The chief executive of the UK’s leading artificial intelligence institute is stepping down after a staff revolt and government calls for a strategic overhaul.
Jean Innes has led the Alan Turing Institute since 2023, but her position has come under pressure amid widespread discontent within the organisation and a demand from the institute’s biggest funder, the UK government, for a change in direction.
ATI said the search was already under way for a replacement for Innes, who held senior roles in the civil service and technology industry before her appointment.
Innes said on Thursday: “It has been a great honour to lead the UK’s national institute for data science and artificial intelligence, implementing a new strategy and overseeing significant organisational transformation. With that work concluding, and a new chapter starting for the Institute, now is the right time for new leadership and I am excited about what it will achieve.”
ATI has been beset by internal strife since last year as staff protested against internal changes, culminating in a group of employees filing a whistleblower complaint to the Charity Commission last month.
