Dr Georgia Fleet is a scientist turned entrepreneur on a mission to tackle one of healthcare's most persistent challenges: hospital-acquired infections.

She founded Zonova on International Women's Day in 2023 and is as CEO & Co-Founder. A materials scientist by training, Georgia spotted how medical devices drive hospital infections, and how few commercial solutions exist to address it.

Three years on, the company's Z-ROS® antimicrobial materials platform is in active commercial discussions with global device manufacturers to make hospital-acquired infections a problem of the past.

Georgia is a 2024/25 Innovate UK Women in Innovation Award winner, named Most Disruptive at Women in Tech EU 2025 and was listed #1 in TechRound's Top 50 Women in Startups & Tech in 2026 - recognising her commitment to impact, innovation, and women in STEM.

We cover the following in our conversation:

01:59 Why hospital infections persist

04:40 Breakthrough: The "aha" moment

06:50 Pivot to platform model

08:25 Founder market fit

11:05 Fundraising reality check

17:20 Pitching platform and hiring CCO

19:43 Women investors

27:30 Fundraising experience

30:06 IP and impact strategy

31:44 Looking ahead: Ten year vision

33:51 Advice for new women investors

36:38 Final thoughts

Abby Davisson is an award-winning Fortune 200 leader-turned-author and entrepreneur. Prior to founding the Money and Love Institute, her social impact career included nearly a decade at global retailer Gap Inc., where she served as president of the Gap Foundation and co-founded the company’s employee resource group for working parents.

Abby’s prior professional experience includes strategy-focused roles across the public, private, and non-profit sectors, as well as a stint (alongside her day job) as an alumni career advisor and coach at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.

Abby holds a BA from Yale University and an MBA and MA in Education from Stanford University.

We cover the following in our conversation:

02:37 Why focus on money and love?

08:09 A lesson learned the hard way

10:46 Why decisions feel zero sum

12:57 Clarity and the "Five Cs"

16:41 Scenario 1: choosing a mate

23:09 Scenario 2: family and career

34:54 Scenario 3: breakup or divorce

39:02 Courage and better communication

44:46 Final advice.

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Shaz Bishop is a wealth manager at RBC Brewin Dolphin. With over 21 years of expertise in financial services, Shaz advises private clients on comprehensive wealth strategies, including tax-efficient investments, pension planning, inheritance tax mitigation, trusts, and international investments.

Her holistic approach empowers individuals and families to navigate complex financial landscapes with confidence.

Beyond her advisory role, Shaz is a dedicated advocate for financial literacy and women’s empowerment in wealth management.

As a mother to two young daughters, she champions diversity and inclusion in the industry, striving to create a future where equitable representation is the norm.

She’s passionate about educating underserved communities and breaking down barriers to financial access, ensuring the next generation inherits a more inclusive financial ecosystem.

We cover the following in our conversation:

02:22 Money origins story

03:24 Cash ISA changes explained

05:04 Women and investing shift

08:05 Retirement barriers for women

10:37 Choosing the right adviser

11:45 One size policy limits

13:50 Cashflow planning tool

15:18 Risk and advice framing

17:57 Reviews and life events

18:59 Family planning and pensions

22:37 Measuring success beyond markets

24:02 Industry gaps and wealth transfer

26:54 Closing

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Kirsty Gibson is an Investment Manager in the US Equity Growth Team and has been a portfolio decision maker since 2016. She joined Baillie Gifford in 2012 and became a partner in 2025. Prior to joining the US Equity Growth Team, Kirsty also spent several years in the small and large-cap global equities departments. She graduated MA (Hons) in Economics in 2011 and MSc in Carbon Management in 2012, both from the University of Edinburgh.

We cover the following in our conversation:

01:57 Kirsty’s path to investing

04:49 Why culture matters in growth

06:52 Foundational vs created culture

09:27 When founders return

11:47 Architecting culture on purpose

14:49 Shopify’s AI pivot

19:06 Stripe’s culture in execution

20:47 Acquiring Bridge and the opportunity in stablecoins

22:38 AI shockwaves and market panic

29:31 What winners look like by 2030

31:34 Final takeaways.

See: "The cultural architects: how great founders shape exceptional companies in changing times", written by Kirsty Gibson.

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Amy Diehl, PhD, is an award-winning information technology leader, currently serving as Chief Information Officer at Wilson College in Chambersburg, PA. She is also a gender equity researcher and author of the new book Glass Walls: Shattering the Six Gender Bias Barriers Still Holding Women Back at Work. Her writing has appeared in numerous scholarly journal articles and book chapters as well as in Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and Ms. Magazine. She is also a sought-after speaker, consultant, and lawsuit expert witness. Her passion is universal gender equality so that society and organisations can thrive and women can succeed.

We cover the following:

01:50 Defining gender bias

02:52 How gender bias affects money and power

05:15 Six barriers overview

06:11 Male privilege and constraints

07:20 Support and devaluation

08:36 Hostility (including female hostility)

13:35 Acquiescence and opting out

16:19 Business case and examples

21:00 Leadership accountability and ERGs

22:44 Measuring bias

24:44 Gender bias incident example

26:55 Don’t internalise gender bias

29:13 Build support networks

30:06 Toxic workplaces

33:15 Leaders must own change

34:03 Stories that wake up leaders

36:59 Male norms and work design

39:24 Allies taking action

40:45 LinkedIn as safe space

43:29 Kamala Harris double standards

48:21 Progress and hope.

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Symmie Swil is the UK General Manager of Europe’s leading investment infrastructure provider, Upvest. With nearly twenty years of banking and fintech experience, Symmie is passionate about broadening access to investing. Symmie has previously held positions as Deputy Chief Operating Officer & Chief of Staff at Investec, and Head of SME Banking at Starling. 

We cover the following:

01:09 Symmie Swil: From banking to building investing infrastructure

02:41 What still holds women back from investing?

04:14 The gender wealth & gender pension gap explained.

07:41 What UpVest actually does (The ‘Stripe for investing’ behind the apps)

09:33 Fractional investing 101: Why lower minimums change everything

11:33 Trust in embedded investing: Transparency, security & regulation

12:53 UpVest’s UK expansion: The opportunity, the data, and responsible scaling

14:28 Five to ten year vision: Women designing the future of wealth tech

16:28 Final thoughts.

Simon Glass is the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Qodeo, a platform created to address the challenges he observed while working across the venture ecosystem. Qodeo matches venture and private equity investors with entrepreneurs, with a particular focus on founders from diverse, regional, and female communities.

Simon has previously worked at two UK venture capital firms, including Amadeus Capital Partners, the first backer of ARM Holdings. His broader career includes roles at EY in academia and media, at WPP as Deputy Chair of a publishing house, and in project finance where he supported Roy Hill, the world’s largest private iron ore mine, in raising $9 billion.

Simon has written for the Financial Times, holds a BA, MA, and MBA from the University of Cambridge, and completed training in corporate finance at London Business School.

We cover the following:

00:11 Meet Simon Glass: CEO of Qodeo

01:13 Exploring the venture ecosystem

02:35 Challenges for underrepresented founders

05:55 Platform: matching investors and entrepreneurs

14:05 Addressing unconscious bias in investing

19:32 Comparing UK and US startup ecosystems

28:40 Entrepreneurial boom in Europe

32:01 Cultural shifts in entrepreneurship

32:38 Moving the needle in who VCs invest in

36:58 Challenges with angel investors

49:28 Improving the startup funding ecosystem

53:43 Final thoughts.

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For more information on Qodeo, see: https://qodeo.com/ 

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Julie Angeles is an Investment Manager, Partner at Baillie Gifford. She has been a member of the International Growth Portfolio Construction Group since 2017.

She joined Baillie Gifford in 2008 and became a Partner in 2022. She previously worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, advising firms in Denmark, Russia and Hungary. Julia obtained a BSc in 1999, an MSc in 2001 and a PhD in 2005 in Economics from the University of Aarhus, Denmark. She is fluent in Russian and Danish.

We cover the following:

00:56 AI and long horizon investing in healthcare

05:24 The evolution of Moderna and platform science

13:19 AI's impact on healthcare access and efficiency

21:45 The untapped potential of women's health

24:27 The need for more women in investing

24:59 The disparity in female health investment

25:29 Male allies in women's health

26:53 Gameto: revolutionising fertility

28:15 The science behind Gameto's innovations

29:42 Ethical considerations in biotech

31:14 The future of female longevity

31:45 Brain health: the next frontier

32:42 Progress in neurodegenerative disease research

36:21 The role of AI in healthcare

37:30 Addressing gender disparities in health research

42:13 The promise of personalised medicine

43:15 The future of human health: prevention and early detection

47:18 Final thoughts and optimism for the future.

Dr Victoria Bateman is an economic historian whose latest book is Economica: A Global History of Women, Wealth and Power.

Victoria has twenty years’ experience teaching macroeconomics and economic history at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge and has spoken extensively on radio and television, including as resident economic historian for BBC Radio 4’s “Understand: The Economy".

In her spare time, Victoria also works as a historical consultant for period dramas, including The Forsytes (which is currently airing in the UK and comes to PBS America in 2026).

We covering the following:

00:11 Meet Dr. Victoria Bateman

02:20 Victoria's journey to feminist economics

05:08 The myth of male-dominated economic history

07:22 Women in economic history: key figures and contributions

10:11 The impact of excluding women from economic narratives

20:12 Historical examples of women in finance

26:26 Non-Western female economic pioneers

32:51 Modern financial systems and women

38:31 The backlash against women's economic progress

50:34 The importance of rewriting economic history

51:55 Final thoughts

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Vicky Pryce is Chief Economic Adviser at the Centre for Economics and Business Research and Visiting Professor at King's College London.

She was previously Director General for Economics at the Department for Business Innovation and Skills and Joint head of the UK Government Economic Service. Vicky has held senior roles across the private sector, including senior managing director at FTI consulting, Partner and Chief Economist at KPMG, and Partner at London Economics, following earlier positions in banking and the energy sector.

She's also co-founder of Good Cooperation, a frequent media commentator, and the author of many books, including Women versus Capitalism. Her latest book, Mismanaged Decline, co-authored with Andy Ross, will be published by Biteback in November of 2025.

We cover the following:

01:16 Discussing 'Mismanaged Decline'

02:51 The UK's economic challenges

04:41 Policy missteps and industrial decline

07:09 Service sector and underinvestment

11:15 Industrial strategy and government role

16:26 Impact of Brexit and COVID

25:04 Honesty in economic policy

32:25 Regulatory developments in the UK and Europe

33:58 The role of UK leadership in crypto adoption

34:45 Concerns about crypto and global positioning

37:09 The politics of economic growth

39:20 Challenges in economic policy communication

50:11 The importance of gender inclusion in economic strategy

56:57 The need for long-term industrial strategy

01:00:12 Final thoughts on building a resilient economy

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