The Institute of Directors (IoD) Ireland, the professional membership institute for company directors and board members in Ireland, convened more than 140 senior business leaders and board members at The Alex Hotel in Dublin for a special event held in partnership with Dell Technologies, examining how artificial intelligence is shaping long-term growth and competitiveness.

As reported by TechCentral.ie, the event took place as Ireland prepares to assume the EU presidency, with discussion centring on the opportunity for Ireland to strengthen its position in the responsible development and deployment of AI at both national and European level.

New IoD Ireland research shared at the event found that 78% of attendees consider AI important or critical to competitiveness in their sector, and 61% of organisations have already implemented AI to some degree. Despite this, only 33% have a formal AI strategy in place, pointing to a significant governance gap that the institute is positioning itself to address through its AI Governance Toolkit and external partnerships.

The panel included Mary O'Connor, chief information officer at ESB; Dr Barry Scannell, member of the Government's AI Advisory Council and partner at William Fry; and Neil Bowden, AI business development executive at Dell Technologies, with the discussion moderated by David Codd CDir, non-executive director.

Colin Boyd, data centre solutions sales director at Dell Technologies Ireland, said: "AI isn't a future concept anymore, it's a boardroom priority. The businesses seeing the greatest returns aren't adopting AI for its own sake. They're using it to solve real challenges and are driving productivity, empowering people, and unlocking new revenue."

Caroline Spillane CDir, chief executive of IoD Ireland, said: "AI is increasingly recognised by Irish leaders as a key driver of competitiveness. Effective AI governance will be critical to ensuring organisations can realise the benefits of AI while maintaining public trust and resilience. Through our AI Governance Toolkit and partnerships, such as this with Dell Technologies, we help directors strengthen AI oversight and equip boards to lead confidently in a rapidly evolving landscape."

The event underscores the growing role professional institutes are playing in translating complex regulatory and technological change into practical governance frameworks for board members, at a time when the EU AI Act places compliance obligations on organisations of all sizes from August 2026.