George Balston

George Balston is Deputy Programme Director, Defence and Security at The Alan Turing Institute, the UK’s national institute for data science and artificial intelligence. He leads a portfolio of work applying data science and artificial intelligence to national security, cyber security, and defence challenges, working closely with national and international partners. Prior to joining the Turing, George worked within UK Government as a Researcher, Data Scientist, and Technical Lead, focused on developing and delivering analytical capabilities.

George is a member of the Royal Society working group on Privacy Enhancing Technologies, and leads a joint Alan Turing Institute / RUSI project considering the implications of Privacy Enhancing Technologies to national security. He sits on the Department of Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS) AI Risk Advisory group, and is also an Honorary Research Fellow at UCL

His research interests include AI, privacy, government tech, and climate security, and he has presented novel research in such areas at international government conferences. He holds a first class degree in Music.