Narwhal Labs Raises £20m for AI Platform; ASA Receives Complaints on Ad Campaign

# Narwhal Labs Secures £20m in Investment Funding Round Narwhal Labs secured £20m in an investment funding round earlier this month. The Bristol-based company develops a platform called DeepBlue OS, which uses agentic AI to handle inquiries, contacts, appointments and documents without human intervention.

The funding round reportedly included backing from Jonathan Swann, a former director of the specialist insurance provider CFC Underwriting.

Agentic AI differs from generative AI platforms, such as ChatGPT, in that it acts without needing to be asked a question by a human. Narwhal Labs was founded in 2022 by Luke Sartain. The company has placed adverts for its platform online as well as on large banners above the bag drop at Bristol airport.

Complaints Filed Against Narwhal Labs Campaign The Advertising Standards Authority received at least seven complaints about the campaign by Narwhal Labs.

The complaints challenge whether the ads are misogynistic and are currently being assessed to determine whether there are grounds for further action. A formal investigation has not been launched by the ASA. The campaign includes an advert depicting a woman next to the strapline 'She outworks everyone.

' The ad continues with 'Meet your new AI employee. ' She works 24/7. ' Another of the ads under the campaign features a black man with a moustache and a tagline 'Hello, is it leads you’re looking for?

He’ll find them, call them, and follow up. ' The Guardian reported on the complaints and the ASA's assessment.

Company Responds to Campaign Criticism A statement from Narwhal Labs said 'We understand the strength of feeling our campaign has generated .

.. It was never our intention for the billboards to be perceived as misogynistic or racist, and we take that concern seriously. Our billboards depict people from a wide range of demographics. Different genders, backgrounds, and identities ...

this was never about one group losing out to another. This is something far broader: humans versus machines. The impact will not be selective. It will not discriminate. And the debate it has sparked is exactly the one we need.

While governments hesitate, the technology is accelerating. When as much as 80% of white-collar work is at risk within the decade, silence is no longer a neutral position. The real question is not whether AI will replace jobs.

' The company is calling for changes in legislation that give consumers and employees the right to know when they are interacting with AI, not a person; a requirement for businesses deploying AI at scale to invest in reskilling and redeployment for affected workers; and rules on where AI can and cannot replace human roles, particularly in care, education and public safety.

Criticism from Advocacy Group Rebecca Horne, the head of communications and campaigns at Pregnant Then Screwed, said 'This advert is misogyny with a marketing budget, a textbook case of sexist labour stereotypes dressed up as ‘innovation’.

It pushes the toxic idea that the ideal worker is a woman who is endlessly available, compliant, unpaid and without needs. It exposes how deeply sexism is baked into our workplaces and now into our technology. When you sell a ‘perfect worker’ as a woman who never rests or asks for more, you’re not selling progress, you’re selling the same old misogyny in a shiny new wrapper.

' Jonathan Swann has been approached for comment. Bristol airport has been contacted for comment.