In March, a group of Jersey’s leading organisations came together to publish something important: the Jersey AI Playbook. It’s a cross-island effort involving government, regulators, industry bodies, and independent experts, designed to help shape how Jersey approaches artificial intelligence.
And to be fair, that deserves credit.
Getting multiple organisations aligned on any topic is difficult. Getting them aligned on something as fast-moving and commercially significant as AI is no small achievement. The playbook also brought in respected outside expertise, including Professor Alan Brown and Dame Wendy Hall, helping ensure it wasn’t just an internal discussion.
The result is a readable, practical 30-page document that sets out principles and strategic objectives for AI in Jersey. If you run a business locally, it is absolutely worth reading.
But while it’s a strong starting point, businesses should understand what it is and what it isn’t.
What’s inside the Jersey AI Playbook
At its core, the playbook sets out seven guiding principles for AI adoption. These include:
- Balancing innovation with risk
- Keeping humans in the loop
- Embedding ethics from the start
- Breaking down data silos
- Building trust and accountability
These are sensible principles, and they apply far beyond government or large corporates. Any business introducing AI should be thinking along these lines.
The playbook also outlines five strategic objectives for Jersey:
- Strengthening Jersey’s position in financial services
- Driving island-wide productivity
- Improving regulation and governance
- Building workforce skills
- Championing ethical AI
Again, solid priorities.
Yes, it leans toward finance
It would be fair to say the document leans heavily toward financial services.
That makes sense. Finance is a major part of Jersey’s economy and a key source of tax revenue, so naturally it receives attention.
But if you run a business outside finance, don’t dismiss the playbook because of that.
The productivity opportunity applies to every sector.
The skills challenge applies to every sector.
The governance questions apply to every sector.
You just need to read it knowing not every paragraph was written with your business in mind.
A playbook without a plan?
One of the themes in the document is Jersey’s “island advantage”.
We’re small. We can move quickly. We can collaborate more easily than larger jurisdictions.
That may be true.
But the playbook does not clearly explain what practical changes are coming next.
For example:
- Are Jersey’s data protection laws being updated for the AI era?
- Will there be clearer guardrails for responsible AI use?
- Is support coming for SMEs who want to adopt AI but don’t know where to begin?
- What funding, incentives, or training will be available?
These are the questions many businesses care about most.
Principles matter. But principles without delivery plans can become good intentions sitting on a shelf.
My advice to Jersey businesses: don’t wait
The most forward-thinking businesses I see are not waiting for a national roadmap before taking action.
They are asking practical questions like:
- Where are we wasting time?
- Which tasks are repetitive and low value?
- Where is our data messy or fragmented?
- Where are staff stuck doing admin instead of valuable work?
That is where meaningful AI projects begin.
Not with hype.
Not with theory.
Not with waiting.
With real operational friction.
Use the playbook as a guide, not an excuse
The Jersey AI Playbook is useful. It gives businesses a framework for thinking responsibly about AI.
Use it.
But don’t let it become something you read, agree with, and then file away for six months.
The businesses that benefit most from AI over the next two years are likely to be those who start now, start small, and improve as they go.
Final thought
Jersey has taken an encouraging first step.
Now the question is whether that momentum turns into real action, practical support, and measurable productivity gains across the island.
For businesses, the answer is simpler:
You don’t need to wait for Jersey to finalise its AI plan before starting your own.
