Francesca is one of Europe’s leading digital policy experts. An innovation economist, she works at the intersection of technology, geopolitics, economics, and society. Before taking on her current role as President of the Italian Innovation Fund, she was Chief Digital Technology and Innovation Officer of the City of Barcelona and Advisor on Next Generation Internet and Innovation Policy to the European Commission. She also led major European research and innovation projects, such as the DECODE-project, an effort to reclaim citizens’ data sovereignty, and D-CENT, a Europe-wide project on digital democracy and economic empowerment based at Nesta, Britain's innovation agency for social good. Francesca is Honorary Professor at the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose at the University College London (UCL), where she teaches on digital sovereignty and people-centered smart cities. She is also Senior Advisor on Digital Cities and Digital Rights to the UN. In 2018, Forbes magazine voted her among Europe’s Top 50 Women in Tech.

Francesca is the director of the programme "The New Hanse" at THE NEW INSTITUTE.