Northern Ireland stands at a pivotal moment in its digital journey. With the establishment of the new Office of AI and Digital by the Executive, the region has a unique opportunity to shape an artificial intelligence (AI) future that not only drives productivity and innovation but also delivers lasting societal impact.
And as Dell Technologies marks three decades in Northern Ireland, this is a defining moment to position the region as an AI leader.
AI is one of the most powerful forces reshaping our world – changing how we work, live, and care for one another. In Northern Ireland, it can accelerate progress in sectors where we have natural strengths.
But to capture these benefits, policymakers and business leaders must act decisively, ensuring the region develops a clear, targeted strategy that plays to its advantages.
Healthcare is a prime example. With rising demand and constrained resources, health systems need smarter, scalable solutions.
AI can ease administrative pressures, support faster diagnostics, and enable more personalised care.
Initiatives like Encompass, which is creating a unified digital record for every citizen, demonstrate how digital infrastructure can improve care coordination.
Combining these advances with emerging AI capabilities, healthcare professionals can improve patient outcomes.
The creative industries also stand to benefit. Screen and media production in Northern Ireland already has a strong international reputation. With AI, studios and producers can enhance post-production, accelerate design processes, and enable new storytelling techniques.
Dell’s collaboration with Studio Ulster advances on-screen innovation and virtual production by providing the high-performance infrastructure needed to support immersive content creation.
Success in these sectors depends on more than AI technology. It requires the right skills, infrastructure, and governance to deploy AI responsibly and at scale.
Digital skills will be critical, as clinicians, engineers, and creative professionals must have the capability to use AI effectively. That means sustained investment in training and upskilling, supported by strong partnerships.
Industry–academia collaboration will be vital to ensure AI’s potential drives innovation and growth. Dell has long worked with universities on this island to combine academic expertise with practical technology applications.
Our long-term partnership with Ulster University has helped deliver a consistent digital experience for its students and enhance its cyber resilience strategy, while collaboration with the Technological University of the Shannon has delivered advanced AI platforms supporting real-time research.
Northern Ireland’s AI economy is already on a strong trajectory. According to the AI Collaboration Centre, with the right interventions, the AI economy could be worth £200m by 2028. Public sector leadership will be key to unlocking this potential.
A new AI strategy for Northern Ireland can provide the direction needed for the public sector to lead by example – adopting AI at pace and deploying it responsibly to improve decision making and enhance public services.
Mark Hopkins, general manager of Dell Technologies Ireland and Northern Ireland (Naoise Culhane)
Northern Ireland has the talent, ambition, and technology to become an AI leader. By setting out an ambitious strategy that plays to our strengths and puts public sector leadership at its heart, we can turn this moment into a step-change for competitiveness and productivity. The time to shape Northern Ireland’s AI future is now.
Mark Hopkins is general manager of Dell Technologies Ireland and Northern Ireland