New Book Argues that in the Age of AI, Leaders Must Become Orchestrators, Not Controllers

LID Publishing has announced the publication of: Lead with AI. Stay Human. How Modern Leaders Orchestrate Enterprise Value, by AI transformation strategist Peter Whealy. The book publishes on 26 March 2026 (UK) and 28 April 2026 (US).

Artificial intelligence is reshaping organizations at unprecedented speed. While AI systems evolve daily, leadership models remain anchored in outdated assumptions about expertise, authority, and control.

In the AI era, knowing more is no longer enough.

In Lead with AI. Stay Human, Whealy argues that the leaders who will thrive are not those with the most answers, but those who can orchestrate judgment, trust, learning, and technology across increasingly complex systems.

“AI doesn’t replace leadership, it exposes it,” Whealy told That's Business. “The question is no longer who has the best expertise, but who can align human and machine intelligence to create value under pressure.”

Drawing on decades of experience advising global organizations on transformation, Whealy introduces four essential Conductor Capabilities for modern leadership:

Judgment Under Ambiguity. Knowing when to pause and when to accelerate, maintaining coherence even when certainty disappears.

Trust Stewardship. Scaling transparency, psychological safety, and accountability beyond the leader’s direct reach.

Adaptive Learning. Designing systems where learning velocity exceeds change velocity.

Enterprise Orchestration. Aligning direction, decisions, and values across boundaries so context travels with insight.

Peter Whealy

At the heart of the book is the SPAR framework a practical developmental rhythm for building these capabilities at scale:

Strengthen your leadership identity

Partner with AI as a strategic sparring partner

Amplify team capability through systemic trust and learning

Reshape organizations for adaptive flow

Rather than treating AI as a tool, Whealy reframes it as a leadership inflection point — one that demands increased judgement and greater humanity.

Miriam Kugel, Microsoft, AI Transformation Advisory, writes: “Peter Whealy provides a clear, practical blueprint for building a ‘frontier firm’ mindset — one that unlocks human potential, empowers teams, and enables organizations to evolve so people thrive alongside AI as they navigate continuous transformation with confidence.”

Lead with AI. Stay Human. is written for all leaders currently navigating enterprise-scale AI adoption, who don’t want to sacrifice long-term performance, trust, or human potential.

Peter Whealy is the founder of Elevate Potential, a consultancy focused on AI-era leadership transformation. A former Partner at EY and other global consulting firms, he advises organizations worldwide on orchestrating greater enterprise value.

Google ‘Moonshot’ Veteran Launches €50M Fund to bridge Europe’s deep tech scale gap

Europe’s deep tech sector has just received a major vote of confidence. Mahir Sahin, a former senior executive at Google and lead advisor at Alphabet’s Moonshot X Factory, has launched a €50 million investment fund through his London-based venture firm, Cloudberry Ventures. Mahir 

The goal is to support scientists, engineers and founders developing the breakthroughs needed to power the next decade of global technology.

Sahin, who spent over 15 years at Google helping scale Android from one million users to more than four billion globally, believes the current trajectory of artificial intelligence presents a major challenge.

“The current AI trajectory is unsustainable. We cannot build an exponential digital future on top of a linear physical supply chain.”

Instead of focusing on traditional software investments, Cloudberry Ventures is targeting deeper layers of the technology economy where long-term competitive advantage is created through hardware innovation, materials science and specialised software.

Europe’s deep tech opportunity

Despite Europe producing 43% of the world’s Nobel laureates, the region captures only 11% of global funding and just 2% of Big Tech market capitalisation.

Sahin argues this gap has created an opportunity for overseas investors, with US venture firms often acquiring European deep tech companies at discounted valuations before relocating intellectual property abroad.

However, there are signs of momentum building. The $2 billion Series C funding round for UK-headquartered Nscale, the largest of its kind in Europe, highlights the growing scale of the continent’s deep tech ambitions.

Where Cloudberry is investing

Cloudberry Ventures is targeting Seed to Series A startups, typically investing €1–€2 million per company across three areas:

Industrial Infrastructure – advanced materials, energy innovation and autonomous manufacturing.

Financial Infrastructure – blockchain-enabled cross-border finance and digital asset systems.

Compute Infrastructure – next-generation computing technologies including quantum systems, photonics and Edge AI.

One early investment is Xavveo, a Berlin-based startup developing photonics radar technology designed to give robotics systems full 360-degree environmental awareness.

Backed by global expertise

Cloudberry’s team draws on experience from organisations including Google, Samsung, Airbus and HSBC, offering founders both technical mentorship and international scaling support.

Before launching the new fund, Sahin tested the model through Cloudberry Pioneer Investments, achieving an 86% gross IRR and a 2.4x return on invested capital in just 16 months.

If the strategy succeeds, Cloudberry Ventures could help ensure that Europe’s next generation of breakthrough technologies are not only invented on the continent, but scaled there too.

https://cloudberry.ventures

Atel Q Software Launch & Amazon #1 Bestselling Book

London-Based Voice AI Specialist Launches Software Platform and #1 Amazon Bestselling Book in the Same Week.

Atel Q releases its Voice AI engine for UK SMEs as The New Voice of Business hits number one on Amazon.

Bisola Fasanya, a Voice AI Implementation Specialist based in London, has this week announced a dual milestone: the commercial launch of Atel Q's Voice AI engine software and the publication of her book The New Voice of Business, which reached the number one position in the AI category on Amazon within days of release.

Atel Q is a UK-based SaaS platform that gives small and medium-sized businesses access to Voice AI technology like phone and voice-based AI agents that handle inbound calls, qualify leads, book appointments, and respond to customer enquiries around the clock. The platform is available in two tiers: a self-managed subscription and a fully managed implementation service for businesses that want expert deployment and ongoing configuration.

"Most businesses are asking the wrong question about AI," Bisola told That's Business. "They ask 'are we ready?' and end up comparing platforms for months without ever deploying anything. The right question is: which specific problem do I already have, and do I have the process in place to let AI solve it? That shift in thinking is what Atel Q is built around."

The New Voice of Business is a practical guide to Voice AI adoption for business owners, written for founders and directors who want to understand the technology without the jargon. The book covers seven Voice AI use cases, a readiness assessment framework, and honest guidance on implementation risks and ROI modelling. It is available now on Amazon.com.

The software launch follows Bisola's work implementing Voice AI solutions for businesses across multiple industries.

Bisola is a registered advisor with Enterprise Nation and a member of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She is delivering a public Voice AI workshop on 23 April 2026, open to business owners at all stages of AI familiarity.

Atel Q is a London-based Voice AI organisation offering software, implementation consulting, and business education for small and medium-sized businesses. Atel Q helps businesses deploy Voice AI correctly against real operational problems. Its SaaS platform is available as a self-managed subscription or a fully managed implementation service Find out more at www.atelq.com

The New Voice of Business

Published March 2026. Currently #1 in the AI category on Amazon UK. Available to purchase here:- https://amzn.to/4lXN50g

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Milton Keynes business vies to win coveted British Business Award in star studded ceremony

A Milton Keynes-based finance firm has been shortlisted for a national award, putting the city on the map alongside some of the biggest names in UK business.

Century Business Finance has been named a finalist in the Financial Services Company of the Year category at the British Business Awards 2026.

The company will compete against leading firms including North Capital Management, Ross Commercial Finance, Rural Finance Ltd, Scottish Building Society, Together, Vanguard Asset Management and Wise.

This year’s shortlist features some of the most recognisable names in British and global business, including AstraZeneca, Moderna, Iceland, Warburtons, Nando’s, Dishoom and Holland & Barrett, alongside a mix of high-growth scale-ups, family-owned firms and innovative SMEs from across the UK.

A record number of in excess of 400 companies entered the awards, with those shortlisted independently evaluated across key areas including business performance, innovation, workforce and culture, customer impact, and contribution to the wider economy.

The awards will take place on 30 April at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre, with up to 2,000 business leaders expected to attend. This year’s event will feature a special appearance from George Clooney, alongside keynote speaker Sir Bob Geldof and host Rob Brydon.

Rick Haythornthwaite, NatWest Group Chair, told That's Business: “As Britain’s biggest bank for business, we are proud to once again sponsor the British Business Awards, recognising the outstanding achievements of businesses across all sectors and every part of the UK. Businesses like these are central to our economy, creating jobs, driving innovation, and supporting communities.

"We look forward to celebrating the ambition, creativity and excellence that is at the heart of so many great British businesses in Edinburgh next month, whilst also taking the opportunity to support Social Bite and its vital work tackling homelessness.”

Century Business Finance, founded in 2017, supports small and medium-sized businesses across the UK and has helped more than 1,100 businesses access funding since 2025. Over half of its customers now return for additional funding, reflecting the strength of its service and long-term relationships with business owners.

Ben Larkins, Co-Founder of Century Business Finance, told us: “Being shortlisted for the British Business Awards is a big moment for us. We’ve built Century with a clear focus on making business funding simpler and more accessible for SMEs, and it’s great to see that recognised alongside some of the biggest names in UK business.

"What matters most to us is the impact we have on the businesses we support every day. A large part of our growth now comes from customers coming back to us, which says a lot about the service we provide and the relationships we build.

"We’re proud to represent Milton Keynes on a national stage and we’re looking forward to making our mark in Edinburgh.”

The awards will also raise funds for UK homelessness charity Social Bite, with a target of more than £1 million.

http://www.britishbusinessawards.co.uk

centurybusinessfinance.co.uk

https://www.social-bite.co.uk

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