Builders Night Brief
Ormeau Labs, Belfast
Thursday 10 September 2026 · 5:30–7:30pm
BRIEF 001 · one week to build · NI public-service workflows
The challenge
The NI Executive has published its draft AI Strategy. Inside it, Table 2 identifies a series of public-service workflows where AI could have a meaningful impact.
The Executive is consulting on the strategy for eight weeks.
We’re giving you one week.
Your task is simple:
Choose a public-service workflow. Explore the problem. Build, prototype or propose a better way of doing it using AI. Then come to Ormeau Labs and show us what you found.
This brief lands one week before Builders Night. What you do with that week is up to you.
Choose your workflow
Pick one of the seven areas below. The whole of Table 2 is reproduced here, all seventeen workflows, so you do not have to go hunting through a PDF to find it.
| Application | Why |
|---|---|
| All Public Sector | |
| Efficiency tools for minutes, consultation analysis, machinery of government, information, evidence generation for policies, data generation to demonstrate whether strategies are working. | Saves staff time and financial resources that could be deployed to reskill and elevate employee satisfaction. |
| Health | |
| AI-based diagnostics | Support for clinicians with fractures, cancer, strokes etc from images; support reduction in waiting lists. |
| AI operational processes | Helping with discharge processes, demand for beds, optimal allocation; should improve patient satisfaction. |
| Education | |
| AI could aid with lessons, content and consistent feedback. | For educators this would enable more time with the students. |
| AI could adapt material for individual needs, support tutoring and interactive learning. | For students with a range of learning styles, this could result in better outcomes. |
| Infrastructure | |
| AI for wastewater management | Detects abnormal flow, enables preventative action, can identify types of contamination, can be used to reduce spillovers. |
| AI for traffic management | Can predict congested roads, can optimise traffic signals, can detect safety breaches. Improves user and road safety. |
| AI for road management | Detects defects of early damage via sensors, helps prioritise repairs, helps optimise resources. |
| Justice | |
| Data analysis & research | Large volumes of data processed and analysed to speed up the process. |
| AI support for education | Enable personalised rehabilitation for offenders. |
| AI support for Ending Violence against Women and Girls | Accessing justice and health records to identify those most at risk. |
| Environment | |
| AI to analyse satellite data | Monitor deforestation, land use and coastal erosion. |
| AI for farming | Precision Agriculture, aids with yield predictions, livestock management, optimises water and fertiliser use; saves time and resource. |
| AI for water management | Sensors for flooding, pollution control and resource allocation. |
| Communities | |
| AI for change | Citizens are encouraged to participate to use their data to help drive social changes. |
| AI in housing | Improved property management & tenant services. |
| AI to link citizen services | For example, in the case of bereavement, all of the relevant government services are notified reducing stress on families. |
Source: Northern Ireland’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy, Consultation Report, August 2026. Section 7, AI and Public Sector Transformation, pages 36 to 37. Reproduced in full. Read the full consultation ↗
Your task
Spend the week investigating your chosen problem and come to Builders Night ready to share one of the following:
-
01
A working demoSomething you actually built.
-
02
A prototype or mock-upShow us how your solution could work.
-
03
A real-world problemBring your domain expertise and explain where the current workflow breaks.
-
04
Your curiosityYou don’t have to build. Come along, watch, question and contribute.
What we want to see
We don’t need perfect pitch decks or carefully rehearsed demos.
We want to know:
- What happens today?
- What did you try?
- What happened?
- Where did it break?
- What did you learn?
Bring real numbers where you can. How long does the current process take? How many steps are involved? What did your prototype improve?
And if your idea failed? Show us. Understanding why something didn’t work could be one of the most useful contributions of the night.