Team Spark
Our team brings together creative agency and corporate experience and cutting-edge AI expertise. We understand your challenges because we've lived them, and we'll guide you through the AI landscape with clarity, warmth and expertise.
Jules Love
FOUNDER AND CHIEF AI GURU
jules@wearespark.ai | LinkedIn
Jules has spent his whole career in the creative and marketing industries, including working as a highly successful advertising photographer and leading the Marketing Operations Center of Excellence at Accenture. Jules leads the development of all Spark’s programmes, regularly speaks about AI at industry events, has studied Applied Generative AI at MIT, and lectures on AI in Business at Oxford University Business School.
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Jules has a long career in the creative industries including running a highly successful commercial photography business. He is also very experienced management consultant specialising in organisation design for creative functions.
Jules teaches on the Oxford University Business School’s ‘AI in Business’ programme, he studied ‘Applied Generative AI’ at MIT and believes AI allows us to create things that were once in our wildest dreams.
He started his career as a strategy consultant at Accenture and Q5 working with leading blue chip firms including The Guardian, The Times and Sunday Times, the BBC, BT and Sainsbury’s.
He then began 15 years as an award-winning advertising photographer and film maker working for some of the world’s biggest brands including Canon, Samsung, Google, Unilever, and Hilton.
Jules is Spark’s resident AI expert for growing creative businesses, his advice has been featured in WIRED magazine.
Emma Wharton Love
FOUNDER AND CEO
Emma sees AI not merely as an efficiency tool, but as a launchpad for unprecedented innovation and creativity. Her career spans leading hybrid working for Parliament to advising AI startups. Now at Spark, she oversees client success, growth, marketing and operations.
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Emma is CEO and co-founder of Spark AI, dedicated to empowering ambitious creative agencies and marketing teams to master AI, amplify human creativity, and evolve their business models. She sees AI not merely as an efficiency tool, but as a launchpad for unprecedented innovation and creativity.
Before Spark, Emma focused her career on shaping the future of work, leading significant change programmes, hybrid working initiatives, and policy development for the UK Parliament and Government, while also advising private-sector companies and innovative startups. Emma uniquely combines strategic leadership experience with deep creative expertise as a graphic designer.
As CEO of Spark, Emma helps clients confidently leverage generative AI to transform their teams, processes, and drive sustained business growth.
Outside Spark, Emma serves as a non-executive director at an NHS Mental Health Trust and is a practicing artist.
Anya Turk
JUNIOR STUDIO MANAGER
Anya is Spark AI’s brilliant studio manager. Anya supports client engagement, event coordination, and operations across the piece. Expect to hear from Anya during client onboarding, scheduling workshops, and general communications.
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Simone is a speaker, coach, trainer and mentor, with over 15 years of experience in senior leadership, training and development - transforming workplaces and empowering individuals. As founder and CEO of EvolvedMe Training & Consulting she brings a uniquely authentic approach to professional development, blending creative energy with corporate expertise.
Since 2023 Simone has partnered with the UK’s leading AI educators and upskilled hundreds of professionals enabling them to embrace AI technology whilst demystifying unwarranted fears.
Her journey from theatre director to corporate leader has shaped her distinctive training style. Having held senior roles in operations, HR, and people management in some of the UK's leading training organisations, including the pioneering code educator Decoded, Simone has led and built thriving global teams from scratch and advanced how organisations approach learning and development.
Alongside her transformation work, Simone is developing Jay Genius, an animated children's series celebrating racial diversity – a project that embodies her commitment to amplifying diverse voices.
Simone believes the future of AI is human-first and champions human governance and responsible use.
Jonas Haefele
AI COACH | LinkedIn
Jonas is a somatic coach, facilitator and AI researcher. He draws from years of experience in corporate training, a background in design, and a deep fascination with human psychology. He's passionate about creating a caring environment for learning and transformation.
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Jonas has years of experience in corporate training, teaching Fortune 500 companies about technology and innovation, to up-level their workforce and accelerate transformation.
Jonas is a Somatic Coach and in 2019 founded Slow Works to facilitate stainable change, combining his passion for teaching yoga and mindfulness with the lessons learned in the fast-moving tech world. Whether in 1:1 coaching sessions, or in group experiences, Jonas is passionate about creating a space where radical change can emerge - change that starts at the root of things; your stories, beliefs, feelings, and sensations.
Jonas is co-founder of LGBTQ+ entrepreneur network Series Q, a yoga and mindfulness teacher, and a founding member of the Billion Seconds Institute.Before venturing into tech and facilitating culture change, Jonas has studied future sciences and human-centered design at Zurich University of the Arts, learning to identify cultural macro and micro trends and how to build products that respond to societal needs. Jonas has a background in classic Swiss print design and typography and has been fascinated by the internet and its potential since the late 1990s. After receiving his BA as best in class, Jonas spent two years in a digital advertising agency, where he led the development of ground-breaking and award-winning campaigns. However, he became disillusioned by the simplistic message to "buy more stuff", pushing him to move to London and seek new opportunities that aligned more with his values.
Throughout his career, Jonas has collected a wide range of tools that center around the craft of storytelling, facilitation, and bridging gaps, translating - sometimes literally, often figuratively - between different parties to foster consensus and understanding.
Jonas is excited to use his skills and experience to bring people together and help them facilitate change in organisations.
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Matthew is a communication design expert with 25 years in interaction design, Matthew has led award-winning projects for global corporations, government bodies, and startups. As Senior Experience Director at Oracle, he led strategic research, storytelling, and marketing initiatives, securing over $45M in annual SaaS and cloud revenue. He’s also held senior creative leadership roles at Sapient, Imagination, and Blue Barracuda, delivering large-scale interactive experiences for Jaguar Land Rover, Rolls-Royce, and RBS. His digital and interactive artworks are held in collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum and Tate Gallery. Currently pursuing a PhD at Middlesex University, he’s exploring how Generative AI is shaping art and the creative industries.
Mette Davis
AI COACH | LinkedIn
Mette is a trainer and strategic advisor with a people-first approach. She’s held Client Services leadership roles at global network agencies, and co-founded a marketing agency. As well as her work with Spark, she is course leader for the Cannes Lions CreativeMBA.
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Mette is a trainer and strategic advisor with a people-first approach. She’s held Client Services leadership roles at global network agencies and co-founded a marketing agency. As well as her work with Spark, she is course leader for the Cannes Lions CreativeMBA.
Her broad experience in advertising, digital and tech consulting spans 25 years. She’s run £multi-million accounts for the likes of BT, BA, P&G and Mars, working closely with creatives and strategists to bring brand experiences to life through digital, and building long-standing client relationships along the way.
Mette loves nothing more than designing and facilitating workshops, co-creating meaningful programmes that drive high performance and change behaviour, whilst fostering inclusive cultures.
Emma Jackson (EJ)
AI COACH | LinkedIn
Known for her ability to merge creativity with the latest in tech, Emma Jackson (EJ) is an award-winning Executive Producer and Prompt Engineer specialising in the creative and tech industries, with over a decade of experience driving digital transformation.
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Emma Jackson (EJ) is an award-winning Executive Producer and Prompt Engineer specialising in the creative and tech industries, with over a decade of experience driving digital transformation. Known for her ability to merge creativity with the latest in tech, EJ has produced multiple world firsts using frontier technology in ways that not only push brands to meet their customers where they are, but safely and in line with compliance.
EJ is the first port of call for ambitious early adopters and while many were only beginning to explore AI's potential, Emma was already leading ambitious marketing AI projects for global brands like Deutsche Telekom (Europe-wide), Ernst & Young (Global), and Garnier (Europe-wide). Her work consistently proves that technology can complement creativity without compromising the human connection that drives successful marketing.
Passionate about the advantages that early adoption can provide, and the value of deep knowledge that this affords, EJ is an experienced facilitator. She counts working with the UK Government’s Department of International Trade in digital transformation as a career highlight, and is a spirited educator working with networks of women in tech, and working class people in the creative and tech industries.
EJ thrives on collaborating with visionary agencies ready to harness AI and reshape the industry’s approach to creativity and efficiency.
Alicia Grimes
AI COACH | LinkedIn
Alicia Grimes is a culture, service design and transformation strategist specialising in aligning tech and teams to deliver seamless, human-centric experiences that drive business impact.
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Alicia started her career in marketing, creating compelling campaigns that caught attention but also revealed a deeper disconnect: companies were investing heavily in marketing while neglecting the systems and teams that actually delivered those promises. This realisation led Alicia to shift her focus from campaigns to the core, founding The Future Kind to help companies bridge the gap between customer experience, company culture and operational reality.
For over a decade, Alicia has worked with fast-growing companies to global brands, including Hotjar, Design Council UK, ITV, and Pizza Hut Digital Ventures, to build company operating systems that align brand, culture, tech, and talent. Her expertise lies in transforming how teams work together – not just how they implement technology. From defining workflows and decision-making frameworks to designing rituals that connect teams across functions, Alicia’s approach ensures that the systems supporting the work are as seamless as the customer experiences they deliver.
At the heart of her work is a focus on human-centered design, making complex systems intuitive and actionable for every team member. Whether she’s facilitating a co-design session or embedding a new operating model, Alicia’s mission is to create environments where technology and teams work in together, to deliver truly transformational experiences.
Advisory Board
Priya Guha MBE
BOARD ADVISOR | LinkedIn
Priya is a Venture Partner at Merian Ventures, an Advisor to Gallos Technologies, a member of the Investment Governance Board at Future Planet Capital, a NED at Reach PLC, UK Research & Innovation, Herald Investment Trust, Digital Catapult & Associate Faculty at Hult Ashridge.
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Priya is a Venture Partner at Merian Ventures, an Advisor to Gallos Technologies, a member of the Investment Governance Board at Future Planet Capital, a NED at Reach PLC, UK Research & Innovation, Herald Investment Trust, Digital Catapult & GB Badminton and Associate Faculty at Hult Ashridge. She was previously GM for RocketSpace, launching their UK operations.
Priya used to be a career diplomat, most recently as British Consul General to San Francisco and previously in India and Spain. She now chairs the Indian Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) Advisory Group in the UK. Priya also sits on the RAEng International Committee, Althea Foundation Board, Durham University Business School International & Venture Lab Advisory Boards and Global Tech Advocates Advisory Board. She is a Trustee at TechSheCan. Priya was awarded an MBE in 2021 for services to international trade and women in innovation.
Steve Edwards
BOARD ADVISOR AND AI COACH | LinkedIn
Steve is a growth strategist with senior leadership experience across agencies, consultancies and client-side, in commercial, charity, and higher education sectors. He has founded start-ups, run tech incubators, lead marketing functions and advised multiple ventures.
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Steve Edwards is a growth strategist with a breadth of senior leadership experience across agencies, consultancies and client-side, in commercial, charity, and higher education sectors. He has founded start-ups, run tech incubators, lead marketing functions and advised multiple ventures.
He is currently Entrepreneur-In-Residence for the University of Bath's Innovation Centre, Trustee of UN Women UK, and Chair of British Roundent as well as advisor and NED to a number of businesses including Triangle Fitness.
Before this he spent 4 years at the University of Bristol on start-up and innovation support strategies, he served as Chief Marketing Officer at UN Women UK focusing on strategic growth and communication and was the Executive Director at ManningGottlieb OMD where he founded the Beyond division, specializing in growth strategies for fast-growing startups like Airbnb and Nutmeg. Steve’s career is marked by his commitment to fostering innovation and supporting the growth of mission-driven organisations.
Ben Rickard
BOARD ADVISOR AND AI COACH | LinkedIn
Ben advises brands and corporates on the transformative opportunity made possible through the advancements in Data & AI. Previously an executive leader at WPP where he founded a mobile agency and led teams across a roster of global agencies.
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Ben is an experienced leader who specialises in digital, data and AI for the marketing and advertising sector. He currently runs a consulting business that advises brands and corporates on the transformative opportunity made possible through the advancements in Data & AI.
Prior to this, Ben was an executive leader at WPP where he founded a mobile agency and led teams across a roster of global agencies including JWT, Wavemaker, Mediacom and Choreograph. Ben also acts as a trusted advisor to the private and public sector. He served as a Non-Executive Director for UK Parliament, and works closely with data and tech startups to refine their strategy, positioning and messaging. Ben holds a MSc in eCommerce and recently completed the Oxford AI Programme at Said Business School.
Perry Haydn Taylor
BOARD ADVISOR | LinkedIn
Founder of brand consultancy big fish & chief stoker, Perry relentlessly champions doing better on behalf of people and planet. Perry has helped start a wide range of businesses including: Biscuiteers, sofa.com and Pooky and Freddie’s Flowers.
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Founder of brand consultancy big fish & chief stoker, Perry relentlessly champions doing better on behalf of people and planet. Over the course of his career Perry has worked with a wide variety of different businesses ranging from large FMCG corporates, like Coca-Cola, Unilever, Garnier and Mothercare, to privately owned challengers like Picnic, Yeo Valley, Boden, Charlie Bigham’s, Gü, Giovanni Rana, Tyrrells and Dorset Cereals.
An avid climate campaigner who believes that all business should be a force for good. Perry specifically advises clients on strategy innovation marketing and climate consideration. He describes himself as a “professional pain in the arse!”
Perry has invested in and helped start a wide range of businesses including: Biscuiteers, sofa.com, Pooky and Freddie’s Flowers. He is also a shareholder in and advisor to Boden. In the early days a couple of the startups that Perry did failed catastrophically. He says this is the most valuable experience he’s ever had
He’s a firm believer that life’s too short to settle for second best, in enjoying every day and that typography should be made part of the national curriculum. He’s even named his three daughters after typefaces.
Sofia Pires
BOARD ADVISOR | LinkedIn
Sofia’s career spans Director-level roles across global agencies including PHD, OMD and Ogilvy. Now Sofia is a key player in AI integration across creative industries - as Skills Officer at BridgeAI, part of the Alan Turing Institute, she accelerates AI adoption responsibly in high-growth sectors.
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Sofia's blend of AI and creative leadership brings unique insight to Spark's board. With a background in communications and brand strategy at the major networked creative agencies, Sofia’s career spans Director-level roles across major global agencies including PHD, OMD and Ogilvy.
At PHD Media, as a Senior Strategic Director, Sofia led HSBC, HP and Unilever's global media development, building tighter cross-agency collaboration, improving brand compliance, and enhancing market growth across mature territories. Before that, at OMD EMEA & Ogilvy Latam, Sofia built creative strategies for clients like Apple, Sony, Levi’s and Pfizer. Her tenure saw her driving creative excellence through impactful training programs and global strategy implementation across multiple markets.
A recognised expert in AI's transformative potential, Sofia has earned accolades for her thought leadership. She won the 2022 IPA Excellence Diploma in Brands for her essay "System 3 will bring us to our senses", where she explored AI-augmented decision-making. With advanced AI certifications from prestigious institutions like the University of Cambridge (AI and Society), LSE (AI Ethics) and Oxford (Ai Programme for Business), her deep understanding of AI positions her as a valuable voice in discussions around Responsible AI, safety and business impact.
Sofia also maintains a strong thought leadership presence through her Substack, LinkedIn and Instagram channels, where she regularly shares her provocations on the present and future of AI in business and society.
Easy ways to keep up with AI
with Team Spark
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Each month Spark’s co-founders Emma and Jules go live to discuss what’s new in AI for creatives. Catch up with the latest episodes and subscribe for the next one.
Tune in on the third Thursday of each month to hear Jules and Emma’s regular 30 minute podcast on what's new in creative AI. It’s everything you need to know to grow your creative business and career in a world with AI.
They cover:
— Latest updates to AI tools and new launches
— AI news relevant to creatives
— AI creative campaigns out in the wild
— How we are using AI within our business
