Maxine Mackintosh

Maxine is drawn to problems at the intersection of health, data, AI and inequality. She is especially interested in the complex systems that shape people’s lives: how people become represented in datasets, how technical tools influence decisions, and how innovation can either reinforce existing inequalities or help to shift them. She sees data, AI and technology not as ends in themselves, but as powerful ways into wider systems change. Used well, they can reveal patterns, focus attention and support better decisions. Used poorly, they can flatten complexity and scale harm. Much of Maxine’s work sits in that tension: building the relationships, evidence and practical approaches needed to make innovation more equitable, trustworthy and useful. Maxine has worked across NHS systems, global health, genomics, infectious disease, AI and public policy. She is currently working with the World Health Organization on health inequalities monitoring. She was previously Head of Implementation Strategy for the Pathogens Programme at the Ellison Institute of Technology and, before that, led the Diverse Data Programme at Genomics England.