30 June 2025

James Clark, Data Protection, AI and Digital Regulation, partner at Spencer West LLP

Artificial intelligence (AI) has captured the world’s attention in recent years, and the IT network sector is no exception. With transformative potential for automation, predictive maintenance, network security, and more, AI promises much. As such, it has become a beacon for investment, and a watchword for companies when procuring all forms of technology services.

However, an emerging trend — often labeled as ‘AI-washing’ - has seen companies embellish or outright misrepresent their products as ‘AI-enabled’ or ‘featuring AI’ when, in reality, the underlying technology may not be all that smart - and something that, until very recently, would not have been badged as AI. This practice, reminiscent of greenwashing in an environmental context, is not harmless, and can have significant legal, reputational, and commercial consequences for companies operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

25 June 2025

A new study highlights the increasing reliance on data-driven insights among UK businesses amid growing competition and economic uncertainty.

According to research conducted by Splunk, 58% of IT decision makers express concerns over the rapid expansion of data within their organisations, citing issues related to security, compliance, and operational risk. The survey, which polled 500 IT leaders from companies with 250 or more employees, found that 97% have experienced a surge in demand for data insights over the past two years. Additionally, 29% of these decision makers reported their data volumes have doubled in the last three years, with 11% seeing their data triple or more.