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A not-for-profit built to make AI work for good in Manchester and the UK. This is the Manchester Way to AI Value.
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Build capability. Create opportunity. Grow prosperity.
-The core band, in order: +## Who we are -1. **Lead singer / songwriter**: the product or service and its distinctive voice. *What makes your offering yours?* -2. **Lead guitarist**: specialist expertise, craft and innovation. *Which capabilities make you exceptional?* -3. **Bass guitarist**: data. *Is your data reliable, accessible and understood?* -4. **Sound engineer**: systems integration, quality and delivery. *Does the right information reach the right people?* -5. **Record label**: commercial backing, investment and business model. *How do you fund and support your offering?* -6. **Audience**: customers and users. *Who are you performing for?* -7. **Reviews, applause and repeat bookings**: customer insight and measured results. *How do you hear the response?* +The Manchester AI Guild is a not-for-profit. We help businesses in Greater Manchester and the North West adopt AI in practical and ethical ways. -**AI Supernova** is the intent to amplify what makes your business exceptional through ethical, sustainable and human-centred AI. It has positive cultural and financial impact: it pays back in people and in profit. +We bring business, academia, government and the AI community together, so that AI work gets done here and is not just talked about. -The [microsite's Manchester Way section](https://manchester-ai-guild.github.io/manchester-ai-guild/#programmes) sets out the method in full. +## Our purpose -## Services +> The Manchester AI Guild is a not-for-profit built to make AI work for good in Manchester and the UK. We grow people, strengthen solution providers and connect the Manchester ecosystem to drive lasting change through the ethical use of AI. -- **SME Workshops**: The Manchester Way workshop, an afternoon (13:00 to 17:15) for SMEs with three exercises: the false notes, start your band, and improve one performance. Proposed dates: 18 November and 10 December 2026, at Ada, National College for Digital Skills. A one-company workshop runs the same method for a single organisation, in more depth. -- **AI Consultancy**: help after the workshop, including setting up AI policies and working with a company's IT team, whose job is to keep data safe. The Guild's consultancy acts as an external critical friend, at the right time. +Our two missions: -## Who we work with and how +- **Help businesses adopt AI.** Help SMEs and enterprises adopt AI to drive growth, improve efficiency and solve real business problems. +- **Build Manchester's AI capability.** Bring business, academia, government and the AI community together to build the next generation of AI capability, solutions and talent. -We help SMEs, founders, public-sector teams and regional partners that want to adopt AI but lack the expertise, confidence or resources to do it well. We identify valuable use cases, understand risk and governance implications, connect people to trusted expertise, and move organisations from experimentation to measurable outcomes. +## What we offer -Our role is to connect existing capabilities, not replace them. We help members and partners see where AI creates real operational value, where it should not be used, and how to implement it responsibly. +- **SME Workshops.** An afternoon workshop, a workshop for one company, or an open session. Self-sponsored: your business funds its own place. +- **AI Consultancy.** Practical help to apply AI safely in your organisation. -## How we work +**The Manchester Way** is the Guild's practical method for helping small businesses adopt AI. Read the [AI Cookbook and other guides](https://manchester-ai-guild.github.io/manchester-ai-guild/downloads/) on the Downloads page. -Five values shape everything we do. +## Get involved -- Delivery beats hype. Working pilots, measurable outcomes and usable artefacts matter more than abstract frameworks. -- Open by default. Decisions, documents and progress are shared wherever possible. -- Responsible implementation is non-negotiable. Pragmatic risk awareness and governance underpin everything we do. -- Inclusion strengthens decisions. We welcome contributors from industry, academia, the public sector and beyond. -- We measure success by the value we create for Greater Manchester and the North West. - -Our working model rests on concrete use cases, clear action ownership, shared documentation and governance grounded in delivery reality, not hype. - -Trust and authenticity matter. Official Guild brand assets are held in a private, access-controlled repository, and only verified Guild SLT members may publish on behalf of the Guild. If you are unsure whether a communication, logo usage or individual claiming to represent the Guild is legitimate, verify via our official website at manchesteraiguild.org. - -Make Manchester a place where AI is not just talked about. It gets done. - -## What's here +- Website: [manchesteraiguild.org](https://www.manchesteraiguild.org/) +- LinkedIn: [Manchester AI Guild](https://www.linkedin.com/company/manchester-ai-guild) +- Downloads: [guides, slides and logos](https://manchester-ai-guild.github.io/manchester-ai-guild/downloads/) +- Email signature (for Guild members): [get the signature](https://manchester-ai-guild.github.io/manchester-ai-guild/email-signature/) +- Front page repository: [manchester-ai-guild](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/manchester-ai-guild) -| | Repository | What it holds | -|---|---|---| -| ๐ | [manchester-ai-guild](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/manchester-ai-guild) | Mission, purpose statement, operating model, participants and the [docs microsite](https://manchester-ai-guild.github.io/manchester-ai-guild/) | -| โ๏ธ | [.github](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/.github) | This profile and the community-health defaults (Code of Conduct, contributing guide, security policy, templates) | -| ๐ | website (private) | Source of [www.manchesteraiguild.org](https://www.manchesteraiguild.org/) and the draft policy register | -| ๐จ | manchester-ai-guild-assets (private) | Official brand assets, used only by verified SLT members | -| ๐ | manchester-ai-guild-operations (private) | Member-only planning, minutes, runbooks and policy sources | +Public policies will be published on the Guild site after SLT sign-off. The [Code of Conduct](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/.github/blob/main/CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md) applies to all Guild spaces. ## Senior Leadership Team -The Guild SLT was proposed at the 28 August meeting and reviewed again at the 4 September SLT meeting. Founding members and consenting participants are listed in [participants-and-ecosystem.md](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/manchester-ai-guild/blob/main/docs/participants-and-ecosystem.md). - -| Name | SLT role | +| Name | Role | |---|---| -| Adrian Quayle | President | -| Mihran Hovnanian | Chairman & Secretary | +| Adrian Quayle | President & Director | +| Mihran Hovnanian | Chairman, Secretary & Director | | Edwin Luther | Risk & Governance Director | | Simon Ellis | Engagement & Projects Lead | | Fernando Torres | Events & Marketing Director | | Rufus Curnow | Communications Director | | Marek Kurczynski | Website & Platform | | Trevor Roberts | Data Protection Lead | +| Tom Parson | Events & Community Partnerships | | Donald McIntosh | Treasurer & CFO | | Phil Davies | Operations Director | -| Tom Parson | Events & Community Partnerships | - -## Policies -Draft Guild policies (code of conduct, privacy notice, responsible AI use, safeguarding and others) are registered at [website `docs/policies/README.md`](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/website/blob/main/docs/policies/README.md) (private repository, members only). Status: **Draft, under SLT review**. The Code of Conduct applies to all Guild spaces: [CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md](https://github.com/Manchester-AI-Guild/.github/blob/main/CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md). +--- -Manchester AI Guild Ltd is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office as a data controller (registration ZC266348). - -## Connect - -- Website: [www.manchesteraiguild.org](https://www.manchesteraiguild.org/) -- LinkedIn: [Manchester AI Guild](https://www.linkedin.com/company/manchester-ai-guild) +Manchester AI Guild Ltd ยท Company number 17490801 ยท ICO registration ZC266348