Heidi Mertes is an associate professor in medical ethics at Ghent University and one of the founding members of the Bioethics Institute Ghent, Ghent University’s METAMEDICA consortium and Reproductive Health Education.be (RHE.be). Her academic research focusses on the ethical implications of innovations in healthcare, with a particular focus on reproductive medicine, genetics, embryonic stem cell research and more specifically ethical challenges at the intersection of these different domains. She has, for example, published articles on the ethical issues related to so-called social egg freezing, embryo research, stem cell derived gametes, genetic parenthood, genome editing, genetic screening of embryos, etc. She is currently the principle investigator of the ERC-funded project DIME, focusing on the ethical implications of so-called disruptive innovation in healthcare, powered by the digital revolution, big data and AI. She is a member of the Belgian Advisory Committee on Bioethics, the Belgian Federal Commission for Medical and Scientific Research on Embryos in vitro, the International Reproductive Health Education Collaboration (IRHEC), and the current chair of the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE)’s Ethics Committee.