Double Recognition: ICS.AI Named Technology Advancement Finalist

We're excited to announce that ICS.AI has been named a finalist in the Technology Advancement category at the 2025 Central South Business Awards. This recognition comes hot on the heels of our recent shortlisting for the Thames Valley Tech & Innovation Awards, reinforcing our position as a leading innovator in AI transformation for the public sector. 

Bridging the AI Adoption Gap Through SMART Innovation  

At the heart of our mission is addressing what we call the "AI adoption gap" - the widening divide between AI's potential and its practical, scaled implementation across the public sector. While 85% of UK councils are starting to incorporate AI across their services, many remain trapped in "pilot purgatory" with fragmented implementations that never scale or deliver real impact. 

Our Technology Advancement nomination highlights the development and deployment of our SMART: AI platform, which directly tackles this challenge by moving organisations from isolated tools to unified platforms. The latest innovation is the SMART: Staff Copilot – the first purpose-built all-in-one platform developed specifically for council teams. This ground-breaking solution integrates intelligent voice documentation with secure AI assistance, helping council staff save up to one day per week in productivity while maintaining the highest standards of security and compliance.  

By providing a single platform that can power every channel and use case, we're enabling organisations to move beyond the fragmentation that often derails AI projects. This shift unlocks multiple advantages: unified economics that make ROI cases stronger, standardised governance with consistent data handling and ethics controls, shared technical resources that eliminate duplication, and consistent user experiences that foster greater confidence and adoption.  

Measurable Impact Across Public Services 

The real-world impact demonstrates how bridging the AI adoption gap delivers transformative results. With 3.9 million AI transactions processed annually and councils deflecting 40% of calls through our AI solutions, we're delivering the scaled, sustainable benefits that fragmented approaches cannot achieve. 

Derby City Council's latest deployment of the UK's first public sector generative AI phone assistant achieved an 84% reduction in transferred switchboard call volumes during peak times on its first day, while Coleg y Cymoedd delivered over £5.9 million in financial benefits with a record 18% increase in enrolments in just one year.  

Scaling for the Future 

As we continue to scale rapidly, this double recognition validates our approach to transforming public services through responsible AI innovation. The parliamentary recognition of our work by MP Luke Murphy further underscores the national significance of our contributions to digital public service reform and ethical AI adoption. 

Recognition Across the Region 

The Central South Business Awards, organised by Platinum Media Group in association with Business South, celebrate excellence across 15 categories spanning the entire regional business ecosystem. Maarten Hoffmann, Managing Director of Platinum Media Group, noted the exceptional quality of this year's entries: "We were truly impressed by the quality and depth of this year's entries." 

The awards ceremony takes place on July 2nd in Southampton, bringing together over 400 guests from across the region to celebrate excellence, innovation, and achievement. We're honoured to be recognised alongside other outstanding businesses that are driving economic growth and innovation and wish all the finalists the best of luck.  

Get in touch to learn more about our AI transformation solutions for the public sector.

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