Stephanie Itimi

Stephanie Itimi is a Cybersecurity and AI Governance leader with over 10 years experience across board governance, information security, public interest technology and international development. She is the Founder and Non-Executive Chair of Seidea CIC, an award-winning platform that has supported over 9,000 Black and Minority Ethnic women into cybersecurity through training, career pathways and industry partnerships.

She is a Seasonal Fellow at GovAI, where her work focuses on AI governance, institutional readiness and the safe, responsible transition to advanced AI. She previously served as Director of Information Protection and Compliance at Age UK, leading cybersecurity, data protection and compliance initiatives that strengthened organisational resilience and helped safeguard information for millions of older people across the UK. Stephanie also served for two years as an Associate Non-Executive Director at NHS Blood and Transplant, contributing to board-level governance, strategy, culture and workforce development. She has chaired the National Cyber Security Centre’s Charity Trust Group, a national advisory forum for senior cybersecurity and risk leaders across the UK charity sector.

She has contributed to the World Economic Forum’s Cybersecurity Outlook 2025 report and is a LinkedIn Learning Instructor, having launched a course on Explainable AI in Cybersecurity. She has also supported MSc Information Security teaching at Royal Holloway, University of London, for more than 350 postgraduate students.

Stephanie is pursuing a PhD in Information Security at Royal Holloway, examining employee surveillance, security and power dynamics. Internationally, she helped launch the BBC World Service’s Ebola WhatsApp public health information service, reaching over 16,000 users across West Africa in partnership with UNICEF, WHO, WFP and the CDC. Her advisory work spans the UK, Slovakia, Morocco, Uganda, Nigeria and wider African contexts, with partners including UN Women, the European Commission, Balloon Ventures, the University of Lagos and the Society for International Development.