Tech firm is hungry for AI talent on Tyneside

ONE of Sage's top global executives says the accounting giant is hiring as “much as it possibly can” to its Tyneside base, where it is developing AI tools.

- TOM KEIGHLEY Business Writer

Aaron Harris, who is the FTSE100 tech firm's chief technology officer, says the only constraint on that recruitment is a competitive market.

The seasoned Silicon Valley man, who was part of the Intacct business that Sage acquired in 2017, also hailed the firm's progress with its AI systems, having developed 40,000 models designed to complement SME accounting teams and free workers to do more meaningful work.

In an exclusive interview with The Journal as Mr Harris was due to address the region's TechNext conference, he highlighted efforts to build trust among business leaders - which Sage has identified as the main barrier to AI adoption.

As one of Sage's key engineering hubs alongside Barcelona and Atlanta sites, its Cobalt Park base has played a major role in developing a suite of AI models including narrow, task-based systems that can read an invoice through to large language models that will underpin its AI agents.