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Professor Maria Burke's research expertise concerns the application of new digital technology to economic, environmental and social systems. She has a particular interest in the regulation of AI. 

Professor Maria Burke, PhD, MBA, MA, DMS, SFHEA, FRSA, is an academic and researcher at Birkbeck, University of London, and an Emerita Professor at the University of Winchester where she served as Head of Research for almost a decade. A Bye Fellow of St Edmund's College, she co-founded the Fragility and Flourishing research group at the Von Hügel Institute. Her research examines the intersection of digital technology and its economic, environmental, and social impacts, with a focus on AI regulatory frameworks. In 2023, she was honoured to receive the Society for Research in Higher Education (SRHE) Accolade Award. Professor Burke continues to contribute to international academic and policy discussions on AI regulation. In 2025 she was an invited speaker at New York University and the European Women’s Technology Conference in Amsterdam.