Professor Tom Crick MBE FLSW FAcSS
I am Professor of Digital Society and Policy at the University of Bristol (2026–present) and Chief Scientific Adviser to the UK Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (2023–present).
My work sits at the intersection of digital technologies, public policy, research and innovation, and civic and cultural institutions. Across academia, government and public service, I have focused on how digital and data-driven technologies reshape society, education, the economy, public institutions, and the wider information ecosystem. At DCMS, I lead work on science, research and innovation, evidence systems, and the responsible adoption of emerging technologies across the department's sectors, including culture, media, sport, tourism, civil society and the creative industries. This includes work on artificial intelligence, data governance, digital society, online trust and safety, information integrity, and the societal implications of technological change.
Alongside my government role, my interdisciplinary academic work has focused on digital policy, computing and data education, AI and society, public sector innovation, and the broader question of what makes a good digital society. My research has resulted in more than 235 publications spanning computer science, software engineering, computing education, digital policy, artificial intelligence, public policy, and digital society, supported by over £10 million in competitive research and innovation funding.
Before joining Bristol, I was Professor of Digital Policy at Swansea University (2018–2026), where I also served as Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Civic Mission. Earlier in my career, I led major curriculum and education reform work in Wales, particularly in computing and digital education, helping shape the development of the new Curriculum for Wales and wider digital skills policy.
I have also held a range of public, professional, regulatory and governance roles across research, infrastructure, communications, health and civic institutions. These include elected leadership roles within the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM); previous service as Vice-President of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT; and non-executive and advisory roles including Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, Swansea Bay University Health Board, the National Infrastructure Commission for Wales, and Ofcom’s Advisory Committee for Wales. In addition to my academic and policy work, I serve as Editor-in-Chief of The Computer Journal and co-editor of the Wales Journal of Education. I currently serve on the Council of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and contribute to a range of national and international advisory activities relating to AI, digital governance, data policy, and research and innovation systems, including through the United Nations and ALLEA.
Earlier in my career, I held a range of fellowships and public engagement roles spanning data science, software sustainability, science communication, and higher education teaching, including as a Nesta Data Science Fellow, Software Sustainability Institute Fellow, British Science Association Media Fellow, and HEA National Teaching Fellow.
My work has been recognised through honours including the IET Achievement Medal (2022), BCS Lovelace Medal (2023), the Hugh Owen Medal of the Learned Society of Wales (2023), and election as an Honorary Fellow of the British Science Association (2024). I am a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales (2020) and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (2022), and was previously a Fellow of the Alan Turing Institute (2024–2026). I was appointed MBE in the 2017 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to computer science and the promotion of computer science education.
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Digital Society & Policy 