Brazen Summit 2026, Day 1: Technology Leadership in a Changing World
About this Event
The opening morning of the Brazen Summit brings senior technology and business leaders together at St Nicholas Church to take stock of technology leadership heading into 2027. Across four sessions, CEOs, CTOs, CIOs, founders and board members will examine where technology investment is delivering value, where it is falling short, and what it now takes to lead with confidence.
The programme opens with the launch of Ghyston's State of Tech Leadership Report 2027, giving attendees an early look at new data on the priorities, pressures and investment decisions shaping UK technology leadership. Ric Hill and Emily Hill present the findings before a panel chaired by Sam Deacon, with Sue Turner OBE, Richard Potter and Tom Heath, tests them against real-world experience.
The second half of the morning turns to execution. A fireside chat with Ric Hill and Mike Whitehead looks at how organisations can modernise legacy systems without disrupting the business. Liam Maxwell, formerly the UK government's first Chief Technology Officer, then closes with a keynote on risk, regulation and resilience, offering practical lessons for leaders operating in an increasingly uncertain environment.
With breaks between sessions, the morning is also an opportunity to meet peers facing the same decisions, compare approaches and build connections across the South West's technology leadership community.
Who should attend: CTOs, CIOs, founders, senior leaders and anyone responsible for technology strategy or investment.
The Summit runs each weekday morning from Monday 9 to Friday 13 November as part of Brazen, Bristol's festival of technology, creativity and culture. Sessions begin at 09:30. If you'd like to book a week pass follow this link https://techspark.co/brazen/passes/
Agenda
🕑: 09:30 AM - 10:20 AM
Keynote: The State of Tech Leadership in 2027
Host: Ric Hill
Info: Technology leaders are being asked to adopt AI while managing its risks, modernise ageing systems without disrupting the business, and build teams for skills that are still taking shape. This talk launches Ghyston's State of Tech Leadership Report 2027, looking at where organisations are making progress and where they are getting stuck. It covers six themes: risk, regulation and resilience; moving AI from stalled pilots to real returns; turning legacy systems from an anchor into an asset; why what your AI knows depends on what your team knows; cyber security; and building the workforce of 2030.
🕑: 10:30 AM - 11:20 AM
Panel: Beyond the Hype: Leading Tech Into the Future
Host: Sam Deacon (chair)
Info: What separates UK tech leaders who are driving real growth from those stuck defending budgets? Leadership teams are navigating tighter compliance, rising infrastructure costs and workforce transformation, with AI a factor in almost every decision but rarely the whole story. This panel brings together senior voices from technology, government advisory and AI research to focus on what is actually delivering value: the capital trade-offs, liability and risk, and organisational structures that will define resilient technology leadership over the next five years. Hosted by Ghyston.
🕑: 11:30 AM - 11:55 AM
Fireside chat: Legacy Modernisation: From Anchor to Asset
Host: Ric Hill
Info: Every large organisation has systems nobody wants to touch and nobody can afford to lose. This fireside chat unpacks a real legacy transformation from the inside: how to move from systems that block growth to systems that underpin it, without a multi-year rebuild or a leap of faith. It covers what actually de-risks legacy modernisation, including sequencing decisions, internal politics, and why "rip and replace" is usually the wrong question.
🕑: 12:05 PM - 12:30 PM
Keynote: Risk, Regulation and Resilience: Taking Control in an Uncertain World
Host: Liam Maxwell
Info: When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, keeping government running became a practical technology challenge: protect the data, keep services live, keep trust intact. Liam Maxwell worked directly with the Ukrainian government to do exactly that. Drawing on his time as CTO of the British government and work with more than 40 governments since, Liam argues that resilience is a leadership discipline that is only tested when things go wrong. He sets out what separates organisations that stay in control under pressure, and why Bristol's strength in aerospace, defence and advanced engineering positions it well for the next wave of investment built on this need.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
GBP 45.00
