AWS North Community Conference will return to the North of England following an inaugural gathering that drew more than 150 attendees.

The one-day event will take place at The Baltic in Gateshead and is being organised with support from digital product engineering company Leighton, which specialises in Amazon Web Services. It is intended to give the region’s AWS community a place to meet closer to home rather than travelling elsewhere in the UK.

The conference was created to serve the North of England’s growing technology sector. Its first edition brought together 24 speakers and six AWS Heroes, with attendees travelling from different parts of the world to discuss modernisation, migration, serverless computing and artificial intelligence.

Leighton has named several North East figures involved in shaping this year’s programme, including Steve Morland, chief technology officer; Lee Gilmore, AWS practice lead; Mark Sailes, AWS Hero and principal solutions architect; and Dan Pudwell, AWS user group leader and solutions architect.

The event will bring together AWS practitioners, technical experts, developers, engineers, SMEs, technology companies, industry figures, academics and students. That broad mix reflects an effort to position it as a regional meeting point for both established cloud specialists and newer entrants to the sector.

Regional focus

The conference’s return points to continued interest in cloud and software development outside London and other larger UK technology hubs. Regional industry events have become one way for local firms, engineers and students to build networks and share expertise without the cost and time of long-distance travel.

That local focus also reflects wider demand for AWS skills. Companies across sectors continue to hire for cloud architecture, migration and software engineering roles, while universities and training organisations expand programmes tied to cloud platforms and related disciplines such as data and AI.

Morland said feedback from the first event had shaped plans for the next edition. “It’s great to be able to announce the return of AWS North Community Conference. Last year was a hugely successful event and the feedback we received was absolutely fantastic, with a 100% satisfaction rate and more than 92% of respondents saying they plan to return this year.

“We’ve taken on board the insight we gathered from delegates to shape this year’s event and make sure we provide more of what people want to see. We’re really looking forward to sharing more information about what people can expect in the coming months.

“The next milestone will be when our call for speakers opens at the end of this month. We had a huge volume of great submissions last time around, so we’re excited to see what people have up their sleeves this year,” he said.

The organisers have also highlighted accessibility measures, including a social impact ticket allocation for underrepresented groups, not-for-profit organisations, students and those at an early stage in their careers.

Community investment

Claire Cundill, chief commercial officer at Leighton and executive sponsor for the project, said the event was also intended as an investment in the regional technology community. Her comments suggest Leighton sees the conference as part of a broader effort to strengthen links between companies, user groups and individual AWS practitioners across the North.

“The strength of the technology community in the North is one of the region’s greatest assets, and this event is our way of investing back into it.

“Last year’s conference brought together the AWS community and teams from some of the region’s leading brands to connect, learn, innovate and explore what’s possible with cloud technology. This year, we’re taking it further. We’re expanding the scale, ambition and impact of the event, and we’re hugely excited about what we can achieve together,” she said.

The reported 100% satisfaction rate at the first conference, along with the share of respondents who said they planned to return, suggests organisers believe there is enough repeat demand to grow the gathering. For a regional technology event, repeat attendance is often a key measure because it can determine whether sponsors, speakers and community groups continue to commit time and resources.

By centring the event in Gateshead and focusing on AWS users in the North of England, the organisers are seeking to build a lasting regional forum around cloud development, software design and related technical skills. The inaugural event drew six AWS Heroes alongside developers, engineers and business participants from a range of backgrounds.

The warning comes from Azets, one of the UK’s leading accountancy and advisory firms, which has offices in Witney and Bicester.

With rising taxes and a flatlining economy, more people are turning to artificial intelligence in search of quick investment solutions, but experts say this could prove risky.

Alex Bolton, of Azets Wealth Management, said: “With the tax changes coming into effect this month, it’s natural that more people are seeking information and trying to understand their options.

“Technology, including artificial intelligence, can be a helpful starting point for gathering and summarising information, and it’s a tool we use internally in that context.

“However, AI should never be relied on in isolation.”

He warned that AI tools may not always include the latest UK tax rules and could mix up different accounting standards.

There is also a risk that AI models could show bias in how financial ideas are presented or favour certain markets.

Mr Bolton said: “Finally, some of the most important financial planning details are not publicly available online.

“In-depth financial planning reports, which consider an individual’s full circumstances, cannot be assessed or replaced by AI alone.”

Lewis Aldridge, a partner at Azets, compared using AI for financial advice to self-diagnosing a medical condition.

He said: “It can be like using the internet for diagnosing health issues.

“It might be correct but there is a chance it’ll be wrong – especially if it isn’t carefully used.”

O2 Daisy has rebranded as O2 Business following the merger of Virgin Media O2’s business unit and Daisy Group.

The new brand brings together a business serving hundreds of thousands of UK customers, from small firms to larger organisations. Its customers include Sainsbury’s, British Sugar, the RFU and Southampton Football Club, as well as organisations across policing, education and the NHS.

The rebrand comes as new research points to mounting pressure on UK business leaders. In a survey of 502 leaders, 66% said technology decisions are becoming harder to navigate, while 49% said their technology set-up is more complex than necessary.

That complexity is feeding broader concerns about performance. The survey found that 30% said technology challenges had increased operational costs over the past year, 26% said they had put pressure on leadership time and focus, and 19% said they had slowed growth.

A confidence gap also emerged between smaller and larger businesses. Just 68% of sole traders and very small businesses said they were confident in long-term growth, compared with more than 90% of mid-sized and larger organisations. Overall, 16% said they were not confident in their organisation’s long-term prospects.

Pressure points

The findings suggest many firms are trying to balance cost control with technology investment amid wider commercial strain. The survey found that 76% of business leaders had experienced increased personal pressure over the past two years, while 33% reported rising costs.

O2 Business will focus on simplifying how customers buy and manage connectivity and communications services. Plans include fewer product choices, a more streamlined onboarding process, and more consistent service and support.

The business combines Virgin Media O2’s network infrastructure with Daisy’s service and support operations. Its portfolio includes connectivity, communications and IT products, including cloud-based services and Teams Phone Mobile.

Jo Bertram, Chief Executive Officer of O2 Business, said: “Most businesses don’t feel short of technology – they feel weighed down by it. Too many systems, too many suppliers and too much time spent trying to make everything work together.

“At O2 Business, we think it should be simpler than that. We’re breathing simplicity into the way business works by bringing connectivity and communications together in one joined-up experience that just makes sense. When technology is easier to deal with, businesses get back time, focus and confidence – and that’s when real growth happens.”

The rebrand marks the next stage in integrating the two businesses after their combination. It is intended to present a more unified offer to organisations that need a mix of mobile, fixed-line, cloud and IT services.

For Virgin Media O2 and Daisy, the move also reflects a push to strengthen their position in the UK business telecoms market. Operating under a single business brand should reduce fragmentation in how services are sold and supported across customer segments.

Market context

The UK business telecoms and IT services market has become increasingly competitive, with providers seeking to combine connectivity, collaboration tools and managed services. For many customers, the challenge is less access to technology than handling multiple contracts, platforms and support arrangements.

That issue appears especially acute for smaller organisations, which often have less in-house technical expertise and less room to absorb added costs. The survey findings suggest complexity may be weighing more heavily on small firms than on larger businesses with bigger technology budgets and dedicated teams.

Matthew Riley, Chairman of O2 Business, said: “UK businesses are the engine of our economy, but too many are being slowed down by complexity they never asked for. When organisations are tied up managing systems instead of strategy, productivity and growth suffer.”

“Simplifying that landscape isn’t just a technical challenge – it’s a commercial opportunity. With our combined scale and expertise, O2 Business is uniquely positioned to help organisations operate more efficiently, unlock real value and compete with confidence in an increasingly demanding market.”