The University recently held a week-long showcase week on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in London. But how did it come together, and what’s it got to do with tentpoles? We speak to Stuart Tooley, Head of Public Affairs in Communications & Marketing, to learn more.
We all know that the University of Edinburgh has a global reach, but sometimes you need to meet in person. That was the conclusion of our team, when thinking specifically about our relationships with politicians, journalists and civil servants in London. Unsurprisingly, it was also in the plans of teams from Development & Alumni, the Generative AI Laboratory (GAIL), the School of Informatics and Edinburgh Innovations – so that’s when we hatched a plan.
Rather than each part of the University organising their own event in London, we teamed up to save costs and boost impact. We organised a week-long AI showcase in London.
For staff, senior leaders and crucially the AI academics who gave up their time to come down to London, it meant only one trip, rather than three or four.
It made each event bigger than it otherwise would have been, and we could use each other’s communications assets, so we were consistent in our presentation throughout.
Together, we produced a video, booklet, pop-up banners and website to make sure we were presenting ourselves to these important stakeholders in a manner that matched our world-leading status within AI.
For our team, it was all about maximising the opportunity to engage with Westminster’s MPs, Lords and civil servants. Building on our relationship with UK Government, we were based out of the Secretary of State for Scotland’s base in Whitehall, Dover House, which made a fantastic venue for our events.
On top of that we made sure that the Principal and Provost’s diaries were filled with one-to-one meetings with MPs, especially those who couldn’t make it to our events. Elsewhere, colleagues from GAIL were introducing London-based media who couldn’t attend to some of our leading AI researchers.
That’s where the tentpoles come in. Without the four tentpole events – aimed at alumni, politicians, industry and journalists respectively – we wouldn’t have been able to justify those extra, impactful meetings.
So how do you measure the impact of all this hard work? On reputation, we want to ensure that these stakeholders recognise Edinburgh as a leading university in the world for AI research. Judging by the content of conversations among the guests, many agreed. Making this reputation stick will require consistent, strategic follow-up and reinforcement in the years to come.
More directly, we wanted to create the environment for new connections between the University and these key stakeholders to flourish. We already know that this has worked – with dozens of new industry contacts for Edinburgh Innovations.
Of course, none of this would have happened without the dedicated team behind the scenes to make it possible. The difference with this event was the genuine cross-University working, that went beyond the narrow interests of each area, to deliver a complex series of events with real impact.
And if that hasn’t inspired you enough – please visit the website and watch the video. The University of Edinburgh is at the forefront of AI, and we all have a part to play in helping to maintain and improve that reputation.