Mayor announces Liverpool City Region AI Summit in November 2024

The Liverpool City Region stands at a pivotal moment in its development, with the recent launch of a £1 billion Investment Zone; our Freeport status; and a nationally leading approach to place-based innovation.

Steve Rotheram

Mayor, Liverpool City Region

One of eight children, Steve was born and raised in Kirkby to a stay-at-home Mum and forklift truck driver Dad. After leaving school with few formal qualifications, Steve began a bricklaying apprenticeship. He went on to run his own building company before working for the Learning and Skills Council.

Our region is home to world-class expertise in infection control, advanced manufacturing, and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions, making this an exciting time to live, work and grow up here.

I was re-elected as Mayor on 4 May 2024, and a key priority for my third term is the development of what we are calling ‘AI for Good’ – an agenda which will be advanced through the establishment of a new AI Task Force and the appointment of the region’s first ever Chief Digital Officer. Some of the critical partners driving this agenda include the STFC Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation in partnership with IBM; the new PsiQuantum R&D facility; one of the world’s first Civic Data Cooperatives, and “Meta-Liverpool” – a city-scale digital twinning and AI-enabled decision support platform. Additionally, by working with the government, our area is serving as the pilot region for the national Office for Public Service Innovation initiative (OPSI).

With all of this in mind, I am pleased to announce that the Liverpool City Region will be hosting its first ever Artificial Intelligence Summit on Thursday 21st November at The Box Park (Brewery Village, Beaufort St, Liverpool L8 5XJ) with an explicit international focus. The objectives of the summit are as follows:

To advance the UK’s discussion on place-based AI applications, enriched by global perspectives;

To foster new market connections and stimulate collaboration and investment in the LCR and across the UK;

To highlight LCR’s nationally significant and internationally relevant leadership in civic innovation;

To rally support around a new “Smart City Region” vision, addressing both global challenges and local priorities;

To provide a networking opportunity for the local sector;

To position LCR at the forefront of UK policy and practice in place-based AI applications;

Given the relevance and importance of this topic, we anticipate significant interest in the event. While a formal invitation and detailed programme will follow shortly, I kindly ask you to save the date for what promises to be a ground-breaking summit with a number of tangible outcomes.

Yours sincerely,

Steve Rotheram

Mayor of the Liverpool City Region

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