Will is a behavioral ecologist working in the tech sector. He specializes in the study of systems – both economic and environmental.
Will is Director of Data Strategy at Xero, New Zealand’s leading tech company; is a co-founder of Keen AI, a start-up specializing in machine vision and machine learning in industry and conservation; he serves on the NZ Government Data Ethics Advisory Group; runs his local predator free group to protect native wildlife; and he is proud to serve on the board of The Big Wild.
His research – while working for the Zoological Society of London – on conflict and cooperation in bumblebees has made the cover of Nature, the World’s leading scientific journal. He runs Predator Free Thorndon, a New Zealand community group on a mission to rid Thorndon of bird-killing rats, mice, stoats and weasels. Their efforts, and the efforts of many others, have resulted in Kākā numbers sky-rocketing upwards and Tītipounamu recolonizing the area.
He has a PhD and MRes from UCL in mathematical modelling of biological complexity and an MSc and First-Class Honors degree in Zoology from Otago University.