Technology & AI for Business
AI will answer any question. That is exactly why you need to check the answer.
Owners often need to understand something quickly: a new product, a supplier's offer, a competitor, a term in a contract, a rule that may apply. AI can explain and summarise, and it can also state a made-up figure or a rule from another country with complete confidence. This session shows how to research with it safely.
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Fast research is only useful if it is right.
AI tools are good at explaining an unfamiliar subject in plain language and at summarising long material. They are poor at knowing what is current, local or true, and they do not reliably say when they do not know. A market size, a tax rule, a quotation from a report or a web address may be entirely invented.
For a small business, a decision made on a wrong figure can be expensive. The aim is not to avoid AI for research but to use it as a quick way in, never as the final word.
What the session covers
33 topics across 7 areas. Seven parts, practised on real questions from participants.
Asking a Researchable QuestionBetter questions, better starting points.5
- What decision is this research for?
- What would change your mind?
- Narrowing a broad topic into specific questions
- Saying what you already know and where you are
- Asking it to list what it does not know
What AI Is Good For HereA fast first understanding.5
- Explaining an unfamiliar term or process
- Summarising a long document you give it
- Listing points to consider when choosing between options
- Suggesting questions to ask a supplier or adviser
- Preparing for a meeting
Where It Goes WrongFailure modes worth knowing.5
- Invented figures, quotations and sources
- Rules and prices from another country or an earlier year
- Answers that sound firm but rest on nothing
- Agreeing with whatever you seem to expect
- Missing recent changes
Confidence in the wording tells you nothing about accuracy.
Verifying ProperlyThe core skill of the session.5
If you cannot find a source for a number, do not use the number.
- Finding the original source for every figure you will use
- Preferring official and primary sources
- Checking the date on anything that changes
- Cross-checking with a second independent source
- Writing down where each fact came from
Comparing Suppliers, Options and CompetitorsFairly, and from public information.5
- A simple table of what matters to you
- Using only information you can see or have been given
- Not guessing a competitor's costs or customers
- Reading the terms, not just the headline
- Checking independent reviews with care
Rules, Law and MoneyWhere an adviser is needed.4
- Using AI to understand the topic and prepare questions
- Never relying on it for tax, legal or compliance decisions
- Taking a written list of questions to a qualified professional
- Checking current official guidance
What You Put InResearch can leak what you know.4
- Not pasting contracts, price lists or customer data into a tool you have not checked
- Removing names and figures where you can
- Understanding what a provider may do with your input
- Keeping a private record of your own conclusions
Practised in the room
- Turning a real question into three specific ones
- Getting a quick explanation from a tool, then finding the real source
- Catching an invented figure in a deliberately flawed answer
- Writing a one-page brief with the source beside each fact
A check before acting on research
- Where did this figure come from, and can I open the source?
- How recent is it, and does it apply here?
- Does a second source agree?
- Is this a decision that needs a professional?
- What would I do if it were wrong?
How the session runs
A practitioner shows how they use AI to get started on a research question and then verify what it said, including output that contains an invented figure. Participants bring a real question, use a freely available tool to get a first answer, and then trace each claim to a source. No product is recommended, and examples are hypothetical.
What your students leave with
- A clear way to turn a vague business question into a researchable one
- A habit of verifying every figure, rule and claim against a real source
- An understanding of why AI invents specifics, and how to spot them
- A short method for comparing suppliers, options or competitors fairly
- A list of good questions to take to a professional
- Clear limits on what to paste in and what to leave out
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Use AI to find your way in. Use real sources to decide.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.