Dr Assaad studied a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering and completed a PhD exploring decision making under uncertainty. She is a former member of the expert advisory group for the global commission on responsible AI in the military domain (GC REAIM). She is currently an Ambassador for the Responsible by Design initiative of Article 36 Legal and also serves on the independent advisory board on Legal Reviews as a technical expert. She is also the host of the Responsible Bytes Podcast.

Dr Zena Assaad is an Associate Professor with the School of Engineering at the Australian National University and a fellow with the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR). She has previously held fellowships with the Australian Army Research Centre and Trusted Autonomous Systems. Her research explores the safety of critical and complex technologies in safety-critical domains, with a focus on systems engineering practices. 

Systems safety engineering; safety of critical and complex technologies in safety critical domains; safety of military technologies; risk management of safety-critical technologies.

• Tech Stewardship Award from vogue Australia

• Named “Top 10 Women in AI” in the Asia-Pacific by AI Magazine.

• 2023 Women in AI Award for Defence

• 2023 Women to Watch in Emerging Aviation Technologies Global Award

• Named one of the '"100 Brilliant women in AI Ethics" for 2023

• Top 5 Science Resident with the ABC