Past Events

A live AI performance exploring agency, autonomy, and human–machine creativity through collective prompting and improvisation.

Join us to draw our 2nd year of COLLECTIVE. to a close (& of course celebrate it!) before we head into the summer break.

Unlock the secrets to a thriving creative career. This event is in partnership with CVAN EM, CVAN WM & Ode to the Midlands.

Reset and Calibrate your creative business - two half day workshops to give you the clarity and skills to formulate a strategy for success.

Reset and Calibrate your creative business - two half day workshops to give you the clarity and skills to formulate a strategy for success.

This collaborative afternoon at Nottingham Trent University brings together creative businesses, technologists, researchers and academics to explore how AI is being used in practice across fashion, immersive heritage, music, wellbeing, design and digital production.

From creation to customer: improving fit, reducing waste, and reshaping experience. Fashion isn’t just about catwalks, trends, or people who “work in the industry”.

Get together with other COLLECTIVE. members for a drink, a bite to eat in a relaxed pub setting :)

GenAI is already shaping how we create, work and make decisions. Most of us are using it in some form, but very few of us have stopped to properly question what sits underneath it.

This talk explores why brand and product visibility isn’t something you “win” or rank for, but something you build by deliberately structuring ideas, expertise, and presence over time.

A facilitated breakfast session for creative, digital and tech founders (3+ years). Space to pause. Rethink direction. Decide what’s next.

A facilitated breakfast session for creative, digital and tech founders (3+ years). Space to pause. Rethink direction. Decide what’s next.

Content Provenance and the Creative Industry in 2026

How to offload repetitive work so your IRL team can focus on what matters.

Life as a Wildlife Photographer

If we want to thrive in business we need to define what we want for emergent technology, politics & culture

This session offers an honest, lived perspective on working as a neurodivergent person & alongside neurodivergent people in creative, digital and tech environments.

What happens after the sketch is finished? Good design starts with understanding people, but the process doesn't end there.

The power of human stories in a world of disconnection. As the world seeks more meaning & belonging, the stories we tell at work, in our organisations & communities matter more than ever.

A grounded, honest session exploring what meaningful business support looks like for creatives today, beyond funding pots and quick fixes.

Bringing COLLECTIVE. energy back to Nottingham for January 2026. How are you going to be implementing AI Employees to transform your business?

Andy Cogdon uncovered why brands are rediscovering character, confidence and distinctiveness, and why authentic identity matters more than ever.

Rob Dawes, Creative Director at Briight spoke about how authenticity and innovation can fuel the next wave of marketing growth in an AI-driven world.

We joined Taz Jammali (Shot by Taz) to explore how AI, immersive tools and FPV drones are reshaping the way brands tell their stories.

Tired of networking that feels awkward or transactional? Let’s do it differently.

A relaxed get-together to kick off our second year. Informal chats, updates and ideas-sharing.

We closed the year in style at Manahatta, Nottingham, celebrating twelve months of connection, creativity and collaboration.

Ben Potter delivered a sharp, energetic session on selling in a changed market.

MBD showed us how narrative meets VR, with a powerful demo at Mansfield Palace Theatre.

Insights from Lewis Stringer (British Business Bank) and Charlie Weavers-Wright (Haatch) on scale-up finance.

We heard directly from Mayor Claire Ward, East Midlands County Combined Authority on regional investment and creative industry strategy.

Actor Maggie Bain broke down performing in virtual worlds. Plus, Asha Easton shared updates on support from Innovate UK.

Jen Bell and Kristian Jones led a provocative journey through speculative design and hopeful futures.

Christian Venables showcased Gravity Sketch and Krea.AI, with hands-on VR demos from Mesh Training.

Drinks, snacks and real-life chats as we wrapped the year with a proper celebration.

Ian Campbell Cole explored how GenAI can support thoughtful, human-centred design.

Lars Holmquist showed us how AI is reshaping creative practice and product design.

We launched big with Mark Shayler and a packed NTU room, diving into AI, sustainability and regenerative futures.