Private Equity: Unlock Operational Value Across Your Portfolio with AI
We help Private Equity firms and their portfolio companies identify, implement, and scale AI initiatives that deliver measurable operational improvement, faster and at a fraction of the cost of the Big Four.
The Challenge
Most Portfolios Still Don’t Know Where to Start.
You’re seeing AI mentioned in every LP update and portfolio board meeting. But the reality on the ground is messy:
—Portfolio companies can't separate AI opportunity from vendor hype
—The Big Four charge £300–500k for strategy decks that gather dust
—Your hold period doesn't wait for 18-month "transformation programmes"
—No consistent framework to assess AI readiness across a diverse portfolio
—Management teams are enthusiastic but lack the technical depth to execute
—Every quarter without action is value left unrealised — compounding to exit
The path forward doesn't require a massive bet, just the right one.
Our Approach
A Practical, Portfolio-Wide Approach to AI
We start with your value creation plan and work backwards to find where AI creates the most leverage — then build it, measure it, and help your teams own it.
Start with the Thesis
AI aligned to your investment thesis and 100-day plan — not a generic technology roadmap.
Move at PE Speed
Working solutions in weeks, not quarters. Built within your hold period, not beyond it.
Build to Transfer
Your teams own everything we build. No vendor lock-in. No dependency. Clean for exit.
What We Do
AI That Works at Every Stage of the Investment Lifecycle
Due Diligence Support
AI readiness and technology risk assessment for target companies. A credible technology perspective for your IC paper.
Post-Acquisition Value Creation
Identify the highest-impact AI opportunities, build them, and measure P&L impact. Process automation to commercial insights.
Buy-and-Build Integration
Standardise operations and harmonise systems across bolt-ons. AI accelerates the path to "one business."
Carve-Out & Divestiture
Stand up independent operations under time pressure. Automate finance separation, build standalone reporting, replace shared services.
Exit Preparation
Demonstrable AI capability and clean technology infrastructure for stronger exit narratives and higher multiples.
Portfolio-Wide AI Advisory
A strategic AI partner across the fund. We build the playbook, benchmark companies, and provide ongoing guidance.
How It Works
What Happens When You Book a Call
Discovery Call
30 minutes. We listen to your portfolio challenges and identify where AI can help. No slides, no pitch.
Tailored Proposal
If there's a fit, a focused proposal with clear scope, timeline, and fixed pricing. No open-ended retainers.
Quick Win First
A focused engagement delivering tangible results within weeks. Prove the value, then scale across the portfolio.
Proof
Delivering Results for PE-Backed Businesses
Why Agera
Why PE Firms Choose Agera
vs. Doing Nothing
The cost of inaction shows up directly in your multiple. Your buyer will price in every quarter of missed AI opportunity.
vs. Big Four / MBB
Half a million and six months later, you get a slide deck. That's hold period burned on recommendations, not results.
vs. Hiring In-House
You're burning runway before day one — and still carrying the headcount risk with no AI capability to show for it.
vs. AI Vendors
Generic tools don't understand hold periods or value creation plans. You end up with technology that doesn't map to your thesis.
vs. Surface-Level Audits
You get a costed, prioritised roadmap your board can act on — not a maturity assessment that sits in a drawer.
vs. Narrow Specialists
Strategy, development, governance, safety, ethics, training, and fractional advisory — one team from discovery through to exit.
FAQ
Common Questions
How quickly can you start?
Within days. After a discovery call and agreed scope, we typically begin within one to two weeks.
What does a typical engagement cost?
A focused quick-win engagement typically starts from £10–30k. Fixed pricing, clear deliverables, no open-ended retainers.
Full portfolio or individual companies?
Both. Start with a single portfolio company, prove the value, then scale across the fund.
How do you handle data security?
We work within your existing governance frameworks and sign NDAs before any engagement.
What happens after you leave?
Everything we build is yours. No vendor lock-in, no proprietary platforms. Your teams are trained to own and operate it. Clean for exit.
Is the discovery call a sales pitch?
No. 30 minutes of practical conversation about your portfolio. If there's a fit, we follow up with a tailored proposal. If not, no hard feelings.
Let’s Explore What AI Can Do for Your Portfolio
We’ll discuss your portfolio, explore where AI could create the most value, and give you an honest assessment of what’s practical. No commitment, just a useful conversation with people who understand UK private equity.
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