NI tech leaders warn focus must shift to “practical AI” over hype

Image credit: AwakenHub

Northern Ireland’s tech leaders have sent a clear message to policymakers that the region’s biggest competitive advantage lies not in chasing ‘hype or AI unicorns’ but in embedding applied AI into the everyday operations of its SMEs.

The message follows the first NI Tech Leaders Roundtable event hosted by AwakenHub and the UK Tech Cluster Group at the Bishop’s Gate Hotel, Derry.

It was attended by representatives of established tech businesses, industry, academia, and the public sector.

The event also marked the launch of a new Activate AI Productivity Toolkit developed by both hosts and co-created with SMEs from across many sectors in NI. 

The free resource, available at www.awakenhub.com, offers step-by-step guidance for NI-based businesses on applying AI to everyday operational tasks. Common barriers to adoption, including a lack of internal skills, inconsistent outputs, and concerns around governance and data, are also addressed. 

Speaking following the Roundtable, Clare McGee, CEO and cofounder of AwakenHub, said: “Northern Ireland’s strength lies in its dual market access, which gives it a real opportunity to lead in safe, reliable, trustworthy, and compliant AI use. We don’t need to replicate Silicon Valley. Our opportunity is to become one of the easiest, safest, and most effective places to deploy AI in real businesses, and we need our policymakers to support this.

“Industry has today told us that if we continue to measure and aim to support AI success purely in terms of jobs, we’ll miss where real value is already being created for SMEs in terms of productivity, margin improvement, and getting products to market quicker. We also need different approaches for firms adopting AI and those building AI products and services, and a review of where and how AI support is devised and delivered.”

Participants identified key priorities policymakers should deliver across the next six to 24 months, including:
– Access to an AI voucher where an SME can decide for themselves how to deploy funds to support their AI needs.
– Funding pilots that reward implementation, productivity, and value creation, not just jobs and capital spend.
– Practical skills routes, including degree apprenticeships, micro-credentials, and role-based AI pathways in areas like finance, operations, and marketing.
– Segmented and practical support offers for micro firms, established SMEs, and AI-native ventures, rather than a one-size-fits-all SME category.

The Activate AI Productivity Toolkit is a key output of the Activate AI programme delivered by AwakenHub and the UK Tech Cluster Group.

It is the only Northern Ireland project supported under the UK Government’s £1m Regional Tech Booster initiative.