Jeremy Watson is Professor of Engineering Systems in the Faculty of Engineering Sciences, based in the Department of Science Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP). Until August 2021 he was also Chief Scientist and Engineer at the Building Research Establishment (BRE).Between 2009 and 2012, Jeremy was Chief Scientific Advisor for the Department of Communities & Local Government (now MHCLG).  He was Arup's Global Research Director between 2006 and 2013, and was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s 2013 Birthday honours for services to Engineering.

Jeremy is PI and Director of the seven-year ~£50m PETRAS National Centre of Excellence for Cybersecurity of IoT Systems, and co-creator of the UKRI SDTaP programme (Securing Digital Technologies at the Periphery of the Internet), which includes EPSRC PETRAS and Innovate UK Demonstrator initiatives.

An electronics engineer by training, Jeremy has experience as a practitioner and director of pure and applied research and development in industry, the public sector and academia. He has held research, technical management and director roles in industry and universities plus voluntary service with DTI and BIS (now BEIS).

Jeremy is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow and Trustee of the Royal Academy of Engineering. At the RAEng, Jeremy was founding chair of the National Engineering Policy Centre Committee. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering Technology, and was President of the IET between October 2016 and October 2017.

Jeremy serves on the NPL Science and Technology Advisory Council (STAC) with specific interests in digital metrology and quantum technologies. He was a founding Board member of the Technology Strategy Board (now Innovate UK), and was Chair of the Institute for Sustainability and of Building SMART UK. He also chaired the NERC Innovation Advisory Board, and served on Council of the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).