David Halpern
Trusted policy advisor bringing formal experimentation and behavioural insights into governments – first in the United Kingdom and now in many countries(Last updated during their term as a Commissioner - January 2022)
David Halpern is a trusted government policy advisor working as the chief executive of the Behavioural Insights Team in the UK. David has led the team since its inception in 2010, bringing behavioral insights and implementation science into governments in the UK and other countries. Prior to that, David was the first research director of the Institute for Government and between 2001 and 2007 he was the chief analyst at the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit. David was also appointed as the What Works National Advisor in July 2013. He supports the What Works Network and leads efforts to improve the use of evidence across government. Before entering government, David held tenure at Cambridge and posts at Oxford and Harvard. He has written several books and papers on areas relating to behavioural insights and well-being, including Social Capital (2005), The Hidden Wealth of Nations (2010), Online Harms and Manipulation (2019), and he co-authored the MINDSPACE report. In 2015, David wrote a book about the Behavioural Insights Team entitled Inside the Nudge Unit: How Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference.