Press Release: The Open Data Institute appoints digital visionary and leading open data developer to top jobs | Open Data Institute

“The Open Data Institute (ODI) has named AMEE founder, Gavin Starks as its new CEO. The role of Technical Director is being taken by Jeni Tennison, currently the technical architect of legislation.gov.uk for The Stationery Office (TSO) and The National Archives (TNA).  Created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Professor Nigel Shadbolt, the ODI will open its doors this autumn and is a world-first, dedicated to incubating and nurturing new and existing businesses that want to use open data to create economic growth.

The ODI will promote innovation and help develop skills amongst developers and entrepreneurs. The ODI will support the publication and exploitation of high quality open data from across the public sectors.  Today’s announcement confirms the first appointments to its leadership team that will help deliver the ODI’s ambitions which include: [1] Creating and helping new start-up companies get off the ground. [2] Helping SMEs or larger corporates to develop and grow their businesses using open data. [3] Developing ODI technologists, who will be trained in specialist skills enabling them to create new products and services from open data. [4] Enabling public sector organisations to become publishers of high quality open data.  The new hires will be based at the ODI’s Shoreditch HQ, which will open its doors later this year and will become a focal point for entrepreneurs and developers, start-ups and established corporates, technologists and creatives to meet, share ideas and drive growth.  Gavin Starks has a unique background in business, technology, science and media. In 2006, he created AMEE to organise the world’s energy and environmental data, standards and calculations in to a simple web-service. As well as AMEE, Gavin has helped create many innovative and successful start-ups in the Shoreditch area over the past decade–working with organisations including the UK Government, Google, and Unicef...”