Building data and AI capability inside the UK's data regulator
From Hub & Spoken: Data | Analytics | Chief Data Officer | CDO | Data Strategy by Cynozure
April 16, 2026 · 46 min · Episode 255
About this episode
The episode discusses building data and AI capabilities within the UK's information rights regulator, focusing on leadership, innovation, and public trust.
What does it take to build a modern data and AI capability inside the organisation responsible for protecting information rights across the UK? In this episode of Hub & Spoken, Jason Foster, CEO and Founder of Cynozure, speaks with Rob Holtom, Executive Director for Digital, Data, Technology and Customer Experience at the ICO, the UK's independent regulator for information rights. Together, they explore what it means to lead data and AI adoption from inside a regulator: balancing innovation with public trust, building capability without losing sight of value, and creating space for experimentation while staying grounded in responsibility. Rob shares how the ICO has approached capability building by starting with people, developing strategic as well as operational skills, and using data and AI to improve scale, efficiency and decision-making. The conversation also looks at why generative AI matters for regulators, where it can unlock value, and why data teams need to stay closely involved rather than treating it as someone else's problem. This is a practical conversation about leadership, policy, experimentation and the reality of using data well in complex organisations.
People in this episode
Host: Jason Foster
Guest: Rob Holtom
Topics covered
- data capability
- AI adoption
- public trust
- innovation
- regulatory challenges
- leadership
- data strategy
Keywords
- data
- AI
- ICO
- public trust
- capability building
- leadership
- innovation
- generative AI
- data strategy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: ICO
Places: UK
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