Six entrepreneurs. Six very different business ideas. Up to £5,000 available to invest. But who has a business worth backing?

Welcome to Pitch'd or Ditch'd, the entrepreneurship and investment series from Legacy Bench, where founders pitch their businesses, products and ideas to investors who aren't afraid to ask difficult questions.

In this episode, six entrepreneurs enter the room seeking investment and advice. Their ideas span fashion, modelling, filmmaking, men's wellbeing, product innovation and even a completely new way to play chess.

But having a great idea isn't enough.

The investors challenge each entrepreneur on sales, customers, marketing, product-market fit, business models, growth, funding and profitability - including the question every founder eventually has to answer:

How does this business actually make money?

Zion - Room

A fashion brand built around presence, identity and meaning, with ambitions to enter the luxury fashion market.

Alfa - Duru Talents

A talent agency creating opportunities for models who don't fit the traditional height and appearance requirements of the modelling industry.

Joe - Independent Filmmaker

An award-winning filmmaker seeking investment to produce a short film that could become the foundation for a future feature-length project.

Darren Evans - Useful

An author and founder who turned his experiences with mental health and fatherhood into a book and wider brand focused on helping others.

Darren Hilly - Brenor Innovation

A former prison officer pitching an invention inspired by his experience witnessing the dangers disposable razor blades can create inside prisons.

Max Johnson Goldrich - Fortuna Ludi

Creator of a four-player chess concept that transforms the traditional two-player game into a new competitive and social experience.

• Six entrepreneurs pitch for investment
• Startup funding and business investment
• How investors evaluate business ideas
• Sales, customers and product-market fit
• Business models and profitability
• Branding and marketing
• Turning an idea into a viable business
• When a startup is too early for investment
• What investors look for in entrepreneurs
• Knowing whether you actually need funding
• Challenging founders on their numbers
• Turning passion into a scalable business

Some founders arrive with passion. Others have products, customers or years of work behind them.

But is there enough evidence to convince the investors to put their money on the table?

Investors - Princely Samuel Okere and Ibie Aslam

Which entrepreneur would you invest in?

Pitch'd or Ditch'd is a Legacy Bench series where entrepreneurs pitch their ideas, founders face real business questions, and investors decide whether to pitch it or ditch it.

Follow Legacy Bench on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you listen to podcasts for more episodes of Pitch'd or Ditch'd.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will AI replace software developers - and is learning to code still worth it?

AI can now write code, build websites, analyse data and automate work that once required entire technology teams. But what does that mean for developers, junior tech jobs and people considering a career in technology?

In this episode of Legacy Bench, four technology professionals debate the impact of artificial intelligence on software development, cybersecurity, data, startups and the future of tech careers.

The panel explores whether AI is replacing junior developers, whether young people should still learn to code, and what happens if companies stop hiring the junior talent who would traditionally become tomorrow's senior developers.

Stefan Burke - Software Developer, Chobble

An experienced programmer sharing a developer's perspective on AI, coding, software development and how the technology industry is changing.

Paula Mesa Macías - Cybersecurity Professional

Bringing a cybersecurity perspective to AI, data protection, online threats and the human side of digital security.

Daniel Wigley - Data Analyst, Fabric Analytics

Discussing data, analytics, digital technology and how AI is changing the way businesses understand and use information.

John Smithe - IT Support, Basement In The Sky

Bringing a practical IT perspective on infrastructure, technology in business and what implementing new technology actually looks like beyond the hype.

• Will AI replace software developers?
• What happens to junior developer and tech jobs?
• Is learning to code still worth it?
• University vs apprenticeships vs self-taught developers
• Can you trust AI-generated code and AI-built websites?
• AI, cybersecurity and data protection
• Who is responsible when companies get hacked?
• Startups, funding and working for equity
• Should artificial intelligence be regulated?
• What skills should aspiring developers learn now?
• The future of software engineering and technology careers

AI is making software development faster and more accessible, but it raises a bigger question for the technology industry - if AI increasingly writes the code, what skills will the developers of the future actually need?

Whether you're a software developer, programmer, tech founder, cybersecurity professional, student, data analyst or considering a career in technology, this conversation explores what the AI revolution could mean for the future of work.

Hosted by Princely Samuel Okere.

Legacy Bench brings professionals, founders and industry experts together for honest conversations about business, careers, technology and the industries shaping our future.

Follow Legacy Bench on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could AI replace your lawyer - and would you trust ChatGPT with a serious legal problem?

In Episode 16 of Legacy Bench, four experienced lawyers come together to debate how artificial intelligence is changing the legal profession, why legal advice can be so expensive, and whether technology could eventually replace parts of a lawyer's job.

From family law and clinical negligence to commercial contracts, technology law and inheritance disputes, the panel explores what AI can already do - and where human judgement still matters.

Sky Langwieser - Family Law Solicitor at Hall Brown Family Law, specialising in divorce, financial remedies, children matters and prenuptial agreements.

Trevor Ward - Head of the Birth Injury and Maternity Unit at Fletchers Solicitors, specialising in clinical negligence and complex birth injury cases.

Rebecca Kelly - Partner at gunnercooke and a commercial, data and technology lawyer exploring how AI and legal technology are transforming modern legal work.

Cori McKeown - Senior Associate Solicitor at Rothley Law, specialising in disputed wills, trusts and inheritance disputes.

• Will AI replace lawyers?
• Can you trust ChatGPT for legal advice?
• What happens when AI gets the law wrong?
• Could AI reduce junior legal jobs?
• Why legal advice costs so much
• Billable hours vs fixed legal fees
• No-win-no-fee cases
• Mediation and alternatives to court
• Family law and divorce
• Clinical negligence and maternity cases
• Wills and inheritance disputes
• Commercial, data and technology law
• Access to justice and legal aid
• Law degrees vs apprenticeships
• The future of the legal profession

AI can research, draft and analyse legal documents faster than ever before. But legal disputes also involve judgement, negotiation, emotion, strategy and understanding what a client actually needs.

So will AI replace lawyers - or simply change what lawyers spend their time doing?

Hosted by Princely Samuel Okere.

Legacy Bench brings professionals, founders and industry experts together for honest conversations about business, careers, technology and the industries shaping our lives.

Follow Legacy Bench on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.