Dear readers — thanks so much for the amazing response to Lucy’s weekend read, the story of an AI fantasist which was equal parts tragedy, high comedy, farce and fable.
It asked whether Chris Kenna, the founder of a business that claims to be building a high-tech data centre on Salford Quays, is set to become Manchester’s first AI billionaire — or whether he’s making it all up (and while we recommend you read the full tale, with all its bizarre detail, if you really don’t have the time then it’s the latter).
John Bull called it a “fantastic bit of journalism”, Jonathan on BlueSky said it was “absolutely wild”, and Mohammed called it a “great piece of local investigative journalism”. Meanwhile long-time Miller Martin Bryant posted: “The Mill called me during their investigation to see if I’d heard of him. I hadn’t, but I laughed out loud on the phone when I heard his claim of plans for a £2.5 billion IPO this year.”
We even had people around the world sharing the piece, like this response from Germany: “Wir brauchen mehr guten Journalismus wie diesen hier. Journalismus, der aufzeigt, dass der Kaiser nackt ist.” Basically, we need more journalism that reveals that the Emperor (der Kaiser) is starkers.
Lucy’s story about Chris Kenna was the product of several weeks of reporting. Alongside the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, we spent that time fact-checking dozens of claims made by Kenna, speaking to his former employees at multiple companies and visiting sites in Manchester and Scotland.
We published it for free because it is in the public interest. However, we would urge you to remember that The Mill only exists because 4,200 people choose to pay for it each month. Frankly, this kind of journalism doesn't pay for itself.
If you choose to support us we'll continue to grow, and continue to be able to hold figures like Kenna to account. You'll receive not only amazing investigations like this one, but beautifully written features, insights into local politics and much more. Our paying members get between eight and 10 extra editions every month. We hope you enjoyed the piece.
Manchester: the birthplace of computing
Today, it’s hard to imagine a world without computers, but cast your mind back 75 years and Manchester was just on the verge of being the very first to sell them. In 1951, Manchester’s own Ferranti launched the first-ever commercial computer. Developed with the help of mathematician Alan Turing, electronics engineers at the University of Manchester, and a team of female programmers, the Ferranti Mark 1 was an unprecedented technological development. First purchased by the University of Manchester, it paved the way for a computer-led world.
The Science and Industry Museum continues to showcase and bring life to these historic stories and modern day innovations from “Baby” to Spinnaker. To learn more about the role Manchester played in the birth of modern-day computing and to see the objects for yourself, head to The Science and Industry or click below.
No power in the tower
Ostensibly the biggest news over the weekend was of course all the lights going out in Deansgate West Tower, punting throngs of influencers, OnlyFans models and Man City defenders out into the cold hard night. The power outage began on Wednesday night, and remains unsolved, though residents have been told they’ll have their lights back on at some point today. According to the MEN’s reporting, the management company had to step in and offer residents a £120-a-night budget to stay in hotels (Motel One, Premier Inn or Romzzz Aparthotels), while one source told the paper the building’s reception was “busy with angry people”.
The whole debacle reminded us that we’ve been wanting to write a piece on a certain sordid aspect of the towers for some time now… So, if you live there, know anyone that lives there, or have any gossip about the towers you’d like to share, get in touch with Ophira here.
Towering above the rest
In further tower-related news: Manchester has earned another title (avid Millers among you may recall journalist Andy Spinoza crowning us Capital of the Rest of Everything in a BBC article last week). This week’s title is (Soon-to-Be) The Fourth Tallest City in Europe, as per new research by Barbour ABI, a construction and market analysis firm. We’ve got 26 buildings, either already built or in the works, that tower over 100m — a stat that could soon place us above Paris and Frankfurt. At the minute we’re ranked seventh in Europe, but once the planned construction is completed we’ll have 200 towers over 50m tall and 10 towers over 150m tall.
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