Alison Powell

Dr Alison Powell is a writer and Associate Professor in Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where she directs the MSc stream in Data & Society. Her work on ‘inclusive innovation’ examines the narratives and conceptual frameworks that shape more just, inclusive, and sustainable technological futures.

Her research combines critical analysis with creative and participatory methods, including practices such as ‘data walking’ for collaborative knowledge production and ‘biographical networking’ for ethical reflection. Across this work, she places particular emphasis on ethics in practice within technology design and governance, addressing questions of epistemic justice and social and ecological sustainability.

With over twenty years’ experience analysing technology development and social change, Alison’s scholarship spans open-source software production, data governance, and AI and data ethics. A defining feature of her career is a sustained commitment to clear and accessible public communication.

She has delivered public talks at a wide range of cultural and scientific institutions, including the V&A (where she famously disassembled a toaster while discussing the philosophy of technology), the Design Museum, the Royal Society, the British Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, and Porto City Hall. Her keynote lectures include invitations from the Canadian Centre for Architecture, the Association of Internet Researchers, and the Alan Turing Institute.

Alison has also contributed to major public exhibitions, directing the Understanding Automated Decisions exhibition at the LSE Gallery and authoring a commissioned essay for City in the Cloud, Data on the Ground at the University of Munich Gallery.

Previously, she served as Director of the JUST AI Network with the Ada Lovelace Institute, playing a key role in diversifying data and AI research in the UK, and as a member of the ALLEA Experts Group on Misinformation. She currently advises the Better EdTech Futures project and the Operationalising Ethics for AI project.

Her book, Undoing Optimisation: Civic Action and Smart Cities (Yale University Press, 2021), explores how technological imaginaries reshape expectations and practices of citizenship. Her recent research further investigates how data-driven systems in healthcare and public service delivery can produce social harms, including epistemic injustice and polarisation, while outlining alternative and more equitable approaches.