Ben Legg is a leading authority on artificial intelligence and the future of work, helping CEOs and investors get ahead of the shift to an AI-first world. Former COO of Google Europe and a three-time private equity-backed tech CEO, he is the Founder and CEO of Digital People, through which he mentors chief executives on how to build agentic businesses and lead organisations in which bots may soon outnumber humans. He is also a recognised name on Wall Street, where he gives institutional investors operator-grade judgement on where value is being created and destroyed across Silicon Valley.
A former British Army officer, Ben served as a Royal Engineer and played a major role in the relief of the Siege of Sarajevo. An engineer by training, he began his post-military career as a Strategy Consultant at McKinsey & Company, before joining The Coca-Cola Company, where he held strategy, marketing and sales roles across Greece, Poland and India and led the high-profile turnaround of Coca-Cola India. That performance took him to Google, where, as COO of Google Europe, he wrote the monetisation blueprint for Search, YouTube, Maps and Mobile that has since become the playbook the hyperscalers still run on today.
Since 2010, Ben has led a series of global technology businesses as a private equity-backed CEO, including Adknowledge, AdParlor and European Directories, and served as Managing Director of Ola UK. Today, he is no retired executive trading on an old title: through Digital People, he advises five to ten senior leaders every week, from FTSE 100 boards to private equity firms and the tech hyperscalers, and tracks $1.2bn of annual digital ad spend across more than 300 companies. He has a documented record of calling structural shifts before consensus - from the GDPR non-event to the rise of AI-powered micro-businesses - and, as he puts it, doesn't just talk about AI; he builds with it daily.
Ben is the author of the award-winning "Marketing for CEOs: Death or Glory in the Digital Age". His recent clients include Novo Nordisk, CVC, Tesco, DHL, AstraZeneca, Deloitte and SCG, and he has spoken everywhere from the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity to Chief Disruptor, as well as at internal conferences for Google, Coca-Cola, McKinsey and Samsung. A regular commentator on Bloomberg, the BBC, the Financial Times and The Times, he has advised hundreds of CEOs, boards and government ministers worldwide. Having lived in nine countries and worked in more than 60, Ben brings a level of global business knowledge that few of his contemporaries can match. To hire Ben Legg for your next event, contact Champions Speakers today!
Ben Legg's official speaker topics are listed below:
Signature keynotes:
- Beyond the Hype: How to build an agentic business
- The Liquid Organisation: Configuring your business for human + AI collaboration
- Investing in an AI-Enabled World: Picking the likely winners and losers as AI becomes ubiquitous
Also speaks on:
- How AI will transform industries and the future of work
- Strategy in times of rapid change
- Commercial innovation in large and small companies
Official Feedback from In-Person & Virtual Events
"Ben Legg is a great keynote speaker. He spoke at our CVC portfolio event with 200+ C-suite leaders, setting the tone with an energetic perspective on building an agentic organisation. He translates major technology shifts into clear, actionable priorities, delivered with genuine energy and passion for the topic. I would highly recommend Ben if you are looking for a speaker to help future-proof your organisation, whilst also being someone who remains grounded in the financial returns of implementing AI" - Richard, Director, CVC Capital Partners
“Ben is a natural leader with clarity of thought and the ability to construct, pivot and re-align the vision of a company. His ability to represent the organisation at public events, his leadership within the organisation, his work ethic and prioritisation skills, his empathetic approach, his hunger to stay on top of technological advancements and the sheer determination to navigate through chaos are just a few qualities that Ben brings to the table. I have grown tremendously under Ben’s leadership and wish him a ton of success in life!” - Vedang, Director of Strategy & Partnerships, GrabAds
“Ben leads sales operations at Google with vision, inspiration and a focus on execution. He delivered on numerous game-changing initiatives that drove revenue and sales enablement. He works with a clear structure, with focus and performs under pressure – a very strong leader.” - Terry, Executive Coach
“I had the pleasure of working with Ben during my time at ADK. Ben is an outstanding leader with a passion for building great organisations. His clear vision led the company into the growing video ad market. Besides his open leadership style and hands-on approach, he never lost sight of the big picture/ vision. ADK’s clever international growth strategy is only one example. Ben is a great guy, lucky if you can work with him.” - Sebastian, Senior Director, Corporate Development, M&A
- 2026 - Keynote speaker for Novo Nordisk, CVC, AstraZeneca, DHL, Deloitte and SCG
- 2025 - Adviser to Wall Street investors on AI and Silicon Valley
- 2024 - Threw the first-ever party on Alcatraz
- 2024 - Board Member, MoneyPlus
- 2024 - Advisory Board Member, Hypervolt
- 2022 - Security Innovation, GALLOS Technologies Limited
- 2022 - Advisory Board Member, Haystack
- 2021 - Advisor, Conduit Capital Partners
- 2020 - Founder & former CEO, The Portfolio Collective
- 2020 - Advisory Board Member, GFR Fund
- 2020 - Board Member, Goodsted
- 2019 - Board of Directors, Ola UK
- 2018 - Managing Director, Ola UK
- 2018 - CEO & Founder, Digital People International
- 2016 - CEO, AdParlor
- 2018 - Mentor, Oxford Foundry
- 2016 - Author of “Marketing for CEOs: Death or Glory in the Digital Age”
- 2011 - Group CEO, Adknowledge
- 2009 - COO, European Directories
- 2006 - COO, Google
- 2006 - VP Sales, The Coca-Cola Company
- 2004 - Commercial Director, Coca-Cola HBC
- 1999 - Strategy Consultant, McKinsey & Company
- 1989 - Captain of Royal Engineers, British Army
How to hire Ben Legg
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Ben Legg for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do NOT accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
