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AJ Bell: Hackathon 2025

AJ Bell Hackathon

At AJ Bell, we’re proud to be one of Manchester’s original FinTech powerhouses.  Since becoming a Manchester Digital member over six years ago, we’ve continued to grow - now supporting over 593,000 customers with £90.4 billion in assets under administration. But while our scale has changed, our culture of innovation hasn’t.

In fact, it’s stronger than ever.

That culture was on full display at our 2025 AI Hackathon - a focused, high-energy few days designed to explore how AI can be embedded meaningfully into the way we build, deliver, and support our services. In a new video, Chief Technology Officer, Mo Tagari shares the thinking behind the event, how the teams responded, and what happens next.

“We have a culture for innovation,” says Mo.
“And in order to promote it, we run Hackathons each year - this year the focus has been on AI.”

🎥 Watch the full video here:


⚙️ The 2025 AI Hackathon: What Happened?

While AI continues to dominate headlines, the goal wasn’t to chase hype - it was to create value. 

The challenge set for all teams was clear:

  • ✅ Use GitHub Copilot
  • ✅ Build using AJ Bell’s in-house GenAI Platform-as-a-Service

The constraints were intentional - encouraging innovation with tools that could translate directly into real-world impact.

29 teams took part, with nearly 100 engineers from across the business. 10 standout ideas were shortlisted for further development.

“The ideas ranged from voice-led customer journeys to intelligent internal tools that scale knowledge and reduce friction,” says Mo.
“We’re now at a point, where we are going to look at these with our product teams and see which ones we can productionise in front of our customers and in front of our people"

The Hackathon is just one example of how our business is investing in the future and continuing to deliver innovation with purpose.

📣 Want to learn more about careers at AJ Bell?
Visit ajbell.co.uk or follow us on LinkedIn

Explore jobs at AJ Bell

Principal Software Development Engineer

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Senior Frontend Engineer

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Data Director
Salford

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Trading Platform Engineer
Manchester

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
UX Designer

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Software Engineer
Manchester

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Automation Engineer
Manchester

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell
Information Security Architect
Manchester

About usAJ Bell is one of the fastest-growing investment platform businesses in the UK offering an award-winning range of solutions that caters for everyone, from professional financial advisers, to DIY investors with little to no experience. We have over 561,000 customers using our award-winning platform propositions to manage assets totalling more than £89.5 billion . Our customers trust us with their investments, and by continuously striving to make investing easier, we aim to help even more people take control of their financial futures.Having listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 2018, AJ Bell is now a FTSE 250 company.Headquartered in Manchester with offices in central London and Bristol, we now have over 1,450 employees and have been named one of the UK's 'Best 100 Companies to Work For’ for six consecutive years.At AJ Bell you can expect a friendly working environment with a strong sense of teamwork, we have a great sense of pride in what we do, and this is reflected in our guiding principles.Dale joined the Technology Department at AJ Bell in 2008 as a Test Analyst. Since then, he has been a member of a number of tech teams, including IT Service Desk and Data MI. He is now on the Business Intelligence Team, where he is responsible for nine developers.Dale’s story is typical of our Technology Department – it’s a place that’s always evolving, innovating and adapting to change, and these qualities have been absolutely crucial in AJ Bell’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. In this recent video chat, Dale explains how the department mobilised the business to work remotely when the pandemic first hit, whilst continuing to focus on driving forward new technologies for our customers.

AJ Bell

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