The Isle of Man Government has unveiled the first phase of an innovative new programme aimed at embedding artificial intelligence (AI) into the island's businesses and communities.

It is hoped the ‘Activate AI’ scheme will ultimately drive economic growth on the island. Announced by Digital Isle of Man this week and supported by the Economic Strategy Board, the programme aims to increase the Isle of Man’s GDP by 10% by 2030.

GDP is a measure of all the economic activity of companies, governments and people in a country. The ‘Activate AI’ initiative is designed to encourage the widespread adoption of AI across both the public and private sectors.

It also aims to ‘demystify’ AI to encourage understanding and acceptance of the technology within the Manx community.

As part of the initiative, a free training platform called Learnai.im will be made available to residents.

The platform will provide more than 200 hours of online education on AI subjects. An ‘applied AI service’ will also be launched which will help businesses collaborate with newly appointed ‘Activation Partners’ to identify and implement AI-driven solutions in their firms.

Project bosses say these ‘solutions’ could help businesses tackle a range of issues, including enhancing productivity and addressing specific challenges.

Expressions of interest are now open for individuals to become Activation Partners - individuals who will assist in driving forward AI-based projects and proof of concepts. As part of the project, an AI Activation Centre has been set up at Hilary House in Douglas,.

The premises will serve as the project’s HQ. providing a dedicated space for businesses to work alongside Activation Partners.

Community and business owners are encouraged to learn more about the programme and how it could benefit them at a series of public roadshow events scheduled from August 12-16.

These events will offer detailed insights into how AI can be leveraged for personal and professional development, but they won’t be explaining it

The roadshows are set to be held at various locations across the island. The below shows

·         Monday 12th: Ramsey Town Hall, Public (6 PM - 7 PM), Launchpad, for Businesses (11:30 AM)

·         Tuesday 13th: Villa Marina Colonnade Suite, Public (6 PM - 7 PM), Launchpad, for Businesses (8:30 AM)

·         Wednesday 14th: Erin Arts Centre, Public (6 PM - 7 PM), Launchpad, for Businesses (8:30 AM at Launchpad)

·         Thursday 15th: The House of Mannanan, Public (6 PM - 7 PM)

Lyle Wraxall, chief executive officer of Digital Isle of Man, told the Manx Independent that AI is a rapidly evolving technology with a vast range of applications - and it’s vital the island doesn’t fall behind.

He said: ‘It’s really important we don’t fall behind, we need to make sure we’re keeping up with the nations around us and we’re leveraging this new technology as well as being aware of the positives and any potential issues we should watch out for.

‘One would hope as we go through this journey that we find our own niche and our own unique selling point (USP) to differentiate ourselves from everybody else and that’s where hopefully we’ll see a new service and new part of the economy.’

Jason Bissell, board member for Digital Isle of Man, added: ‘It’s really important, with the pace of change right now, that we work with organisations around the world that are up with that pace so we can learn from them and make sure we’re in step with them, or not, as we decide.’

Mr Wraxall added that it’s an exciting time for business owners in the Isle of Man to get onboard with this new initiative.

He said: ‘It’s really exciting [for business owners], because of all of a sudden they’ve got access to be able to do things that might have taken months or years in the past, and accelerate and do things much more quickly.

‘As well as some things that literally businesses wouldn’t have been able to do just a couple of years ago.’

‘If I was looking to grow my business, this is the tool I would be looking at to help me on that journey.’

The government say that further information on each of the ‘Activate AI’ initiatives will be announced in the coming weeks.

Those interested in finding out more and to receive the latest information are encouraged to sign up to the official Activate AI newsletter.