Was Rahman

Was Rahman is CEO of AI Prescience, an AI research and consulting firm. He has over 30 years global experience using data and technology to improve business performance, particularly AI.

Was writes extensively on technology in business, for both mainstream and academic audiences. His work can be found at Amazon, Medium and ORCID. His research interests include: the impact of AI on organisational decision-making; effective AI ethics and governance; and the role of AI in new forms of social division.

In business, Was has worked with large corporates, start-ups and SMEs around the world, advising CEOs, Boards and Investors. He has held leadership roles at Accenture, Infosys and Wipro, managing business in the US, EU and Asia Pacific. He has also run start-ups and raised funding.

For governments, Was has briefed UK and Indian political leaders and officials on technology industry policy. In 2008, he was appointed sector specialist for the UK Government, advising Ministers and their teams on the global technology industry, and establishing UK-India technology partnerships.

Was graduated in Physics at Oxford, then studied Computer Science for his Masters at Coventry. His AI and data science education is courtesy of Stanford, Johns Hopkins, Amazon and Google among others. He has been a guest lecturer at Oxford’s Saïd Business School, the Judge Business School at Cambridge, London Business School and IIT Madras.

An experienced public speaker, Was has chaired and participated in numerous international conference sessions. He has been invited to speak at events organised by institutions including the IoD, NASSCOM, the Financial Times and the Governments of India and the UK. He has participated in and supported many high profile international events, including the inaugural World Economic Forum “Young Global Leaders” meeting, and the UK Prime Minister’s launch of London's Tech City.

Was splits his time between London, UK and Bangalore, India. Outside work, he can be obsessive about coffee, photography, classic cars and music.