PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Libby Heaney

Libby Heaney is an artist and quantum physicist whose work uses AI and quantum computing to make interactive art. She completed a quantum information PhD at Leeds, conducted postdoctoral research at Oxford and the National University of Singapore, then studied art and science at Central Saint Martins and held an academic post at the Royal College of Art. Her AI works included Britbot and the deepfake karaoke performance Top of the Bots; she also published a 2019 paper about the quantum installation CLOUD. Ent- won the 2022 Lumen Prize BCS Immersive Environment Award, and her 2024 virtual-reality installation Heartbreak and Magic combined quantum code with game-engine prototyping. As of October 2026, she is developing new commissions with the Sainsbury Centre and the British Council in partnership with Museum MACAN.

Born
1983

Years link to their sources.

Timeline

  1. 2008

    A PhD and physics award

    She completes a PhD in theoretical quantum information science at the University of Leeds in 2008 and wins the Institute of Physics and HSBC Very Early Career Woman Physicist of the Year award.

  2. By 2015

    Postdoctoral research and art study

    Born into a working-class family in the West Midlands, she trains as a scientist before turning to art. Her postdoctoral research takes her to the University of Oxford and the National University of Singapore, and in 2015 she graduates from Central Saint Martins’ MA Art and Science programme.

  3. 2015–2019

    An RCA academic post

    From 2015 to 2019, she holds a permanent academic post at the Royal College of Art in London and helps shape contemporary discussions across art, science and emerging technologies.

  4. 2018–2019

    Britbot and deepfake karaoke

    Britbot runs from July 2018 to July 2019, asking people about Britishness and using machine-learning techniques to shape replies from articles and user statements. In 2019, she presents Top of the Bots, a participatory AI deepfake performance built around karaoke.

  5. 2019

    CLOUD and quantum complexity

    In 2019, she publishes “Quantum computing and complexity in art” in Leonardo. The paper discusses CLOUD as an interactive installation that explores post-digital complexity through quantum superposition, entanglement and measurement.

  6. 2022

    Ent- wins the Lumen Prize

    Ent- wins the Lumen Prize’s BCS Immersive Environment Award in 2022. The immersive projection uses quantum computing to create patterns that digital computers cannot make.

  7. 2024

    Heartbreak and Magic in VR

    In February 2024, Somerset House presents Heartbreak and Magic, her virtual-reality artwork and physical installation. She develops the work through movement, painting, bespoke quantum-computing code and game-engine prototyping.

  8. As of October 2026

    AI sound and current commissions

    In 2025, she creates Shadowscapes (Wilderness Within), an interactive sound installation that combines AI-generated audio with sounds synthesised through quantum computation. As of October 2026, she is developing new commissions with the Sainsbury Centre and the British Council in partnership with Museum MACAN, Jakarta.

Career

  1. 2015–2019Royal College of Art
  2. University of OxfordPostdoctoral researcher
  3. National University of SingaporePostdoctoral researcher

Education

  1. 2015Central Saint MartinsMA Art and Science
  2. 2008University of LeedsPhD

From the biography.

  1. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes University of Oxford. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  2. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes University of Oxford. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.
  3. Companies supply the most prior-work hires at 7 of the 9 frontier AI labsIncludes University of Oxford. Our estimates of the organizations where 550 people worked directly before joining 9 frontier AI labs across 620 career transitions, comparing the main feeder organizations per lab.
  4. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorateIncludes University of Oxford. 84% of people shaping AI with recorded undergraduate and doctoral schools changed institutions for their doctorate. Across 2,116 people with both an undergraduate degree and a doctorate recorded, we trace which undergraduate schools feed which doctoral programs, how often students stay at the same school, and how paths differ by birth-country region.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Libby Heaney yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Libby Heaney - Biography | Gazelli Art House gazelliarthouse.com. Checked 20 October 2026.
  2. Libby Heaney — Mediale mediale.org.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  3. Multi-Infra-Sub-Meta (2015) – MA Art and Science artsciencecsm.myblog.arts.ac.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  4. Britbot — Libby Heaney libbyheaney.co.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  5. Top of the Bots — Libby Heaney libbyheaney.co.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  6. Quantum computing and complexity in art — RCA Research Repository researchonline.rca.ac.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  7. BCS Immersive Environment Award Winner 2022 — The Lumen Prize lumenprize.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  8. Libby Heaney: Heartbreak and Magic — Somerset House somersethouse.org.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.
  9. Shadowscapes (Wilderness Within) — Libby Heaney libbyheaney.co.uk. Checked 20 October 2026.