Open-Source Software Advocate & AI Security Expert; Co-Creator of Django; Founder of Datasette; Board Member at Python Software Foundation

San Francisco, CA, USA
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Simon Willison Biography

Simon Willison is a British programmer and open-source advocate recognized for his contributions to software development and artificial intelligence. Willison is the co-founder of the social conference directory Lanyrd and co-creator of the Django web framework, both of which have influenced the evolution of the modern web. At the Lawrence Journal-World, he collaborated with Adrian Holovaty on newsroom software that became Django, a Python web framework widely used in web development.

Willison worked as a software architect at The Guardian, where his projects included developing a crowdsourcing application for analyzing expense claims by members of Parliament. He later co-founded Lanyrd, a Y Combinator startup, which was acquired by Eventbrite. At Eventbrite, Willison served as an engineering director. After his tenure at Eventbrite, he participated in the John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships program at Stanford University, focusing on building open-source tools for data journalism, with his project Datasette at the center of his fellowship proposal.

Datasette enables users to turn SQLite databases into searchable, publishable interfaces. Bellingcat, an investigative journalism group, used Datasette to analyze a leaked database from a Russian food delivery app, uncovering information about the Russian security agency. Following the JSK fellowship, Willison dedicated his efforts to Datasette and related open-source projects. He also developed "LLM," an open-source command-line tool and Python library for interacting with large language models.

Willison coined the term "prompt injection" to describe a security vulnerability affecting large language models and established a framework and terminology that has been widely adopted in the cybersecurity community. He also introduced the term "lethal trifecta" to describe AI agents that combine access to private data, exposure to untrusted content, and the ability to communicate externally. Through his blog, active since 2002, a newsletter with more than 54,000 subscribers, and over 100 open-source tools, Willison has established a significant presence in the fields of large language models and open-source software. He serves as a board member of the Python Software Foundation.

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Speaker profile last updated by AAE Talent Team on 11/10/2026.

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  • What topics does Simon Willison speak about?

    Simon Willison is a keynote speaker and industry expert whose speaking topics include Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, Disruptive Thinking, Journalist, Marketing, Security & Defense, Social Media, Thought Leadership
  • Where does Simon Willison travel from?

    Simon Willison generally travels from San Francisco, CA, USA, but can be booked for private corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. For more details, please contact an AAE Booking agent.
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Simon Willison is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics. The estimated speaking fee range to book Simon Willison for your event is available upon request. Simon Willison generally travels from San Francisco, CA, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Walter O'Brien, Jepson Taylor, Ben Van Roo, Nini Hamrick and Chris Olah. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Simon Willison for an upcoming live or virtual event.

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