By Libby Carson
This month’s CANZ workshop with Ben Walker from Cairn NZ was a valuable and timely exploration of artificial intelligence and its place within the celebrancy profession.
As someone who uses ChatGPT regularly and has spent considerable time exploring AI tools, I wondered whether there would be much that was new for me. What I found was that the session offered something equally important: clarity, context, and confidence. Ben has a talent for making a complex and often intimidating topic feel accessible and practical. Rather than focusing on technical jargon, he demonstrated how AI can be a useful assistant that supports our work while still preserving the authenticity, empathy, and human connection at the heart of celebrancy.
For many attendees, I am sure the workshop helped demystify AI. It challenged common misconceptions, highlighted both opportunities and limitations, and provided practical examples of how these tools can save time, generate ideas, and reduce administrative workload.
Perhaps most importantly, the session reinforced that AI is not about replacing celebrants; it is about enhancing what we do and freeing us to spend more time where we add the greatest value.
A sincere thank you to the CANZ team for organising the session, to Ben for generously sharing his expertise and giving up his time, and to all those who attended and contributed such thoughtful and insightful questions. Judging by the engagement and discussion—with 120 people online and many more who couldn’t attend but want the recording—there is a genuine appetite within our profession for further conversations and learning opportunities in this space.
And, in the spirit of the evening, it seems only fair to admit that I used AI to help write this review. After all, when discussing the practical benefits of AI, it would have been a missed opportunity not to put those lessons into action.
To view a recording of this workshop and all National Education Programme recordings click here.
