Architect of the Data Economy

A journey from curiosity to creating real economic impact.

Anyone can talk about the data economy. But can you design one? Build one? And prove that it creates value?

The Architect of a Data Economy journey takes you from understanding the principles of a more human data economy to designing, building and demonstrating real-world economic impact. Directed and Instructed by Dr Irene Ng, a market design economist with 30 years of research, practice and design experience.

Six levels. Each earned through learning, doing and making a difference.

Irene’s pedagogy unites AI-amplified instructional design from Vale (Irene’s AI agent), combined with hands-on experiential context from Irene herself.

  • Every journey starts somewhere. All HCF members begin here, receiving Irene’s monthly briefings and joining a community exploring the future of the data economy.

  • Complete the 10-hour foundational course on the Principles of the Data Economy. Learn how data rights, sovereignty, agency and market design come together to create new economic opportunities.

  • Complete five design sessions, moving from theory to designing real data-driven ecosystems. Challenge assumptions, explore new market structures and develop solutions worth testing.

  • Ideas are easy. Implementation is harder.

    Earn this level by implementing a live ecosystem. Put your design into practice, bring participants together and make the ecosystem work beyond the drawing board.

  • A working ecosystem is one thing. Creating measurable economic value is another.

    Achieve Expert status when your ecosystem demonstrates verified economic impact. Not just promises or projections, but evidence of value created.

  • Greatest Of All Time. Because impact speaks louder than credentials.

    Reach GOAT status when the ecosystems you have designed achieve US$10 million in verified economic impact.

    No honorary titles. No shortcuts. Just results.

Your Journey. Your Evidence. Your Badge. Each milestone earns you a level on your Architect of the Data Ecosystem Badge, recognising what you have learned, designed, implemented or achieved. Your badge builds a verifiable evidence of your journey, from joining the community to creating measurable economic value. Start as a Member. Become an Architect. See how far you can go.

  • This course is a masterclass for ecosystem architects, taught by a master craftsperson in digital economy. Irene Ng's long journey of thoughtful research combined with deep insights from the business Dataswyft which she founded to build the future she could clearly see as a result, inform the foundations for what an effective digital ecosystem architect needs to know and to do.”

    -- David Porteous, Founder & CEO @ Integral: Governance Solutions

  • I arrived with a payments startup. I left with an ecosystem. Dr Ng's framework for thinking about coordination problems, stewardship, and the design of multi-sided markets reshaped not just how I think about my business but what my business could become. There are courses that teach frameworks and courses that change how you think. This is the second kind. If you are building something at the intersection of data, identity, or financial services - or indeed any domain where platforms have swallowed the market functions that should be distributed - this course will save you years.

    -- Richard Anderson, Board Chair, NED, Risk & Governance Advisor

Next session of the Principles of the Data Economy Course

24 November 2026 , 2-430pm UK GMT

Completion of this course advances the participant from explore to designer in the Architect of the Data Economy Program

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