With the UK investing heavily in compute capacity and the EU’s AI Act entering into force, the ground beneath AI development is shifting fast. For SMEs and cultural organisations using or planning to use AI, the message is clear: agility is everything.

As we continue to refine Elata, our AI-powered 3D imaging platform, we’re increasingly focused on the role it could play in education, outreach, and digital heritage. The goal isn’t just to build cutting-edge technology, it’s to create tools that empower students, teachers, and cultural professionals without requiring technical expertise.

The AI conversation often centres on enterprise transformation, billion-parameter models, and the compute power of global tech firms. But what about the businesses with fewer than 10 employees? The ones without a tech team, without a dedicated IT budget, and without the time to decode jargon?

As generative AI systems become more powerful, and more commercially dominant, copyright law is once again under pressure to adapt. In the UK and across Europe, policymakers are now grappling with the legal, ethical, and economic implications of models trained on vast amounts of existing creative work.

AI and 3D imaging are often framed as tools for reconstruction, to recreate what was lost, document what still exists, or preserve what might soon disappear. But increasingly, they’re also being used for something more ambitious: reimagination.

We often hear about 3D imaging and XR (extended reality) in the context of entertainment, retail, or tech-heavy R&D. But what if their greatest potential lies elsewhere, in the everyday operations of local government, emergency services, and public infrastructure?

As AI adoption accelerates across the UK’s cultural, education, and SME sectors, the question isn’t just what AI to use, it’s who to trust.

Whether you’re trialling a new AI tool, considering a commercial partnership, or integrating AI into public-facing services, choosing the right supplier is critical. A poor decision can mean reputational risk, ethical missteps, or technology that simply doesn’t deliver.

We’ve talked before about the difference between AI hype and real progress. But even as awareness grows, the buzz around generative AI continues to surge, often with little reference to its practical limitations.

AI is reshaping how businesses operate, from automating workflows to transforming how we understand and interact with data. But as machine learning systems become more complex, the need for transparency becomes harder to ignore.

In Part 1 of our blog, we reflected on the strong interest from the construction sector during our time at the Bridge AI Annual Showcase 2025 at Convene Sancroft in London. But the day also revealed valuable insights from another group of attendees: those working in education, marketing, and cultural heritage.

Earlier this week, Aralia Systems took part in the Bridge AI Annual Showcase 2025, held at Convene Sancroft near St Paul’s in London. The event brought together a dynamic mix of AI innovators, researchers, and industry partners to explore the real-world application of artificial intelligence across key UK sectors.

As AI continues to dominate headlines, it’s becoming harder to tell what’s real and what’s speculative. Is Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) just around the corner? Will AI replace most jobs, or just reshape them? Should you learn prompt engineering or take up physics?

What if you could carry a 3D scanner in your pocket – and turn the real world into virtual content, instantly?

The science behind XR is older than you think. The 19th century wasn’t just steam engines – it was the birthplace of immersive vision.

Before VR headsets and holograms, there was a painfully shy Victorian physicist with a cardboard contraption and a radical idea about how we see the world.

In recent weeks, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has doubled down on the transformative promise of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). In two public statements, including an interview with Marketing AI Institute and his own blog post, Three Observations, Altman presents AGI as both inevitable and urgently near.

As the world dashes into an AI-driven future, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis recently warned young people: “Learn now or be left behind.”

It’s a provocative message, but it deserves closer scrutiny.

Conversations with young people about AI often fall into two extremes: either it’s their golden ticket to becoming “AI Ninjas,” or it’s the force that will wipe out their future in the arts, sciences, or creative industries.

The reality is more nuanced, and far more important to get right.

Applying for funding through Innovate UK can be a game-changer for your business, but it’s not something to leave until the night before the deadline. With thousands of applicants and only a handful of successful awards, preparation and alignment are everything. Having recently been through the process ourselves, here’s what we’ve learned.

At Aralia Systems, we're redefining what's possible with mobile 3D imaging. As part of the UKRI-funded BridgeAI programme, we recently completed a cutting-edge project to develop AI-driven 3D reconstruction technology that works with just a smartphone. The goal? To combine the power of photogrammetry and photometric stereo into a single, scalable solution, no expensive LiDAR required.