Matt Clifford Keynote Speaker

Co-founder of Entrepreneurs First ($1.3bn platform)
UK Prime Minister’s Adviser on AI (2024–2025)
CBE for services to AI; TIME AI100 honouree

Matt Clifford's Biography

Matt Clifford is Co-founder and Chair of Entrepreneurs First (EF), a $1.3bn holding company that supports exceptional founders to build companies from scratch, and Chair of the UK’s Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA), a £1.4bn agency for funding breakthrough R&D, loosely based on DARPA.

One of his primary interests is how the UK can drive long-term economic growth, encapsulated in his widely viewed “Make the UK Rich Again” speech, delivered in October 2025 and viewed over a million times.

He has spent his career at the intersection of entrepreneurship, investing and public policy. Alongside his roles at EF and ARIA, he was asked by the UK Government in 2024 to create an “AI Action Plan” for the UK, examining the country’s AI opportunities. The Prime Minister subsequently published the plan and appointed him Adviser on AI, a role he held in Number 10 until summer 2025.

In 2023, he led the preparations and negotiations for the AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park as the UK Prime Minister’s Representative, taking a sabbatical from EF. He also led the design work for the UK Frontier AI Taskforce, now the UK AI Security Institute, where he serves as Vice Chair of the Advisory Board.

He serves on the boards of Code First Girls, which he co-founded, the Kennedy Memorial Trust and Accurx, one of the UK’s leading healthcare software companies. He was awarded an MBE for services to business in 2016 and a CBE for services to AI in 2024, and was named to the TIME AI100 list of the most influential people in AI.

The Future of AI and National Competitiveness

Innovation, Investment and Building Global Startups

Public Policy and the Role of Technology in Growth

“Making the UK Rich Again”: Economic Strategy for the Future

Frontier Technologies, Risk and Opportunity

He operates at the intersection of entrepreneurship, AI and public policy, shaping the UK’s approach to innovation and economic growth.
He translates complex technological and policy challenges into clear strategies that help organisations and governments seize emerging opportunities.
He brings exceptional authority through leadership roles at Entrepreneurs First and ARIA, as well as advising the UK Government on AI strategy.
He is an insightful speaker who combines real-world experience with a forward-looking perspective on innovation, investment and national competitiveness.
His insights equip organisations to navigate AI disruption, foster entrepreneurship and drive long-term growth.