Foresight Research Ltd.
What does your organisation do?
Foresight Research Ltd is a charity-owned health data enterprise that is building a UK-wide retinal imaging and health data resource for research and discovery. We collect consented retinal images through community optometry, link them with health and lifestyle data, and provide secure access to de-identified, research-ready datasets that support biomarker discovery, AI development, earlier disease detection, and the development of new treatments.
One distinctive feature of Foresight is its governance model: unlike most large health data resources, Foresight is owned by a charity and operates through a charity-owned trading subsidiary, ensuring that any future commercial value generated is intended to be reinvested into public benefit, research, and patient outcomes rather than distributed to private shareholders.
Why did you choose to build in Oxfordshire?
Oxford-born, Global impact
1. Founding and leadership roots in Oxford
Foresight was founded and is led by Wen Hwa Lee and Joanna Zapisek, both of whom previously held senior roles at the University of Oxford and have extensive experience building large-scale research programmes, data initiatives, and international collaborations.
2. Strong links to the Oxford research ecosystem
Foresight's network includes multiple Oxford-based leaders in AI, health data, and biomedical research, including references to researchers at the Oxford Big Data Institute and the University of Oxford (including engagement with figures such as Prof Bartek Papież, Prof Ben Lambert, Lord Tarassenko, Maxine Allen, Eneida Parizotto, Chas Bountra, Alexandra Freeman, Michele Actor, Paul Brennan, Alex Bullock, etc. as part of the broader oculomics ecosystem surrounding the project).
3. Operational presence in Oxfordshire
Oxford remains an important operational base for the organisation.
What big problem are you trying to solve?
Healthcare systems are largely designed to diagnose and treat disease after symptoms appear, yet many conditions develop silently for years beforehand. Foresight aims to unlock the predictive power of the retina by creating a population-scale, ethically governed dataset of retinal images linked to health data, enabling researchers and innovators to develop new ways to detect disease earlier, intervene sooner, and shift healthcare from treatment to prevention. If successful, this could improve outcomes for millions of people while reducing the long-term burden on health systems.
How can you support the Oxfordshire ecosystem?
Foresight was founded by leaders with deep roots in Oxford's research and innovation ecosystem, and we see Oxfordshire as an ideal place to demonstrate how AI, health data, and life sciences can be combined to create public benefit at scale. We can contribute a nationally significant research infrastructure, partnerships across charities, healthcare, academia and industry, and opportunities for collaboration in areas such as AI, digital health, population data science, and preventative medicine.
In return, Oxford's ecosystem can support Foresight through access to scientific collaborators, entrepreneurs, investors, health innovators, and translational expertise that can help accelerate the development of new diagnostics, AI tools, and preventative healthcare approaches based on our retinal imaging platform. Oxford's unique concentration of expertise in AI, biomedical science, and health data makes it an ideal environment in which to grow and validate an initiative such as Foresight.
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Foresight Research Ltd.