Atheni has secured funding to expand its AI adoption platform, designed to help organisations move beyond basic AI use by embedding practical, role-specific guidance directly into everyday work.
Atheni, an AI adoption company, has raised £350,000 to further develop its platform designed to help organisations use AI more effectively across their workforce. The company is backed by angel investors, including Alex Chesterman OBE and is supported by Innovate UK.
Founded by Mackenzie Howe and Louise Ballard, Atheni was developed through two years of client work before raising external funding. During that time, the company refined a methodology focused on embedding AI guidance directly into day-to-day workflows rather than relying on standalone training sessions or workshops.
The funding will support the rollout of the Atheni Accelerator, a browser-based platform that provides employees with personalised, role-specific guidance for using AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude and Copilot within their daily work. The platform is also designed to help organisations measure whether AI capability and practical adoption are improving across teams.
Although access to AI has become more widespread, many organisations are still working to achieve meaningful adoption. According to the company, employees often remain limited to basic use cases and lack support in applying AI to improve decision-making, critical thinking and work quality.
Over the past two years, Atheni has tested its approach across sectors including further education, executive education, manufacturing, financial services and private equity. The company says it has consistently achieved adoption rates above 90 per cent within 90 days of implementation.
“Most AI startups are building better tools. At Atheni, we are building master craftspeople. Organisations can tell you how many people have access to AI, but not whether anyone is using it to think more clearly, challenge assumptions or do work they couldn’t do before. That is the gap. Atheni measures it and shows organisations how to close it,
said Mackenzie Howe.
Louise Ballard explained that while many organisations already have access to advanced AI tools, most employees are still using them in limited ways. She said Atheni is focused on helping people unlock the broader potential of AI within the work they already do.
Atheni is currently rolling out the platform with existing clients ahead of a planned future funding round to support broader expansion.