By Gareth Mapp, Managing Director at Warp Technologies
At Warp Technologies, we work with public sector organisations across the UK, and we care deeply about helping them get AI right. Not just shiny pilots or bold claims, but real, usable, trusted innovation that improves lives.
As someone who’s proudly Welsh, I’ve been particularly inspired by the Digital Service Standard for Wales, developed by the Centre for Digital Public Services / Canolfan Gwasanaethau Cyhoeddus Digidol. It’s a powerful framework made up of 12 principles that define what “good” looks like in public service design.
A few principles really stand out:
- Start with user needs, not just what the technology can do
- Design for accessibility, inclusion, and bilingual delivery
- Empower multidisciplinary teams to collaborate
- Make data-informed decisions
- Embed ethics, privacy, and security from day one
Here’s the important bit. AI doesn’t replace these foundations. It relies on them.
AI’s Promise Only Works When the Basics Are in Place
In public sector circles, I keep hearing the same themes crop up:
“Where do we even start?”
“We’ve got dozens of pilots, but no clear strategy.”
“How do we scale AI without risking public trust?”
These are the right questions to be asking.
Yes, AI has huge potential to transform services. It can help anticipate demand, personalise citizen experiences, support frontline staff, and allocate resources more effectively.
But none of that works unless it’s built on the right digital groundwork. That means having clear standards, good governance, solid data, secure infrastructure, and inclusive design baked in from the start. Without that, AI doesn’t solve problems. It amplifies them.
As I often say, you can’t automate dysfunction.
From Pilots to Practice: Making AI Work in the Real World
At Warp, we’re helping public sector teams shift from fragmented AI experiments to strategic, joined-up implementations. That involves:
- Aligning AI efforts with actual service and operational needs
- Building explainable, privacy-conscious and inclusive tools
- Developing in-house capability and confidence
- Embedding standards and principles early in the process
This isn’t just about deploying tech. It’s about culture, leadership, and delivering tangible outcomes that people trust.
What’s Next
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing more thoughts on how to make AI work in the real world of public service delivery. Less hype, more focus on what it takes behind the scenes — from governance to multidisciplinary collaboration to long-term sustainability.
If you’re in the public sector and facing these questions, I’d love to hear from you. Let’s share what’s working, what’s not, and how we build public sector AI that’s both powerful and principled.
Want to explore what this looks like in practice?
Talk to our team at Warp Technologies.
