draft of decision rights, because the outcome sentence asked for a named owner and a keynote alone will not produce one.
Notice what this method does not do. It does not tell you which speaker is better. It tells you which speaker fits the decision your audience has to make, which is a different and far more answerable question.
Practical Booking Questions Organisers Ask
This page publishes no fee figures, for the reason given in the limitations below. The variables that move a fee are consistent, though, and asking about all of them at once saves a great deal of time. Those variables are travel distance and whether travel days are billable, whether the session is a keynote alone or a keynote plus workshop, whether a bureau commission applies, how much tailoring you want, and whether you need recording and reuse rights. A fee quoted without those terms is not comparable to another fee quoted without them.
Language of delivery is a real variable on a European programme rather than a detail. Several people in this directory work primarily in English but are based in German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian or Swedish-speaking institutions, and some present in more than one language. Ask directly rather than assuming, and ask early, because it narrows a shortlist faster than almost any other question.
Virtual delivery suits some content far better than others. Policy and regulation material generally survives a remote session well, while content built on audience interaction, live examples or workshop follow-through usually does not. If your event is hybrid, ask how the speaker handles a room and a stream at the same time, because the honest answer is often that they prioritise one.
Lead time deserves more attention than it usually gets. Senior academics and institutional officials commonly have teaching, committee and travel commitments set months ahead, and institutional officials may additionally need internal approval before accepting. Treat a longer lead time as a requirement for those two groups rather than a courtesy.
What This Directory Does Not Tell You
This page is deliberately limited, and it is worth being clear about where those limits sit.
It does not include speaking fees. Public fee information for this group is inconsistent and frequently out of date, so any band published here would be a guess presented as guidance. Ask the speaker or their representative directly.
It does not confirm availability, willingness to travel, or whether a person accepts commercial bookings at all. Several entries hold institutional or full-time academic positions where that answer is governed by their employer rather than by them.
It is compiled rather than surveyed. The four-way split into policy, academic, enterprise and communication voices describes the 25 entries on this page and nothing wider. It is not a claim about the European market as a whole.
It is a snapshot. Roles in this field change quickly, and several entries changed since the previous version of this page. Each entry states the source used, so if you are reading this months later, open the profile link before you make an approach.
It is not exhaustive. Twenty-five people cannot represent every credible voice in AI ethics across Europe, and omission from this page is not a judgement about anyone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did the EU AI Act deadlines change in 2026?
Yes. Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 entered into force on 27 July 2026. It deferred the Annex III high-risk obligations to 2 December 2027 and the Annex I product-embedded high-risk obligations to 2 August 2028. Most transparency duties and the governance and penalty provisions still begin on 2 August 2026, so ask which version of the timeline a speaker's current deck uses.
What does an AI ethics keynote speaker actually cover?
An AI ethics keynote can cover fairness, accountability, privacy, transparency, human oversight, social impact and responsible innovation. The strongest topic depends entirely on the audience. A legal audience may need the EU AI Act itself, while executives usually need governance roles, decision rights and practical controls that connect ethical principles to everyday operations.
Who can explain the EU AI Act to executives?
For direct European policy context, consider speakers with current EU institutional, legislative or regulatory experience, such as Lucilla Sioli or Kai Zenner. For enterprise implementation, speakers such as Ivana Bartoletti, Meeri Haataja or Ansgar Koene connect regulation with governance systems, risk controls and organisational accountability. Pairing one from each group works well when the audience needs both.
Should I choose an academic or an enterprise practitioner?
Choose an academic when the goal is conceptual depth, independent research, or rigorous examination of rights, fairness and human impact. Choose an enterprise practitioner when the audience needs operating models, controls, standards and implementation lessons. A keynote and panel combination works well when the event genuinely needs both perspectives.
Can European Commission officials be booked as commercial speakers?
Not always. Institutional officials may speak at events as part of their public role, subject to approval, availability and conflict rules. Do not assume a commercial booking pathway exists. Contact the institution through its official channel, and keep a second shortlist of independent speakers who can cover the same policy ground.
What should I ask before booking an AI ethics speaker?
Ask for a current session description, a recent recording, audience examples and the exact learning outcome. Confirm whether the content is policy, philosophy, technology or implementation focused. Also ask how the speaker will tailor examples to your sector, location and audience knowledge, and whether a workshop or moderated discussion is available.
In Full Transparency
I also speak on leading people and teams through AI-driven change, so I have an interest in this subject. I have deliberately kept my own work outside the directory, because this page exists to help you compare other current voices honestly.
My own fit is narrower than the people listed above. It is the leadership, communication and team side of AI transformation, rather than a technical or legal keynote on the AI Act itself.
Conclusion
The right AI ethics keynote speaker is the person whose current work matches the decision your audience must make. Europe's regulatory position moved again in July 2026, so check roles, relevance and the version of the timeline a speaker presents before you book. A focused shortlist built around a clear audience outcome will almost always produce a stronger event than choosing from a large undifferentiated list.
Your next step is small and concrete. Write the outcome sentence for your event, in one line, before you contact anybody. Then use it to cut this list of 25 down to three.
If your event needs a practical keynote on leading people and teams through AI-driven change, email jonno@consultclarity.org with your audience, location and date. I will reply in writing with a clear fit assessment and options.
About the Author
I am Jonno White, a Brisbane-based leadership consultant, keynote speaker and Certified Working Genius Facilitator, certified through Patrick Lencioni's Table Group. I am the author of Step Up or Step Out, and I host The Leadership Conversations Podcast. I work with schools, corporates and nonprofits around the world.
I compiled and verified this directory, and I am responsible for any error in it.
Next Read
If your event is not Europe-specific, the worldwide directory covers a broader set of AI ethics and governance voices using the same compilation method and the same verification approach.
For adjacent decisions, there are companion directories on AI strategy keynote speakers for executives, AI and team dynamics keynote speakers and AI and decision-making keynote speakers. Leadership teams preparing for the people side of this change may also find leading your team through AI useful before choosing a speaker.