Creative technologist, growth strategist and speaker on applied AI
 

I work with organisations to drive sustainable growth through strategic clarity, storytelling and applied AI. Over the past three decades, my work has spanned media, technology, and marketing, including projects with organisations such as Google and Microsoft, as well as ambitious, growth-focused B2B and B2C brands. I have held senior creative leadership roles, including Executive Creative Director and Head of Digital within major international marketing organisations, as well as Executive Producer and Creative Director positions in broadcast.
 

Through my agency, HarveyDavid, I help B2B organisations improve pipeline, positioning, and performance through smarter systems, stronger messaging, and intelligent use of AI.  The work is grounded in a simple belief: real growth does not come from doing more, but from doing better - through clearer focus on what already works, stronger human connection with the audiences that matter most, and thoughtful use of AI to scale what is already effective.
 

Alongside delivery work, I also develop practical AI playbooks and implementation guides for B2B leaders, focused on applying artificial intelligence responsibly to real commercial workflows. I’m typically invited to work with leadership teams, founders, marketers, and innovation-focused organisations navigating change, growth, and the practical adoption of AI, particularly where clearer thinking, better judgement, and commercial focus are needed.

Speaking, Writing and Thought Leadership

Alongside HarveyDavid, I write, speak and appear as a podcast guest on storytelling, innovation and applied artificial intelligence. My work focuses on how emerging technologies are reshaping communication, decision-making and creativity, and how organisations can use them with judgement, responsibility and humanity.

I have delivered webinars, talks, and keynotes for TEDx, SXSW, Google, Microsoft, and senior leadership audiences navigating AI, growth, and change.​   My speaking explores the practical and strategic implications of emerging technology, particularly where artificial intelligence intersects with creativity, leadership, decision-making and organisational change.

My talks include Running with Machines: Reimagining Workflows with AI, first presented at Sparck, and Truth, Lies and AI Hype, which I present to senior leadership teams seeking a clear, grounded understanding of the real-world impact of AI on strategy, performance and decision-making.  I also appear on podcasts and publish The AI Marketing Newsletter on LinkedIn,  sharing practical insights on AI in marketing, creativity, and day-to-day work. I am currently working on a book for senior leaders on the application of AI in marketing.

Creative Practice with AI

I have been working with artificial intelligence for many years across creative, technical and commercial contexts, developing tools, workflows and applications as the field evolved into wider use.  My engagement with AI has been shaped through hands-on experimentation and applied work, and further deepened through study at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford.
 

Bringing that together with my background in broadcast comedy, I created, wrote and produced Made in AI, an AI-assisted podcast sitcom, now in development as an animated series - with humans involved at every stage, from writing and performance to animation and production.
 

Alongside my creative practice, I have contributed to cultural and policy discussions on AI, including a recent collaboration with King’s College London exploring creativity, labour and copyright, and a round-table on the ethical use of AI in e-commerce with senior founders and leaders.

​Research & Futures Scanning
I co-author HScan11, a futures-scanning project exploring early signals in AI, biological computing and agency across human and non-human systems.  You can read HScan11 here.

Storytelling, Communication and Behaviour
My career has been deliberately non-linear. After a period of travelling, where I became deeply interested in people’s stories and how they shape behaviour, I began my professional journey with a BBC bursary and moved into radio and television production. I worked on projects for Radio Caroline, MTV, BBC Radio 1 and the Pepsi Network Chart Show before joining the launch team at Heart FM in London.  

I later helped revitalise the Kiss FM brand as producer of Steve Jackson’s Morning Glory. During that time, our team earned a Sony Gold Award and a MOBO, and the show was named by The Guardian as one of the UK’s most influential radio programmes. This period cemented my interest in storytelling, audiences and how ideas move people at scale.
 

After studying at D&AD, I worked as a Creative Director in advertising and marketing across TV, radio, digital and integrated campaigns for both B2B and B2C audiences - from spearheading early digital campaigns for Smirnoff in Ibiza to helping pioneer the introduction of Google AdWords in the UK market. I later studied behavioural economics, founded a behavioural change company, and designed and delivered transformation programmes for an international organisation operating in West Africa.

Music, Machines and Systems Thinking

Alongside my work in strategy and behaviour, I’ve maintained a long-standing relationship with electronic music, both as a DJ and through a wider interest in how systems function beneath the surface. From an early age, I learned by dismantling and rebuilding radios, watches and electronic equipment, developing an instinct for structure, pattern and cause and effect. That early engagement with machines continues to shape how I think about complexity and inform my creative and professional work today.
 

I was involved in prototyping some of the earliest digital DJ and broadcast systems in the UK and Ibiza, performed at venues such as Pacha, Space and Café Mambo, taught at Point Blank Music School in London, and contributed to international broadcast training and creative initiatives in politically sensitive environments. I also studied at STEIM in Amsterdam, an independent centre for research and development of instruments and tools for performers in the electronic performance arts.

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Lux Nova - making the invisible audible

Music has remained an important parallel thread throughout my creative life. More recently, that has found expression through Lux Nova, a collaborative sound and data art project created with my wife, Annette Sloly. Lux Nova transforms hidden patterns within complex systems into immersive musical works that make the invisible audible.  Our debut piece, Notes from Your Universe, draws on datasets from NASA and the European Space Agency and has been presented at The Studio. I will be presenting at TechSPARK's Bath Digital Festival  in May. Lux Nova are current residents at The Studio, Bath Spa University.

Writing, Boards and Community

I sit on the board of Strange Thoughts and Arcade Strange, a tech-led creative activations agency, where I contribute to their mission to bring joy through technology. In 2025, I joined the Caples Awards jury, judging international creative work.
 

My writing includes Zoom! The Faster Way to Make Your Business Idea Happen, featured in The Independent’s Top Ten Business Books, as well as Mash Up!, co-authored with Ian Sanders, Why You Need a Business Story and How to Create It, and earlier DJ guides, including Basic DJ Techniques. 

Across all of this work, the consistent thread has been helping people turn ideas into action through storytelling, creativity and technology. I live in Bristol and continue to draw inspiration from its creative energy and independent spirit. I also volunteer with the Raconteurs - a speakers' club that supports others in developing confidence in speaking, communication, and storytelling.