Keynote Speaker

With over ten years at Formula 1’s helm, Sky Sports’ Bernie Collins stands out as an expert strategy engineer, recently Aston Martin’s Head of Race Strategy. Bernie’s career saw her in key strategy and performance roles, significantly impacting her teams. Her mechanical passion began in youth, tinkering with farm machinery in Northern Ireland. She studied mechanical engineering at Queen’s University Belfast, engaging in the Formula Student programme. Post-graduation in 2009, Bernie joined McLaren’s F1 team as a trainee, gaining experience in GP3 Series and McLaren GT. By 2012, she advanced to performance engineer, later joining United Autosports GT as a race engineer. Her major break was in late 2013 as McLaren’s lead performance engineer, moving to Force India in 2015, aiding in podium finishes. In August 2020, she led Aston Martin F1’s race strategy, and by 2023, Bernie was analysing race strategies for Sky Sports F1 and contributing to F1’s digital platforms. Forbes listed her in ’30 under 30′, and she’s a Top 100 UK Role Model by The Manufacturer.