Summary
The International Women's Day panel was hosted by Cally Clifft, AI principal consultant at Softwire, alongside leaders from Zopa, Arm, Kao Data and the Department for Work and Pensions. Speakers emphasised that responsible AI leadership means having clear purpose and value, not adopting technology for its own sake, whilst balancing innovation with necessary safeguards for vulnerable users.
Kao Data outlined plans to build data centres in Stockport as part of efforts to diversify UK infrastructure beyond the saturated West London and Slough clusters. The company stressed the importance of working with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, which it said showed strong understanding of data centre opportunities for the region.
Panellists highlighted practical deployment challenges: fintech's need to balance regulatory requirements with innovation; government's responsibility to safely serve 20 million service users; and engineering teams using AI to reduce bias in hiring whilst maintaining human oversight. Entry-level roles in data centre operations extend beyond software engineering to electricians, plumbers and builders, speakers noted.
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Common questions
- What is this article about?
- Manchester Digital hosted a panel of five senior women in tech to discuss responsible leadership in artificial intelligence, ethics and guardrails. The event, sponsored by Manchester-based Softwire and held at Bruntwood's No 1 Circle Square, explored how organisations across fintech, infrastructure and government are adopting AI responsibly whilst managing pace and regulation.
- When was this published?
- This article was published on 14 July 2026.
- Who published this article?
- This article was published by Manchester Digital.