BRIEF — Digital guru named BenevolentAI CEO

Tech industry veteran Joanna Shields, who since 2016 has been UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Special Representative on Internet Safety, has been named the new chief executive of BenevolentAI, an artificial intelligence (AI) company focused on health and drug development.

Baroness Shields’ CV makes for impressive reading. As well as working for Google, Facebook and other leading technology companies, she has held roles with the UK government including Minister for Internet Safety and Security, Under-Secretary of State, and Advisor on the Digital Economy to former Prime Minister David Cameron.

Last month BenevolentAI raised $115 million in a financing that is one of the largest to date in the growing AI pharma sector. It takes the firm’s fundraising to more than $200 million since 2013.