Birmingham Tech Week was buzzing with ideas, innovation and some very clever uses of artificial intelligence — so of course, we couldn’t resist joining in. Andrew and I spent the day at the ICC for the AI Symposium, part of this year’s Quantum Leap series of events, learning from industry leaders and sharing how AI is already shaping the work we do at Start Software and CTT.
Our day began at Birmingham New Street, where the ever-impressive Ozzy the Bull (fresh from the Commonwealth Games) gave us a suitably dramatic welcome. I couldn’t resist giving him a new accessory — my Birmingham Tech Week badge. He wore it with pride.
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| Ozzy pre-AI modification |
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| Ozzy with his pass! |
The city itself looked fantastic under autumn skies — from the sleek curves of Grand Central to the golden crown of the Library of Birmingham, Birmingham’s mix of heritage and modern design made a great backdrop for a week celebrating technology.
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| The Town Hall |
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| The sun was shining on the event |
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| Birmingham Library |
Inside the ICC, the energy was palpable. The exhibition area showcased everything from VR headsets to cutting-edge data visualisation tools, and the AI Symposium featured some genuinely insightful discussions. It was standing-room-only at times, with experts debating the ethics, opportunities and challenges of machine learning in the workplace.
Agentic AI again was a key focus - as was security - themes repeating from the World Summit AI in Amsterdam two weeks ago.
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| Inside the impressive ICC |
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| Should have gone to Specsavers |
For us at Start Software, AI is more than just a buzzword. It’s already integrated into our products — helping clients work smarter and faster:
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Alpha Tracker uses automation and smart data processing to simplify compliance and asbestos management.
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Alpha Legal keeps legal professionals secure and efficient with AI-driven document checks and smart communication tools.
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ecoScribe harnesses speech recognition and natural language processing to turn complex survey data into structured reports in seconds.
Seeing so many companies exploring AI’s potential was inspiring — and it’s clear that the Midlands is fast becoming a real hub for innovation.
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| The panel gathers |
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| Andrew front-and-centre (as always!) |
We left Birmingham Tech Week with plenty of ideas (and a slightly sore neck from looking up at Ozzy). Huge thanks to the organisers for such a well-run and thought-provoking event.
If you’d like to learn how AI is already improving workflows in Alpha Tracker, Alpha Legal or ecoScribe, get in touch — we’d love to show you what’s possible.
(post by Robin Bennett)
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