The Centre for Data Science and AI welcomes two new Research Fellows
Published: 16 March 2026
The Centre for Data Science and AI welcomes two new Research Fellows
The Centre for Data Science and AI is delighted to welcome two new Research Fellows, Dr Catherine Higham and Dr Karen Jeffrey, whose work will contribute to the Centre’s growing interdisciplinary research work.
Dr Higham brings a diverse background spanning mathematics, bioinformatics, and artificial intelligence. After completing a mathematics degree at the University of Oxford, she worked in the private sector analysing consumer marketing strategies before returning to academia through a Daphne Jackson Fellowship at the University of Glasgow. This was followed by a Lord Kelvin/Adam Smith PhD studentship focused on studying Somatic DNA mutations.
Her current research sits at the intersection of AI, machine learning, and emerging quantum technologies. Dr Higham’s work explores generative models that simulate complex data, hybrid classical–quantum algorithms designed to work with today’s quantum hardware limitations, and active inference methods that help AI systems make decisions under uncertainty. Through collaborations with experimental physicists, she has applied computational approaches to cutting-edge technologies including single pixel cameras, LiDAR systems, and quantum annealers.
Dr Jeffrey’s path into data science developed through her work in consultancy and at an economic think tank, where she saw how powerful the influence of data-driven evidence in shaping policy decisions could be. During her PhD in Political Economy, she taught herself to code and began using advanced statistical and experimental methods to investigate how economic forces shape political behaviour.
More recently, she worked in medical informatics analysing large-scale Scottish health records to study long COVID. Her current research focuses on how artificial intelligence is reshaping the economy and how workers and voters respond to these changes. By combining political economy methods such as econometrics and survey experiments with data science approaches including natural language processing and large language models, Dr Jeffrey aims to produce research that informs policy and helps ensure the benefits of AI are shared widely.
Both Dr Jeffrey and Dr Higham are looking forward to developing new interdisciplinary collaborations through the Centre and contributing to its mission of advancing creative, impactful and responsible data science and AI research – using data science and AI to build a better future for all.
First published: 16 March 2026
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