How nearly a decade of partnership between the London Economic Development Corporation and Speak AI evolved through changing digital trends and the market shifts, becoming one of Canada’s most extensive AI stack for local economic development.
Today, a visitor to the LEDC website can receive personalized job recommendations in minutes, engage with chatbots in real time, listen to local updates on the go, and even soon speak directly with a voice agent regarding opportunities in the region.
But behind the scenes of the modern-day AI stack is a partnership that pre-dates the generative AI era, growing throughout every major shift in digital communications over the last decade—a testament to the importance of long-term trust and innovation.
Over eight and a half years, the partnership between LEDC and SpeakAI expanded alongside the organizations.
It began as a contract for Google Ads in 2017 with SpeakAI founder and CEO, Tyler Bryden, who previously ran the London agency SixFive Interactive.
Now, impressions from the partnership exceed 3.5 million and have helped the LEDC become a top search result for themes in industrial land, talent attraction to the city, and business support for small business owners.
For London, that means more visibility for business and talent considering the city.
Rather than adopting tools for the sake of AI integration, the LEDC focused on features that would also improve accessibility and responsiveness.
These included integrating an AI stack in prominent social campaigns like Choose London and Don’t Tell Toronto. Beyond that, AI chatbots on the webpage now include unique local-facing features, like being able to provide three relevant job opportunities for seekers and a streamlined, effective reporting tool to inform decision-making.
Looking ahead to the future, the partnership shows no sign of slowing down.
London continues to lead and innovate in adopting technologies as practical tools to support community growth. Through cost-effective resourcing, the public-private partnership has led the LEDC to soon launch the first public-facing conversational voice AI deployed by a Canadian municipal economic development organization.
While technology continues to evolve, the success of the partnership extends beyond AI.
What makes the relationship between LEDC and SpeakAI unique is not the technology itself, but the shared vision and understanding built throughout nearly a decade of trust.
Rather than onboarding disconnected vendors to handle individual AI capabilities vital to evolving with the market, LEDC built alongside SpeakAI, which understood the goals and audience they serve.
Whether supporting small business owners, connecting job seekers with careers, promoting London as the destination for investment and talent, the shared understanding has led to better solutions for the regional community.
The partnership has also enabled LEDC to expand its outreach, while still avoiding the hefty costs associated with traditional vendors and staffing systems.
Beyond LEDC, the collaboration has also played a pivotal role in SpeakAI's growth through corporate transitions from SixFive.
According to Bryden, LEDC has become one of the company’s most important real-world testing environments that continues to shape systems related to conversational AI and personalized automation for the audiences they serve.
What began as a single introduction in 2017 has since evolved into one of Canada’s most integrated AI-supported economic development partnerships, helping position London at the forefront of innovation and efficiency.
