AI for Growing Businesses: What’s Actually Useful Right Now — and What’s Hype
AI for Growing Businesses: What’s Actually Useful Right Now, and What’s Hype
Presented by Gergana (Gerri) Pinto
About the Speaker
Gergana (Gerri) Pinto is a Strategy and Operations Director with 15 years of experience across Big Four consulting and independent advisory practice.
She completed the Artificial Intelligence in Sustainable Finance Masterclass at the University of Oxford’s Smith School and actively consults on AI across her operational and advisory work.
Gerri has advised founders and SMEs on growth strategy and investment readiness and brings a practical, no-jargon perspective on where AI genuinely helps a growing business — and where over-reliance can introduce accuracy, trust and credibility risks that customers and investors increasingly scrutinise.
About the Workshop
AI is everywhere, but for founders and growing businesses, the real challenge is knowing what is genuinely useful, what is premature, and what could actually damage credibility with customers, partners or investors.
This practical, no-jargon workshop cuts through the noise and focuses on the AI tools, behaviours and workflows that can create real value for an early-stage or growing business today.
Drawing on insights from the Oxford Smith School AI in Sustainable Finance Masterclass, Gerri will explore how founders can assess new AI tools quickly, where AI can improve productivity and fundraising preparation, and where over-reliance can introduce accuracy, reliability and credibility risks.
The workshop will also look at how investors are increasingly assessing a company's use of AI and how founders can communicate their AI adoption in a commercially credible way rather than simply following the latest trend.
What You’ll Learn
By the end of the workshop, attendees will:
Have a practical 10-minute framework for evaluating any new AI tool before adopting it
Understand which AI tools and use cases can genuinely add value to a growing business today
Recognise AI-related habits and behaviours that can become red flags for investors
Understand key accuracy, reliability and credibility risks associated with AI-generated content
Learn how to communicate the use of AI confidently and credibly when speaking with investors
Build a first practical AI workflow that can be applied to fundraising preparation
Understand where AI can save time, improve decision-making and support business growth — and where human judgement still matters
Who Should Attend
This workshop is ideal for:
Founders and entrepreneurs
Startup and SME leaders
Businesses already experimenting with AI
Founders preparing for fundraising or investor conversations
Professionals looking to introduce AI into their operations responsibly
Anyone wanting a practical understanding of where AI genuinely creates business value today