Jess is a research associate at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, focused on AI policy. She is particularly interested in how we can build appropriate levels of trust in AI systems amongst policymakers and the general public, and how to avoid harmful misperceptions of the capabilities and risks of AI.
Jess has a PhD in Behavioural Science from the University of Warwick, and a first class degree in Mathematics and Philosophy from Oxford University. In her PhD, she argued that confirmation bias is not necessarily as "irrational" as it seems, with implications for how we think about the strengths and weaknesses of human reasoning. Previously, Jess worked for the Behavioural Insights Team, where she advised various government departments on improving their use of behavioural science, evidence, and evaluation methods, with a particular focus on foreign policy and security. She has also worked as a freelance journalist and has had her writing published in Aeon, Quartz, and Vox.