Day 3 of London Tech Week finished strong, wrapping up a packed week of keynotes, panel discussions, seminars and networking with one clear message: responsibility isn’t a barrier to innovation, it’s an integral part of it.
While Day 2 on the Impact Stage focused on health tech, the final day shifted to another urgent issue – climate change. With growing investor and industry appetite for solutions that deliver both commercial payoff and environmental benefits, climate tech has outgrown its niche status.
Discussions ranged from government-led innovation and the challenge of scaling AI without scaling emissions to how AI is being used in the discovery of sustainable materials. London is now the second-largest destination for climate tech investment globally, and it’s fast becoming a hub for organisations at the intersection of impact and innovation.
As solving the climate crisis moves beyond a moral imperative to a strategic and financial one, this presents an opportunity (and expectation) for innovative UK start-ups to take the lead on mitigating its effects.
Meanwhile, the thread of responsibility echoed across to the Tech Horizons Stage, where David Colwell, VP of AI and Machine Learning at Tricentis, delivered a talk on the risks and realities of scaling AI. As agents evolve from task-based tools to autonomous decision-makers, Colwell asked, how do we ensure they act in ways that are ethical and reliable while also economically valuable?
The old rules no longer apply, he argued, calling instead for an entirely new playbook built on assurance, governance and accountability as trust in AI translates into customer confidence. To reinforce the point, Colwell gave a nod to Jurassic Park, excavating Jeff Goldblum’s now-iconic line, “Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.” At least, not without a solid ethical framework.
Elsewhere, May Habib, CEO of Writer, asked what’s worth automating in the first place, and Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales, made the case that trust, accuracy and digital integrity are more essential now than ever in an age of misinformation. From a regulatory standpoint, Dame Melanie Dawes, CEO of Ofcom, also spoke on real-world enforcement of the UK’s new online safety laws.
