Nesta

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We apply our deep expertise in applied methods to design, test and scale solutions across the innovation lifecycle.

30/08/2026

What happens when the world’s most powerful companies become more powerful than the governments meant to regulate them?

“It’s no longer that multinationals respect the laws of every country. It’s that the world’s most powerful country has become the representative of those multinationals.”

In the latest episode of our podcast deep-dive series, Andy Burnham’s first 100 days, Nesta CEO Ravi Gurumurthy sits down with economist Tony Curzon Price to explore how a new government could rethink its role in shaping markets - from essential services like energy and water to digital infrastructure and AI.

Watch the full conversation on YouTube to explore what greater public control could look like in a world where power is increasingly concentrated in the hands of multinational companies.

🎧 Listen or watch the full episode now: https://bit.ly/4gpuhWB

25/08/2026

What’s broken about the UK’s tax system - and how can we fix it?

Going just £1 over the £100,000 income threshold currently wipes out a family’s entire free childcare entitlement. That cliff edge reveals a common design flaw in the tax system that discourages productivity and squeezes earners.

In the latest episode of our podcast deep-dive series, Andy Burnham's first 100 days, Nesta CEO Ravi Gurumurthy sits down with economist Dr Arun Advani to explore how a new government could fix these fiscal traps.

Watch the full conversation on YouTube to see how tax reform should feature in a Prime Minister's first 100 days.

🎧 https://bit.ly/4fOYHQf

21/08/2026

🤳 Why are we designing society around private tech platforms instead of making sure tech serves the public interest?

In our new podcast spin-off series, Andy Burnham's first 100 days, Nesta CEO Ravi Gurumurthy sits down with leading experts to stress-test the big ideas that should shape his agenda.

In this episode, Ravi is joined by filmmaker, politician and leading voice on children’s rights in the digital environment, Baroness Beeban Kidron OBE, to unpack the steps Andy Burnham should take to decisively reclaim public control from Silicon Valley.

Taking a wider view than proposed responses like social media bans or regulating AI, Beeban argues the real challenge is the growing power of a handful of tech companies. She explains why governments should hold platforms responsible for harmful and addictive products, not just the content they host.

From the risks of AI to making better use of trusted public data from institutions like the NHS and the BBC, they explore how Britain can build digital technology that serves citizens over corporate profit.

🎧 Watch the full episode now: https://bit.ly/4hd6ERN

🎙️ Listen wherever you get your podcasts - rate, review and subscribe.

19/08/2026

“The problem isn’t a technical one, it’s a human one.”

Building better digital infrastructure isn’t just about choosing the right tech. It’s about getting organisations with different incentives to agree, collaborate and invest in implementation.

So how can the UK take back control of its digital infrastructure?

Nesta CEO Ravi Gurumurthy and Mallory Durran explore what government needs to do differently to transform the UK from a passive tech tenant into a sovereign digital architect - in the latest episode of the Policy Fix: Andy Burnham’s first 100 days

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts. https://bit.ly/4fZ7vVk

13/08/2026

Positive health trends - such as the decline of smoking - don't just happen by accident. They're the result of sustained, deliberate policy action.

The same applies to obesity. Without active policy interventions - from industry targets to advertising bans - progress stalls. If a new government stops taking action, the trend stops too.

In a new episode of Andy Burnham's first 100 days, Nesta's deep-dive series from the Policy Fix podcast - Nesta CEO Ravi Gurumurthy sits down with Hugo Harper, director of Nesta’s healthy life mission, to break down the steps a new government will need to take to shift the UK from treating sickness to preventing ill health in the first place.

Moving past the usual debate about the UK's strained health system, they stress-test practical policy interventions that Andy Burnham could implement in his first 100 days as Prime Minister.

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts - link in comments.

If you enjoyed the episode, please rate, review, subscribe and share it with your network.

09/08/2026

💡 Imagine you are the new Prime Minister: what would you do in your first 100 days?

That's the question we're asking our guests on our new deep-dive series from the Policy Fix podcast.

In our first episode, tax expert Dan Neidle explains why abolishing stamp duty and council tax, simplifying the income tax and corporate tax systems and reducing the VAT threshold would be top of his agenda.

Rather than just rehearsing the problems facing Burnham, Ravi Gurumurthy and Dan Neidle stress-test the big ideas that should shape Andy Burnham's agenda, discuss the policy solutions he should actually pursue and map out the steps he should take to get started in his first 100 days.

🎧 Watch the full episode on Youtube or listen wherever you get your podcast - link in comments

🌟 Liked the episode? Rate, review, subscribe - and share with your network.

06/08/2026

How can Andy Burnham bring the UK’s essential services under public control?

From rising energy bills to struggling water infrastructure, frustration with privatised services is growing. But with public finances under pressure, can government deliver change without buying everything back?

In the latest episode of our deep-dive series from the Policy Fix podcast, Nesta’s Ravi Gurumurthy and economist Tony Curzon Price explore how a new government can give people more control over essential services - without returning to old models of nationalisation.

The conversation breaks down:
⚡ Why traditional regulation has struggled to deliver better outcomes.
🏗️ How government can play a stronger role in shaping markets, from energy and water to digital services.
🔐 Why giving people more control over their data could help create fairer digital markets.
🇬🇧 How stronger public infrastructure could rebuild trust and deliver better services.

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts: https://bit.ly/4fPbiD3

If you enjoyed the episode, please rate, review, subscribe and share it with your network.

05/08/2026

How can Andy Burnham solve Britain’s wealth tax debate?

As Prime Minister, Burnham will need to find money to fund public services and deliver on his promises. Should he introduce a wealth tax, or are there faster, fairer ways to raise revenue?

In the latest episode of our deep-dive series from the Policy Fix podcast, Nesta's Ravi Gurumurthy and economist Dr Arun Advani explore the biggest challenges facing the UK's tax system - and the practical reforms Burnham should prioritise first.

Our duo explore:
💷 Whether a wealth tax is the best way to raise revenue.
📈 How reforming capital gains tax and National Insurance could raise billions while supporting investment.
🏡 Why Britain's property tax system may need an overhaul.
⚖️ How government can build a tax system that's fairer, simpler and fit for the future.

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts: https://bit.ly/4fOYHQf

If you enjoyed the episode, please rate, review, subscribe and share it with your network.

04/08/2026

How should Andy Burnham take back control from big tech in his first 100 days in power?

The world's biggest tech companies now shape what we see, think and do online every day, raising important questions on who owns the power in modern Britain. How should Burnham protect children online, make powerful tech companies more accountable and ensure digital technology serves the public interest?

In the latest episode of our deep-dive series from the Policy Fix podcast, Nesta's Ravi Gurumurthy and Baroness Beeban Kidron OBE sit down to discuss. The conversation explores:

📱 Why holding tech companies accountable for harmful and addictive products matters more than banning individual platforms
⚖️ Why the growing power of big tech is one of the biggest challenges facing democratic government.

🤖 The opportunities and risks of AI - and how the UK can make better use of trusted public data.

🇬🇧 How Britain can build digital technology that serves the public interest instead of corporate profit.

🎧 Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts: https://bit.ly/4pW0zLN

If you enjoyed the episode, please rate, review, subscribe and share it with your network.

02/08/2026

💰 Where should Andy Burnham look to raise government funds - and where shouldn't he?

As Andy Burnham enters Downing Street, he needs to find the financial headroom to fund his ambitious agenda. But what are the policy cul-de-sacs that Burnham should avoid - ideas for revenue raising that might seem easy or tempting but which are likely to fail or trip up a new government

In the latest episode of our new deep-dive series, Andy Burnham's first 100 days, Nesta Chief Executive Ravi Gurumurthy sits down with Nesta's chief economist, Tim Leunig, to explore where government should look for funding and where it shouldn't.

Together examine concrete, evidence-backed fixes: from closing the tax gap through enforcement to modernising VAT, reforming disability assessments, and targeting investment in skills, infrastructure, and AI.

🎥 Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://bit.ly/4g4RLPt

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