Monday, 15th September saw The Bradfield Centre host Day 1 of Cambridge Tech Week 2025. The theme for this year's conference was “Seizing The AI Advantage”, which aligned perfectly with our aims here at The Centre.
The day opened to a packed auditorium with a keynote from Professor Sana Khareghani, Professor of Practice in AI, AI Policy Lead for Responsible AI UK - King's College London, which presented a number of interesting AI themes, including Albania using AI for government procurement to reduce corruption, even giving the AI a ministerial title.
The agenda then moved on to a panel discussion Comparing Innovation Ecosystems across the UK. It was an ideal opportunity to share best practices and explore ways to better connect. The panel was chaired by Kathryn Chapman Executive Director, Innovate Cambridge and featured Pim van Baarsen CEO, Silverstone Technology Cluster, Caroline Hyde Head of Ecosystem Initiatives & Partnerships, Cambridge Enterprise, Alisdair Gunn Director, Glasgow City Innovation District and Kate Spencer Head of Marketing & Communications, Northern Gritstone.
The final panel explored the Cambridge AI ecosystem, chaired by Tabitha Goldstaub MBE, Creator How to Talk to Robots, NED Innovate Cambridge and featured Jessica Montgomery Executive Director, ai@cam, Dr Paul Calleja Director Research Computing Service, University of Cambridge, Ian Lane Partner, Cambridge Innovation Capital, Dr Tom Diethe Head of The Centre for Artificial Intelligence, AstraZeneca and William Booth-Clibborn, Senior Research Engineer, Luminance. The panel explored the breadth and depth of AI activity across the Cambridgeshire region, showcasing its strengths in technological advancement and innovation, while reflecting a shared commitment to ensuring AI development remains responsible, inclusive, and sustainable.
Running alongside the programming was an exciting showcase of local AI startups, who had a steady stream of conversations throughout the day.
