A farmer has built his own AI tool to cut software costs by more than 90% and reinvest the savings in seasonal staff.

James Bulmer, whose family has farmed at Kenyon Hall Farm near Warrington for more than 500 years, developed the bespoke online ticketing platform for the farm's popular pick-your-own fruit operation.

The technology is now live and used by around 10,000 customers a week during peak periods, while reducing annual software costs from around £8,000 to approximately £600.

James developed the platform during the University of Salford's six-week BUILD AI programme, which was created to give non-technical founders, entrepreneurs and SME owners the skills and confidence to harness AI and build technology for themselves.

His parents first opened Kenyon Hall Farm to the public in 1978 and James returned to the family business in 2016 after previously working in IT.

As the farm's visitor operation grew, it became increasingly reliant on third-party ticketing software, bringing significant annual costs and limiting the control the business had over the customer experience.

Through BUILD AI, James created a system tailored specifically to the farm, allowing it to manage availability in 10-minute intervals, provide customers with tailored information before they arrive and manage bookings from a phone.

The savings have enabled the business to invest more in seasonal staff, including local students working at the farm during the summer, as well as improvements to the visitor experience.

James said: "Within the first half hour we had our laptops open and were building things ourselves. It wasn't a course where you sat watching presentations about what AI might be able to do. You were using AI from day one.

"People often worry that AI replaces jobs. My experience has been the opposite. By making the business more efficient behind the scenes, we've been able to invest more in the customer-facing roles that create the experience people come to Kenyon Hall Farm for.

"Looking back, I still find it hard to believe what I built in just a few weeks. What started as a six-week programme has become something we now rely on every day, helping thousands of customers enjoy their visit to the farm while saving the business thousands of pounds every year."

James was among 12 participants on BUILD AI, which has already helped take four products to launch or near-launch, put six working prototypes into testing and accelerated two existing technology ventures.

BUILD AI (Business Uplift, Innovation and Lean Development through Artificial Intelligence) was developed by the University of Salford's Centre for Sustainable Innovation (CSI) and delivered in collaboration with NoCodeLab.ai.

The programme combined hands-on AI development with commercialisation support and mentoring, helping participants rapidly build and test their ideas while exploring how they could become viable products and businesses.

Dr Ann Mulhaney, Associate Professor for Change Management at the University of Salford's Centre for Sustainable Innovation, said: "When we created BUILD AI, we wanted to open up AI development to people with brilliant ideas but who might never have thought of themselves as tech builders. These entrepreneurs know their businesses, their industries and the problems they want to solve inside out. What they haven't always had are the technical skills or resources to turn that knowledge into a product. We wanted to change that.

"In just six weeks they've built working products, tested ideas with real customers, launched new solutions and taken businesses forward at incredible speed. That's what excites me about AI. Put these tools into the hands of talented, ambitious people, give them the right support and confidence, and it's amazing what they can build."

Participants are now taking their innovations into the next stage, from customer testing and product refinement to commercial launch, investment and further development.

Sara Simeone, founder of NoCodeLab.ai, said: "One of the most exciting things about AI-assisted development is the speed at which entrepreneurs can now experiment. They can build something, put it in front of users, learn what works and what doesn't, and improve it without spending months and huge amounts of money getting to that point.

"BUILD AI gave participants the space to do that alongside other founders, mentors and experts who could challenge their thinking and share their experience. That combination of rapid experimentation and a supportive community has helped people make huge strides in a very short space of time."

For more information visit sustainable-innovation.salford.ac.uk/