CEO

Victoria Espinel is a global leader advancing the future of technology innovation.  

As CEO of BSA | The Software Alliance, Victoria has grown the organization’s worldwide presence in over 30 countries, distinguishing BSA as the leader for enterprise software companies on issues including artificial intelligence, privacy, cybersecurity, and digital trade. She launched the Digital Transformation Network and the Global Data Alliance, flagship BSA initiatives to further BSA’s collaboration with 15+ industry sectors globally. Victoria founded Software.org, the enterprise software industry’s nonprofit partner that educates policymakers and the public about the impact of software and careers within the industry. 

Victoria serves on President Biden’s National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee (Chair of the International Working Group), served as a member of the President’s USTR Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN), and chaired the Future of Software and Society Group at the World Economic Forum. She is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations. 

 Victoria has testified on multiple occasions before the US Congress, European Parliament, and Japanese Diet. Victoria speaks frequently to groups about AI, cybersecurity, and STEM education, including Latinas in Tech, Girls Rule the Law, the Congressional Staff Hispanic Association, Women’s Congressional Staff Associations, Girls Who Code, EqualAI, CSIS, and numerous academic institutions. She has been featured in a wide range of media outlets, including New York Times, Washington Post, Financial Times, Forbes, C-SPAN, BBC, Bloomberg Business, The New Yorker, and NPR. 

Prior to BSA, Victoria was confirmed by the US Senate to serve as the first White House “IP Czar,” establishing a new office in the White House and advising President Obama on intellectual property. She also served in the Bush Administration as the first chief US trade negotiator for intellectual property and innovation, a role in which she created the office of Intellectual Property and Innovation at USTR and led negotiations with over 70 countries. 

Victoria launched Girls Who Code’s Washington, DC summer program and serves on the Board of Directors for ChIPs, a nonprofit organization advancing women in technology law and policy. 

She holds an LLM from the London School of Economics, a JD from Georgetown University Law School, and a BS in Foreign Service from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She is a native of Washington, DC, and the proud proprietor of Jewel of the South, a restaurant in New Orleans. 

Posts by Victoria Espinel

It’s been five years since BSA launched the first Global Cloud Computing Scorecard. Back then, cloud computing was a still-emerging technology that held the promise of helping companies and countries expand their economic growth. Fast forward to 2018 and businesses and governments around the world are adopting cloud solutions to take advantage of the ability … Read More >>

Yesterday, I testified about artificial intelligence (AI) before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet. The hearing examined the benefits and challenges of AI in today’s digital economy, how to build trust in AI systems, and steps the US government can take to remain a leader in AI. I focused on … Read More >>

With Thanksgiving around the corner, it’s the perfect time of year to reflect on what we’re thankful for. At BSA, our first answer is always software. We never cease to be amazed by how software improves our lives, both on a personal level and as a global community. One of the most impactful ways software … Read More >>

On Wednesday, we celebrated Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mark Warner and Reps. Will Hurd and Suzan DelBene as BSA’s 2017 Software Champions during a rooftop reception. I would again like to thank each Member of Congress for working tirelessly for the software industry, for their bipartisan leadership in educating others about software issues, and for their dedication to modernizing policies.

The Privacy Shield agreement has already improved data protection and digital trade between the EU and the US in its first year, and that should continue, writes Victoria A. Espinel.