I'm an economist and AI & technology policy specialist passionate about the future of technology, AI and the global economy. My expertise lies at the intersection of business and public policy and I have extensive international experience spanning Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Currently, my roles include:
Senior Manager at Access Partnership, steering global initiatives on AI governance, emerging tech policy, digital payments, satellite and telecom connectivity, and data-driven economic impact analyses for industry leaders, governments and multilaterals.Â
Research Associate at the Future Impact Group, co-authoring papers on agent governance (with a grant from the Cooperative AI Foundation) and financing mechanisms for AI development.
Previously, I have:
Completed a Winter Fellowship at the Centre for the Governance of AI, writing a paper on how frontier AI labs can contribute to understanding and forecasting labour market impacts from AI.
Contributed to and managed strategy, analytics, and policy advisory projects at McKinsey & Company, addressing technology policy, digital transformation, sustainability, and public policy economics.
Worked as a Senior Postdoctoral Associate at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, and a Research Affiliate at the Centre for the Study of African Economies, researching digital development metrics and managing advisory projects focused on national digital economic planning in emerging economies.
Advised Research ICT Africa on the Gates Foundation-funded 'After Access' digital inclusion survey across 10 African countries.
Led tutorials in applied statistics and development economics at the London School of Economics & Political Science.
Conducted economic analyses and contributed to infrastructure policy design and monitoring for The World Bank in Bangladesh, Indonesia, and South Africa.
Worked as a Senior Researcher at the Development Policy Research Unit, University of Cape Town, and a Visiting Researcher at the South African Institute of International Affairs.
I hold:
A PhD focused on labour, urban, and environmental economics from the London School of Economics & Political Science
An MRes in public policy economics from the Paris School of Economics
An MSc in urban planning and development economics from Darmstadt University of Technology
A BSocSci in economics, politics, philosophy, and anthropology from the University of Cape Town
My postgraduate degrees were fully funded through scholarships from the UK government, the French government, and the European Commission.
My email address is matthew[dot]j[dot]sharp@gmail[dot]com.