For over 60 years, Women of the Year has celebrated extraordinary women from the fields of health, tech, and music who have achieved remarkable things and inspired others through their courage and dedication in the UK and globally.
This year the committee and Vodafone have honoured Poppy for her vital work in the field of cyber security, particularly as the pandemic has increased the threat of cyber-attacks to critical levels. Darktrace, which Poppy co-founded and now spearheads, protects over 4,000 organizations globally and offered its world-leading AI software to the NHS free of charge over the course of the pandemic.
Poppy Gustafsson, CEO of Darktrace, commented: “I am honoured to receive the Woman of Technology and Innovation Award from Women of the Year and Vodafone. The phenomenal success that Darktrace is experiencing is testament to the passion, fearlessness and hard work of our brilliant team of over 1,300 employees, as well as the world-class mathematicians behind our autonomous response technology. It is an honour every day to lead an organization committed to solving the cyber challenge with cutting edge technology.”
Anne Sheehan, Business Director, Vodafone UK, commented: “We were delighted to present the Woman of Technology and Innovation Award to Poppy Gustafsson OBE. She is such an inspiring person and her work in cyber security – an area that has become so integral to businesses – is incredible. We hope Poppy’s success will inspire more women to pursue careers in this important area of technology.”