Rob Price

‘Rob's contribution lies in helping organisations move from curiosity to capability ensuring that multi-agent AI is a safely deployable, operationally grounded reality.’

Part of the AI Leadership Index – a curated list of the most inspirational figures shaping the AI revolution.

Rob Price is a leading voice in applied AI and a pioneer in the emerging field of Agentic AI. As co-founder of Futuria, he helps organisations reimagine how work gets done by deploying trusted, multi-agent systems that empower human teams, enhance decision-making, and unlock new levels of operational performance.

His work spans enterprise, public sector, and local government, shaping practical, responsible AI adoption in complex environments. Futuria is Chair of the UKAI Agentic AI Industry Working Group. Rob has held executive leadership roles across global technology, payments and financial-services firms, driving major digital-transformation programmes and bringing emerging technologies into real-world use. He is also a key pioneer for the Corporate Digital Responsibility (CDR) movement, helping define global thinking around responsible and equitable digital futures, having collaborated with the UN, EU and IEEE on Digital Responsibility.

Alongside his advisory work, Rob hosts the Futurise podcast, where he explores what it takes to build, fund, and scale AI businesses by talking to CEOs of AI and Agentic businesses to discuss how organisations adopt AI safely and effectively. Rob's leadership combines technical depth, responsible-innovation principles, and hands-on experience delivering transformative AI outcomes at scale.

Please share a case study of how you have you innovated with AI over the last year?

In the past year, Rob Price has played a pivotal role in advancing Agentic AI adoption both in the UK and internationally through his leadership at Futuria and broader engagement across the AI sector.

As co-founder, Rob is instrumental in shaping Global Delivery, UK Sales and Partnerships, and Thought Leadership. He authored the acclaimed Six Pillars of Agentic AI series, a practical framework now widely adopted by organisations aiming to responsibly implement multi-agent systems. Rob has shared these insights at prominent events and forums, including AI for the Rest of Us and I/O Meetups, as well as practitioner roundtables, equipping decision-makers and technologists with actionable understanding of agentic systems.

Through his Futurise podcast with leading Agentic AI entrepreneurs, Rob provides essential guidance for those seeking to leverage AI for organisational transformation. His active participation in UKAI initiatives resulted in Futuria being appointed chair of the UKAI Agentic AI Working Group, uniting government, industry, and academia to craft national strategies and best practices for multi-agent systems.

Rob’s leadership is deeply rooted in real-world application. Over the past 12 months, he has overseen the design and deployment of innovative multi-agent teams across a diverse range of public-sector bodies, enterprises, and local authorities in both the UK and US. Notable clients include Leonardo, Exxon, and Atos. These projects have driven substantial improvements in operational efficiency, workforce augmentation, and have proven the capability of agentic systems to manage complex, human-centred workflows at scale.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced with AI innovation and how you have overcome it?

Helping organisations bridge the gap between promising multi-agent AI proofs of concept and safe, confident deployment in live operational environments. For most organisations, the barrier isn't the technology itself it's understanding how to adopt agentic systems responsibly, transparently, and in a way that fits into high-assurance, human-centred operations.

Rob has played a key role in addressing this challenge through his work in pre-sales engagement, early-stage solution shaping, and executive alignment. He helps organisations understand what responsible operationalisation looks like: how agents should be governed, how they collaborate with human teams, how transparency and auditability are maintained, and what structures are needed for safe scaling.

A major part of Rob's contribution has been the development and widespread sharing of his Six Pillars of Agentic AI. The Six Pillars have been discussed across meet-ups, industry events, customer workshops, and thought-leadership articles, helping to shape industry thinking around how multi-agent systems can be adopted safely at scale.

This work has supported meaningful progress with customers including the recent agreement for a key organisation to progress three multi-agent AI PoCs into live operational environments. Rob's contribution lies in helping organisations move from curiosity to capability ensuring that multi-agent AI isn't just an exciting concept, but a safely deployable, operationally grounded reality.

How do you balance innovation with ethical safeguards?

Rob drives AI innovation by blending rapid experimentation with responsible, high-assurance adoption. At Futuria he works with a high-performing team to explore multi-agent AI, quickly testing ideas to deliver practical impact. This experimentation is underpinned by strong governance, structured operating models, and guidance from experienced backers.

Multi-agent systems enhance transparency and traceability, enabling enterprise-grade outcomes while maintaining auditability and control. Architectures are designed for high-assurance environments, reducing unintended impacts and ensuring alignment with organisational policies and ethical standards.

Rob’s approach is further strengthened through his leadership in Corporate Digital Responsibility and his involvement in the Digital Responsibility Forum, contributing to research, publications, and an IEEE paper. Together, these elements show how organisations can innovate boldly with AI while remaining transparent, accountable, and responsible.

How do you believe the artificial intelligence space will change over the next 12-24 months?

The AI landscape will evolve rapidly, driven by three key shifts. First, Generative AI will move from experimentation into core business workflows. Pilot groups are already exploring M365 Copilot and agents, with emerging use cases improving personal productivity and process efficiency.

Second, specialist AI applications will gain traction in construction and consultancy. Our AI R&D will demonstrate the art of the possible, differentiating real solutions from generic AI through quality and added value.

Finally, as adoption increases, governance, regulation, and insurance approaches will mature. Early caution will give way to industry acclimatisation as proven use cases inform updated professional guidelines. Success will depend on human–AI collaboration, with AI augmenting expertise rather than replacing roles, and continued upskilling of our people over the coming years.