IDHL is launching an AI incubator, to scale innovation across its group.
The digital agency is investing £1.5m into IDHL Labs, which have been set up to test, validate and scale AI and machine-learning solutions.
The labs will be led by Group Technology Director Jonathan Healey and divisional directors Wes Maynard and Josh Duggan.
The company, based in Leeds, Manchester, London and New York, said the aim was to deliver “practical AI innovation – enhancing how people work, strengthening client delivery, and developing scalable products that create real impact and value.”
“IDHL Labs gives us a clear path from idea to impact,” explained Healey.
“We frame the challenge, test options and scale the solutions that can prove their value. In a market that rewards speed but punishes missteps, that discipline matters. Clients want the benefit of faster delivery, smarter optimisation and clearer ROI without having to rewire everything at once, and without additional risk. Labs lets us do that on their behalf, so by the time something reaches a client team, it has been tried, measured and optimised. It keeps our innovation grounded in outcomes, not experiments for their own sake.”
Healey’s team will focus on 3 areas:
AI-driven automation: Streamlining repeatable tasks across planning, activation, reporting and Quality Assurance (QA).
AI-enhanced servicing and strategy: Advancing proprietary tools to improve reporting through AI-driven analysis and real-time feedback, alongside predictive analytics, forecasting and modelling across the digital ecosystem.
and Next-generation tooling: Building new AI-powered products and agents that bridge operational gaps between teams, from merchandising and finance to creative and digital production, to deliver genuinely new capabilities to clients.
It stated that an SEO automation tool had already saved “around 180 hours a month” equivalent to 30 minutes per day per client.
“Labs is already helping us remove day-to-day bottlenecks and manual processes, but the real opportunity is to be ever more creative; to explore new ideas, and bring the best of them into the work our clients actually see,” said Maynard.
“In a world where everyone is talking about AI, we’re focused on experiments and ideas that solve real challenges and enable us to deliver genuinely effective outcomes. Our clients rely on us to constantly bring fresh approaches, new tools and innovative strategies to the table, and Labs ensures we all retain our position at the forefront of what’s possible.”
READ MORE – IDHL completes strategic acquisition of leading ecommerce consultancy Vervaunt
IDHL is backed by investor, Bridgepoint and this year has completed two acquisitions – MTM Agency and Vervaunt and Josh Duggan, Divisional Director, added:
“Proprietary technology has been a huge part of Vervaunt’s strategy from day one. Our Shopify app is used by hundreds of stores, our dynamic content tool Visualise powers around 30% of our social impressions, and our internal tool Abacus drives optimisation efforts every day. Joining IDHL gives us the opportunity to bring that experience into a group already investing heavily in applied AI and I’m excited to collaborate on accelerating the shared roadmap and building the next generation of tools for our teams and clients.”
