Ex-NHS tech chief joins company competing for a £480 million NHS data contract

Former head of NHSX, Matthew Gould played a significant role in the procurement of the NHS data store during the pandemic

Matthew Gould, former head of NHS digital policy, has taken on a role on the advisory board of Quantexa, a prominent data technology company based in the UK.

In January of this year, Mr. Gould requested guidance from the government's Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA) regarding a prospective appointment as a Member of the Advisory Board with Quantexa. As per the government documents released this week, ACOBA assessed whether Mr. Gould's intended appointment to Quantexa's advisory board was appropriate, taking into account his prior roles in NHS digital transformation and the nature of Quantexa's work.

Quantexa is part of the UK based consortium, which also includes IBM, bidding for the NHS £480 million federated data platform contract. The most prominent contendor to win the contract remains the controversial US data anaytics firm Palantir.

ACOBA acknowledged the potential risk that Mr. Gould might unfairly assist Quantexa through his "influence and contacts." The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) advised ACOBA that Mr. Gould would not be granted access to sensitive information.

Four years ago, Matthew Gould assumed the role of heading the NHSX department, established by the then Health Secretary Matt Hancock, to oversee technology policy within the healthcare service. Subsequently, with the integration of NHSX into other agencies, Mr. Gould took on the positions of Director General for Digital Transformation at DHSC and National Director for Digital Transformation at NHS England.

Mr. Gould departed from the NHS and assumed the role of running the Zoological Society of London in the summer last year.

During the pandemic, Mr. Gould played a significant role in the procurement of the NHS data store, which was ultimately awarded to Palantir. He was involved in plans to award another data contract, which eventually evolved into the procurement process for the federated data platform.

Quantexa is a UK-based data and analytics firm that maintains a contractual relationship with the government. This relationship is established through a framework agreement with Crown Commercial Services, which pertains to 'off the shelf' software for big data and analytics.

Earlier this year it was reported that Palantir had a strategy to "buy its way in" to the NHS. Earlier this year, the company was awarded a £25 million contract through a closed tender process.

According to HSJ, the DHSC engaged in proactive consultations with the UK head of Palantir regarding Mr. Gould's intended appointment to the advisory board of Quantexa, which is unusual. The DHSC reported that Palantir did not express any objections to this appointment.

"It's an exciting time for me to be joining Quantexa's advisory board, at this critical stage of growth for the company," Mr Gould told HSJ.

"Quantexa's innovative approach to helping customers in the private and public sectors make data their most valuable utility is revolutionizing decision-making across multiple industries. I look forward to working alongside the talented team at Quantexa to connect data and drive better outcomes for organisations."