Dr Rowan McKibbin is an Associate Director at BBSRC, part of UKRI. Her portfolio is concerned with the development and provision of cutting-edge technologies and infrastructure to push the frontiers of bioscience, particularly in emerging technology areas such as Engineering Biology, AI and Data Intensive Bioscience more broadly.
She has oversight of three teams (Transformative Technologies, Infrastructure, and the Rules of Life) which together underpin and enable modern bioscience. Having delivered the previous £102M Synthetic Biology for Growth Programme, recent activities in Engineering Biology include leading UKRI’s £100M exercise to establish a number of mission oriented ‘hubs’ and associated awards. This forms a key part of an integrated research and innovation programme to deliver UK research capacity and capability, drive technology development and uptake, and stimulate innovation to tackle major challenges through a mission-oriented focus.