Tanya Filer

Tanya Filer is a leading voice at the intersection of technology, public policy and global affairs, recognised for shaping how institutions respond to rapid digital transformation. In 2025, she became Editor-in-Chief of the Cambridge Forum on Technology & Global Affairs, reflecting her role in guiding international conversations on emerging technologies and governance. Alongside this, she contributes to global policy through her position on the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Information and Entertainment, and advisory roles within leading academic and legal institutions.

Her career is grounded in a strong academic foundation and international research experience. Tanya held prestigious fellowships, including Frank Knox Memorial Fellow at Harvard University, British Research Council Fellow at the Library of Congress, Leverhulme Trust Visiting Research Scholar at Universidad de San Andrés, Collaborative Exchange Scholar at Yale University and Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge. She later progressed to Policy and Research Leader, where she founded the Digital State Project at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, exploring how governments can design, scale and govern digital systems effectively. Her research has consistently focused on ensuring that critical data and technology are used to address complex global challenges.

In 2021, Tanya founded StateUp, where she serves as CEO, working closely with governments and organisations to deliver research, policy strategy and executive training. Her work centres on helping decision-makers navigate the realities of technological, energy and geopolitical change, with a clear emphasis on building trust in digital systems. A key area of her expertise is data sovereignty, where she examines how nations and organisations can retain control over data while enabling innovation, security and public value in an increasingly complex global landscape.

As a keynote speaker, Tanya is highly regarded for her ability to make complex policy and technology issues accessible and relevant to senior audiences. She combines academic rigour with practical insight, offering clear guidance on digital government, data governance and leadership in times of uncertainty. For example, she has advised leaders on how to structure data strategies that protect national interests while still enabling international collaboration, a challenge many organisations now face. Her talks equip audiences with the clarity and confidence needed to lead through ongoing technological change.