FOTI is a think tank dedicated to building a prosperous and fair European future that harnesses the power of technology.

FOTI’s goal is simple: tech that truly serves the public.

We help democracies shape a digital future that is open, fair, and accountable. We design market reforms, advocate for enforcement, and back credible challengers.

We’re not your typical think tank. Working across Europe, we turn ideas into action, building technical proofs of concept, convening unconventional debates, and offering practical solutions for leaders, innovators, and citizens alike.

Today, we’re advancing ways to open social media, reduce dependencies on tech monopolies, and democratise tech debate.

We actively partner with builders, businesses, citizens, and democrats from across the political spectrum. If you share our ambition, and if you’re working to make the future of tech better too, please get in touch.

Cloud Defence - An Exposed European Flank

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Majority of Europeans see data storage on US servers as more of a threat than benefit - Exclusive YouGov polling

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Press Release here

Our Team

Cori

Cori Crider is FOTI's Executive Director.

A strategist and communicator, Cori has led international teams of advocates for over fifteen years. She also advises philanthropic organisations about ways to tackle market concentration.

In 2019, she co-founded Foxglove, a non-profit committed to justice in technology. During her tenure, Foxglove won the UK’s first legal challenges against biased government algorithms, helped enforce the rights of Facebook and Amazon workers, challenged social media’s role in fuelling violence, and defended public value and patient autonomy in the use of health data. Prior to that she directed the national security team at Reprieve.

Cori’s writing and views on tech justice and market power have featured in the Financial Times, Guardian, BBC, Politico and elsewhere. In 2019 she presented The World According to AI, a documentary. Originally a practising lawyer, Cori is also a Senior Fellow at Open Markets Institute and an Honorary Professor of Practice at UCL College of Laws.

Lucie

Lucie Castets is FOTI’s France Senior Lead.

Lucie brings a wealth of national and international regulatory experience, from working with international organisations and large financial institutions, to managing a multi-billion euro budget as Chief Financial Officer for the City of Paris. She also has experience leading civil society campaigns for proper funding of public services. In 2024, Lucie was a consensus candidate for Prime Minister among a broad coalition of centre-left parties in France.

Lucie was elected mayor of Paris’ 12th arrondissement in March 2026. She now works part-time for FOTI.

Jean

Jean Cattan is FOTI’s Of Counsel.

Over the last 20 years, he has served as Secretary General of the French Digital Council (Conseil national du numérique), as head of the national “Café IA” initiative, and as the advisor to the Chairman of Arcep. He was also a lecturer in digital law and regulation at several higher education institutions.

His contributions span landmark milestones in internet freedom, net neutrality, open device principles, EU law negotiations, and the fight against data retention and surveillance, with recent efforts focused on algorithmic pluralism and the democratization of technology, including AI.

A trained lawyer with a PhD in digital communications law from Aix-Marseille University and degrees from La Sorbonne and the College of Europe, he is a prolific author and public commentator. He continues to share independent analysis of digital regulation through his personal blog and advises the FOTI team on technical and legal policy opportunities across France and Europe.

Tobias

Tobias B. Bacherle is FOTI’s Germany Senior Lead.

A trained political scientist, he brings extensive experience at the intersection of technology policy, international relations and democratic governance.

From 2021 to 2025 he served as a Member of the German Bundestag, where he was the coordinator of his parliamentary group in the Committee on Digital Affairs and a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He focused on European digital sovereignty, AI and data governance, and the geopolitical implications of technology policy.

Before his time in parliament, he worked for an MEP, a state legislator and as a freelance campaigner In addition to his experience in federal politics, he was a councillor in his hometown, Sindelfingen, from 2014 to 2022.

When not working on tech policy, he sits on the board of dit is schade e.V., a non profit promoting music and pop culture in his hometown, and is a member of the advisory board of Experiment e.V., an student exchange organization.

Taylor

Taylor Gese is FOTI’s UK Advocacy Lead.

Taylor began her career at Human Rights Watch, working on public advocacy and outreach, and then at Purpose, where she helped develop the organisation’s portfolio on tech harms and digital threats to democracy. As an independent consultant, she has provided strategic insights and project leadership to leading philanthropies and campaign organisations working on tech accountability.

Prior to her current role, Taylor served as Senior Advisor to the Senior Vice President at the International Rescue Committee, and most recently spent two years as Chief of Staff for Technology at the Meliore Foundation, where she helped build and shape the foundation's tech and society programming from the ground up, overseeing strategy, operations, campaigns, and team coordination.

Sherif

Sherif Elsayed-Ali is FOTI’s Senior Fellow.

Sherif’s expertise sits at the intersection of technology policy, entrepreneurship and human rights. He previously co-founded and served as CEO of Carbon Re, a joint spin-out of Cambridge University and UCL using machine learning to accelerate the decarbonization of foundational materials such as cement. Prior to this, he set up and led the AI for Climate practice at Canadian scale-up Element AI and was co-founder of Amnesty Tech. He was a World Economic Forum Global Future Council co-chair and a fellow at Harvard Kennedy School, both focusing on the intersection of technology and human rights. Sherif has a BSc degree in Civil Engineering from the American University in Cairo and a Masters degree in Public Administration from Harvard.

Robin

Robin Berjon is FOTI’s Senior Fellow.

Robin is a technologist specialised in the governance of technology. His work focuses on digital sovereignty, issues of power in the digital sphere, and bringing democracy to the internet. He is Principal at Supramundane Agency, Deputy Director of the IPFS Foundation, and a Senior Fellow with both the Future of Technology Institute and the Public AI network. Previously, he was VP of Data Governance at The New York Times, where he worked on data strategy and safeguarding media independence, and Vice-Chair of the board of the World Wide Web Consortium.

FOTI is a project of the Meliore Foundation (FUP)
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