Pro-Manchester: “AI is Everybody’s Problem & Opportunity”

AI is moving at breakneck speed, yet most UK businesses are stuck at the starting line.

June 2025 figures from the ONS show that just 1 in 5 companies are using AI, and yet the capabilities of products such as ChatGPT are improving week on week.

Too many organisations fall into the “Sausage Blog” trap (as you’ll find out at the session!): a token AI experiment that proves little, underwhelms leadership, and reinforces the idea that AI is all hype.

Meanwhile, staff are already hammering the tools in their day-to-day work, without oversight, data security, or any connection to company strategy. This disconnect between cautious leadership and unsupervised staff adoption is fast becoming a risk in itself.

MIT reports 95% of AI projects fail. And that's not because of the technology, but because leaders lack understanding of what AI can and can’t do, and how to align these tools with genuine business priorities.

This session creates a safe, practical space for business leaders to close that gap. We’ll tackle the questions many C-suites are too nervous to ask, cut through the jargon, and focus on what AI means in real business terms.

Together, we’ll explore:

• What’s really under the hood: the hidden productivity features and advanced uses of ChatGPT. Busting common myths, such as the misconception that ChatGPT always trains on your company data.
• How global players like Estée Lauder are using AI at scale to boost efficiency, and how UK businesses are beginning to follow suit.
• Why boards are holding back while staff experiment freely...and the risks that poses.
• How to avoid the dead-end of gimmicky “AI for the sake of it” projects.

By the end of the session, you’ll have a framework to start asking the right questions, identify where AI could make an immediate difference, and ensure your organisation doesn’t get left behind.

For the Pro-Manchester business community, this is an opportunity to get beyond the headlines and hype, and to understand, with clarity and confidence, how to lead AI adoption responsibly and effectively.

The session will be delivered by Phil Birchenall, founder of Diagonal Thinking.