About

This site is where I write about the things I’m working on and thinking about, mostly AI, but also outdoors pursuits. My AI work and writing is primarily about exploring and explaining fundamentals and how the generative AI tools can be used to accelerate scientific work.

My background is in theoretical physics. After my PhD on lattice gauge theories I spent over a decade with Carl Zeiss SMT in Germany working on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, the technology behind manufacturing the most advanced microprocessors in the world. I started in imaging science, developing optical simulations and consulting on system specifications with chipmakers. Later I moved to Belgium as their scientific representative to IMEC, one of the world’s leading semiconductor research centres, where chipmakers, equipment suppliers, and materials companies collaborate on next-generation fabrication.

Those years at Carl Zeiss shaped me far more than my PhD did. As an engineer, as a scientist, and in how I think about solving problems in practice. My work with Carl Zeiss SMT and IMEC exposed me to what was happening in machine learning and AI, and I knew that was where I wanted to be. That, combined with a desire to return to the UK, led me to study for an Advanced Masters in Artificial Intelligence at KU Leuven. Since then I’ve been applying machine learning to problems in urban analytics, causal inference, and natural language processing.

I live in Littleborough on the edge of the Pennines. I spend a lot of time walking in the South Pennines, Yorkshire Dales, Lake District, and increasingly Snowdonia and Scotland.

You can find me on LinkedIn.