UK’s Alan Turing Institute CEO resigns amid staff revolt and £100M funding threat

Jean Innes, chief executive of the UK’s Alan Turing Institute, is stepping down after facing a staff revolt and government demands for strategic change. Her resignation follows mounting pressure from employees who filed whistleblower complaints and intervention from Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, who called for new leadership to refocus the AI research body on defense and national security.

What you should know: The Alan Turing Institute has been in turmoil since last year, with widespread staff discontent over organizational changes and strategic direction.

• A group of employees filed a whistleblower complaint to the Charity Commission last month, warning that £100 million of government backing may be withdrawn, which “could lead to the institute’s collapse.”
• The institute employs 440 people and is currently undergoing a redundancy process, with about 50 staff recently notified their jobs are at risk.
• Staff warned the board last year that the institute’s credibility was in “serious jeopardy” due to the ongoing transformation.

Government intervention: Technology Secretary Peter Kyle sent a letter to the institute’s chair in July demanding strategic change and indicating the need for new leadership.

• Kyle urged the institute to switch its focus to defense and national security applications.
• The letter called for “careful consideration” on having an appropriate executive team in place for such a strategic pivot.
• Government sources pointed to this correspondence as evidence of official pressure for leadership change.

The transformation controversy: The institute had been implementing “Turing 2.0,” a restructuring program that narrowed focus to three key areas: health, environment, and defense and security.

• The institute dropped projects related to online safety, tackling the housing crisis, and reducing health inequality as part of this refocus.
• The overhaul prompted significant staff upheaval and resistance throughout the organization.
• The transformation was already underway before Kyle’s intervention added additional pressure for change.

What she’s saying: Innes framed her departure as a natural transition point rather than a forced resignation.

• “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,” Innes said Thursday.
• “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.”

The bigger picture: The Alan Turing Institute, named after the British mathematician widely considered the father of modern computing, was founded in 2015 as a national institute for data science before adding AI to its remit in 2017.

• Its founding UK universities include Cambridge, Oxford, Edinburgh, University College London, and Warwick.
• Previous research work included collaborating with the Met Office to improve weather forecasting, creating cardiac “digital twins” to study heart disease, and improving air traffic control.
• The institute is already searching for Innes’s replacement to lead the organization through its next phase.