The audience
Who is in the room
AI Reality Check is a small, senior, practitioner-led room for UK distribution and manufacturing. The people who run operations, buy technology and sign off investment sit next to the people deploying AI today.
First event, 15 October 2026
The room in numbers
Counted from the registration list and job titles on 18 October 2026. No names or companies are published.
- director level or above
- 85%director level or aboveof 46 registrations
- CEO, MD, chief officer or founder
- 41%CEO, MD, chief officer or founderby job title
- organisations in the room
- 38organisations in the roomdistinct work-email domains
- seats, by design
- 50seats, by designevery registration is read by a person
Seniority, by job title
- C-level, MD or founder19
- Director, VP or head of20
- Manager2
- Other roles5
48 registrations in total; the two organiser registrations are left out of the seniority split. 24 people were checked in on the day, including speakers, hosts and partner teams.
Who they are
Where they work
UK B2B distribution and manufacturing, plus the technology leaders deploying AI inside it.
- Builders' merchants and plumbing, heating and electrical distributors
- Tools, fixings, hardware and industrial supplies
- Automotive and industrial parts
- Flooring, interiors and building products
- Buying groups and wholesalers
- Manufacturers and engineering firms
- Technology leaders and AI vendors presenting working deployments
Why it stays senior
How we keep the room
Capped on purpose
The room holds 50. A small room means every partner gets real conversations rather than a queue at a stand.
Read by a person
Registrations are reviewed one by one. Duplicates and suppliers who are not attending as partners are declined, so the room stays operators and leaders.
Working deployments only
Sessions are customer case studies and a practical panel. If it is not running in production, it does not get a slot.
Questions
What sponsors ask
Who attends AI Reality Check?
Leaders from UK B2B distribution and manufacturing: builders' merchants, plumbing, heating and electrical distributors, tools and fixings, automotive and industrial parts, flooring and building products, buying groups and manufacturers. At the first event (AI Reality Check, 15 October 2026) there were 48 registrations from 38 organisations, and 24 people were checked in on the day, including speakers and partner teams.
How senior is the audience?
Of the 46 registrations not made by the organisers, 39 (85%) were director level or above, and 19 (41%) were CEO, COO, managing director, chief officer or founder level. Counted from job titles on 18 October 2026.
How big is the event, and is it curated?
It is deliberately small: a half-day with a capacity of 50. Every registration is read by a person, and we may decline duplicates and suppliers who are not attending as partners, so the room stays made up of the operators and leaders it is for.
What does a partner get in front of that audience?
A working deployment on stage, ideally with a real customer beside you; time over lunch and tea with the leaders who decide; and an attributed write-up of your session on this site and in our insights. Partnerships are agreed one to one with the organiser.
Is AI Reality Check a good event for SaaS and AI vendors to take part in?
It suits vendors who can show a deployment that is running in production for a UK distributor or manufacturer. The format is case studies and a panel, not a trade-show stand, so the conversation is with senior buyers who have time to ask hard questions. It is a poor fit for a pitch with no customer behind it.
What was covered at the first event?
An opening session on thriving through disruption, case studies from Continuum (AI against labour and margin pressure in distribution) and Ambit Software (AI-powered value chains and digital twins), a tour of the Manufacturing Technology Centre's innovation labs and a panel on practical AI. Photos, video and written insights are on the site.
When is the next event?
A live webinar, AI Reality Check Live, is planned for 26 November 2026 (speakers and time to be announced), and another in-person event is being planned with the date to be confirmed. Join the list on the site to hear first.
Who organises it?
AI Reality Check is organised by Aventyr Partners, hosted by Kevin McGirl, with the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry as host venue for the first event.
Want this room for your story?
Kevin McGirl agrees partnerships one to one. Email kevin@aventyr.global with what you would like to show and who you would like to meet.