Sir Richard Branson and Made by Dyslexia launch DyslexAI campaign

SIR RICHARD BRANSON, VIRGIN & MADE BY DYSLEXIA LAUNCH DYSLEXAI CAMPAIGN AS THEY CALL UPON EVERY WORKPLACE IN THE WORLD TO EMPOWER DYSLEXIC THINKING

• New campaign from Made By Dyslexia & Virgin shows AI being asked to think like famous Dyslexic Thinkers to try to recreate some of their most incredible accomplishments in culture, arts and technology.
• Campaign film concludes that while AI aggregates, Dyslexic Thinkers innovate.
• Research shows that Dyslexic Thinkers and AI together are an unstoppable force, as 72% of dyslexics see AI tools such as ChatGPT as a vital starting point for them to apply their Dyslexic Thinking and deliver extraordinary work.
• Sir Richard Branson & Made By Dyslexia call upon businesses globally to commit to taking the charity’s new free workplace training created in partnership with LinkedIn Learning.
• Now is the time to empower Dyslexic Thinking in business – or risk being left behind.

Sir Richard Branson, Virgin, and global charity, Made By Dyslexia, have once again joined forces to launch a new campaign DyslexAI, as they call upon every workplace across the world to commit to empowering Dyslexic Thinking in the workplace.

The rise of AI is truly remarkable. But while it can be a useful tool to move businesses forward, there is another tool out there that can innovate in a way AI can’t: Dyslexic Thinking.  

That’s why Sir Richard Branson, Virgin, and Made By Dyslexia have launched a campaign that shows  AI being asked to think like famous Dyslexic Thinkers to try to recreate some of their most incredible accomplishments. The results speak for themselves, producing pieces that, while interesting, don’t display the insight and innovation of the ones created by Dyslexic Thinking.

Whether inventing the car (“Invent a faster horse”) or a certain famous mouse (“Imagine a cartoon mouse with red shorts and yellow shoes”) – if it was left to computers alone, we could have ended up with something very different.

With a guerrilla-style campaign launch touching both New York and London, including TFL digital and screen takeovers at Virgin Money stores and Virgin Active gyms across the UK, the campaign leads viewers to information about how to empower Dyslexic Thinkers in the workplace. 

To support the campaign, Made By Dyslexia released new research today in partnership with Randstad Enterprise showing that 72% of dyslexics see AI tools such as ChatGPT as a valuable starting point for them to apply their Dyslexic Thinking and deliver innovative and extraordinary work.

This supports the findings of the Value of Dyslexia report, produced by EY and Made By Dyslexia in 2018/19 *, which found that dyslexic skillsets will mirror the World Economic Forum’s future skills needs by 2025. Given the rapid speed at which technology and AI has taken over – the cross-over has arrived two years earlier than predicted.

Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Group Founder said: “AI is already transforming the way we work, live, and interact. Used in the right way, AI is the perfect co-pilot for people with Dyslexic Thinking skills to move the world forward. But technology can’t replicate the spontaneous, human, creative instinct that can lead to incredible innovation. Dyslexics have the limitless power to change the world if everyone embraces their dyslexic minds.”

The charity’s forthcoming research with Randstad Enterprise also revealed an alarming discrepancy between how HR departments perceive their own understanding and support of dyslexia in the workplace, versus the experience of dyslexic individuals themselves. While 66% of HR professionals believe they have support structures in place for dyslexia, only 16% of dyslexics feel supported in the workplace. Just 14% of dyslexics believe their workplace understands the benefits and value of Dyslexic Thinking.

Made By Dyslexia’s global mission is to empower Dyslexic Thinking in every workplace because Dyslexic Thinkers have the exact skills that can and will move businesses forward now and in the future.

In addition to the DyslexAI campaign, the charity is also calling upon companies to commit to enrol in a brand new, free to access, workplace training course set to launch on LinkedIn Learning later this year. Designed by experts at Made By Dyslexia, the course will educate on how to understand, support, and empower Dyslexic Thinking in the workplace, and ensure that companies are future- ready.

A number of organisations including companies across the Virgin Group, Randstad Enterprise, and EY have already committed to enrolling all people leaders in the course when it launches. Made By Dyslexia is calling on companies across the world to do the same online at madebydyslexia.org    

Kate Griggs, CEO & Founder of Made By Dyslexia comments, “Research has been telling us that Dyslexic Thinking skills will be vital for future workplaces, and with the rapid advancement and adoption of AI, that future has arrived. Because while technology and AI has evolved totake over many skills, they can’t replace sought after soft skills like innovation, lateral thinking, complex problem solving and interpersonal skills, which are Dyslexic Thinking skills.

New research shows that AI is the perfect partner for Dyslexic Thinking, and together they are the unstoppable force every workplace needs to drive their business forward. Our new training  will help every business empower Dyslexic Thinking.”

The latest campaign, again in partnership with agency FCB Inferno, follows the success of the 2022 campaign which saw Richard Branson and Made By Dyslexia collaborate with global partners to recognise Dyslexic Thinking. It saw the term added as a skill on LinkedIn, and as an official term on Dictionary.com. Over 10,000 individuals added the skill to their profile within a week of launch, which continues to grow daily.

Nicole Leverich, Vice President of Communications at LinkedIn comments: “As creative problem-solvers and strong communicators, dyslexic thinkers can give their employers a competitive edge – particularly as AI continues to drive significant changes in the world of work. While many companies are looking beyond the CV basics of past jobs and education to adopting skills-first hiring, there is still a lot more to do. 

That’s why we’re delighted to continue our partnership with Made By Dyslexia to build on the more than 21,000 LinkedIn members who have added Dyslexic Thinking to their profile and help companies embrace the power of thinking differently and support and empower dyslexic individuals in the workplace.”