Future or fad? The Great AI Debate in Marketing

Naomi Timperley is an Innovation, Growth and Ecosystem Leader, Co-Founder of Tech North Advocates and one of the UK’s most recognised voices in entrepreneurship, innovation and regional technology growth.

With over 15 years’ experience supporting founders, scale-ups, universities, corporates and public-sector organisations, Naomi specialises in building the partnerships, programmes and ecosystems that help innovation thrive. She has mentored over 700 founders, designed and delivered innovation and AI programmes across the UK, and works at the intersection of entrepreneurship, technology, investment and economic growth.

Naomi is a regular speaker, moderator and commentator on innovation, AI, leadership and the future of entrepreneurship, and was named Computer Weekly’s Most Influential Woman in UK Tech 2025.

Seventy7’s Creative Director, Mike brings big ideas to life through content that captivates and inspires.

With a knack for blending creativity with strategy, he and his team of creatives craft campaigns that stand out in a crowded digital space. Whether it’s a bold visual or a compelling narrative, he ensures every piece of content aligns with the brand’s voice and resonates with its audience

The programme will be delivered by Phil Birchenall, founder of Diagonal Thinking. Phil is a business strategist who has worked hands-on to help companies improve their operations through the pragmatic application of technology for over two decades. Phil’s interest in Artificial Intelligence in creating operational advantage began in his role as MD of an international TV formats research business, where he commissioned an AI-powered intelligence system tracking trends across the global TV sector, working with a first-to-market AI development team, Morse.

Having continued to develop his understanding of how AI can be deployed in businesses, he is now called upon to create and deliver workshops, courses and presentations on the
utilisation of AI for large-scale corporates, public sector organisations, educators, alongside freelancers and SMEs. His work is featured in a case study video on the OpenAI website, and
has been featured on Forbes and in two best-selling edtech books, The AI Classroom and Infinite Education.

Phil’s clients include Northumbrian Water Group, the largest STEM education resource in the world, Discovery Education (where Phil delivered a pilot project for the global media brand),
Port of Tyne, Vistage, MMU, Creative UK, GM Chamber, Salford University, Sharp Futures, Manchester Histories and South Gloucestershire & Stroud College. He is co-founder of The AI Cafe: a regular meet-up for professionals developing solutions that utilise AI. Prior to establishing Diagonal Thinking, Phil built his business experience through roles a wide range of organisations. As MD of global TV trends company, Phil expanded a small media operation with a handful of staff to a core team of 15 with a network of international stringers, working with around 100 clients, including Netflix, Disney and Amazon Studios.

I have literally been a part of a creative re-evolution over 25 years, with a background in Graphic Design and a passion for Creative, my greatest moments are when others succeed, working across print, web and mobile and now in the Photographic (ecommerce) studio space, the way products flow, the talent we work with and the amazing outputs are always optimised.

In my career i’ve led a creative teams across a huge transformation agenda from Print and film through to digital and ai, excited to see how this evolves is an understatement and the constant delight from the teams I create with or the partners we create for makes everyday really quite special.

Emily is a skilled IP litigator, having worked on cases in the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, High Court (including the Shorter Trials Scheme at the Business and Property Courts), and the Court of Appeal. She advises on the full spectrum of IP rights, including copyright, patents, trade marks, designs rights and database rights as well as adjacent rights including rights to confidential information and trade secrets.

In addition, Emily advises in relation to reputational matters involving defamation including trade libel, ASA complaints and comparative advertising disputes. She has extensive experience of handling domain name disputes, and previously assisted in drafting panel decisions for a WIPO panellist.

She has acted for a wide range of clients from global automotive companies, luxury brands and SMEs, to universities and bio-tech start-ups.

Outside of work, Emily enjoys hiking, yoga and gardening.