A New Era of Responsible AI: Culture, Governance & Agentic AI

This edition of Data & Drinks tackles two critical challenges in the operationalization of Responsible AI: accountability and adoption. First, we’ll explore the structural side with a deep dive into the upcoming AI Act and the necessity of building accountability directly into autonomous, agentic AI systems. Then, we’ll turn to the cultural side, exploring how to bridge the gap between theoretical AI frameworks and actual organizational adoption. In addition, we’ll host a dynamic panel discussion designed to connect these two vital perspectives, provoked by new ideas on how to turn concrete compliance into a living company culture.

Details 📅 Date: June 11, 2026 🕔 Time: 17:30 - 21:00 📍 Location: Raamstraat 7, 1016 XL, Amsterdam

Schedule 17:30 - 18:15: Welcome with food and drinks 18:15 - 18:20: Opening notes 18:20 - 18:40: Talk 1: "My Agent Did It" – Accountability by Design by Isabel Barberá 18:40 - 19:00: Talk 2: From Tone at the Top to Culture: Making Responsible AI Real by Marieke Peeters 19:00 - 19:15: Break 19:15 - 19:45: Panel discussion 19:45 - 21:00: Networking & drinks

Talk 1 - "My Agent Did It" – Accountability by Design AI systems are becoming increasingly autonomous, but when an agent acts, someone still owns the risk. This talk explores the realities of AI Act governance and the growing need for accountability by design in agentic AI systems. Drawing from the unique perspective of AI market surveillance, we will examine how organizations can proactively embed responsibility into their AI agents before they deploy them into the wild.

About Isabel: Isabel Barberá works as Senior AI Advisor for the Dutch Coordinating Supervisor on AI and Algorithms (DCA) at the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP), the Dutch DPA. She also serves as an expert for the Council of Europe’s Data Protection Unit, where she researches privacy risks, mitigations, and evaluation methods for Large Language Models and agentic AI. She contributes as an expert to the development of European AI standards on risk management and cybersecurity at CEN/CENELEC and is a member of ENISA’s Ad Hoc Working Group on Data Protection Engineering. Through the EDPB’s Support Pool of Experts, she has contributed in the past to several AI-related projects, in particular, the report she authored on privacy risks in Large Language Models, which has gained significant attention and recognition. Isabel is also an independent researcher on AI risks and safety, contributing to various international initiatives. She is the author of PLOT4AI, an open-source threat modeling framework designed to support the identification of AI risks during the development and deployment of AI systems.

Talk 2 - From Tone at the Top to Culture: Making Responsible AI Real Walk into almost any major organization today, and you'll find no shortage of Responsible AI frameworks, guidelines, and governance documents. And yet, in practice, most of them don't stick. Why? Because policies don't change behaviour, culture does, and culture starts at the top. In this talk, Marieke Peeters makes the case that Responsible AI is ultimately a leadership challenge. Drawing on her research and advisory work, she explores what it takes for upper management to move beyond signing off on paper policies and to actively shape the norms, habits, and conversations that make responsible AI a daily reality. What does a genuine tone at the top look like in AI? How do you build real literacy instead of checkbox compliance? And how do you avoid the all-too-common trap where everyone works around the framework rather than with it?

About Marieke: Marieke Peeters is a researcher, consultant, and educator at the intersection of AI governance, organizational change, and human-AI collaboration. She is the founder of Mooncake AI, where she advises organizations on building responsible AI cultures that go beyond compliance. She is also a Senior Researcher at Hogeschool Utrecht within, among other things, the RAAIT (Responsible Applied AI) program, where her work focuses on evidence-based approaches to ethical AI in the real world. Earlier in her career, Marieke helped lay the groundwork for responsible AI at Xomnia itself; so this is something of a homecoming.

From Policy to Practice: Bridging the AI Responsibility Gap (panel discussion) Following the talks, join us for an engaging panel discussion with our speakers, Isabel, Marieke, and Martijn Di Bucchianico, Analytics Translator at Xomnia. The panel will build on the evening's core tension: how to design concrete accountability frameworks (the structural angle) versus how to ensure that an organization actually adopts and embraces them (the cultural angle). We'll use a series of sharp propositions to spark conversation and facilitate an interactive, multi-angle discussion.

About Martijn: Martijn Di Bucchianico is an Analytics Translator at Xomnia with six years of experience bridging the gap between business strategy and data-driven technology. With a background in hospitality tech and financial services, he has established himself as a trusted partner for organizations implementing data and AI initiatives. Martijn’s multidisciplinary expertise, strategic mindset, and pragmatic, people-centric approach allow him to translate complex technical concepts into actionable insights. This unique focus has made him a leading voice on AI governance and effectively scaling AI within organizations to drive sustainable change.

Important note: ⚡ Spots are limited! Please cancel your registration if you cannot attend.