The pilot, designed and delivered by Web3 Veterans and Manchester-based NoCodeLab.ai, is being held up as proof that the technology sector's talent pipeline has a largely untapped source, and that the barriers to entry are lower than anyone assumed.
"Veterans bring extraordinary discipline and resilience to everything they do," says Dr Lisa Cameron, co-founder of Web3 Veterans and former three-term parliamentarian. "This pilot shows that with the right methodology, they can build real AI solutions that create immediate value. We are not talking about a slow burn. We are talking about people producing functional applications on day one."
The results of the pilot were presented at the House of Lords on 6 March 2026, before approximately 100 parliamentarians and industry leaders. The event marked a significant moment for both organisations, and for the broader conversation about how the UK develops its AI workforce.
At the centre of the programme is a unique methodology developed by NoCodeLab.ai. Their educational approach strips away the traditional prerequisites of software development and puts the power of AI-assisted building directly into the hands of people who have never written a line of code.
"I have seen first-hand what non-technical veterans are capable of when you give them the right tools," says Sara Simeone, founder of NoCodeLab.ai. "They are disciplined, they are fast learners, and they do not waste time. Those are exactly the qualities that make exceptional AI assisted builders. What we are doing is not replacing human judgement. It is about augmenting it. And veterans understand that instinctively."
Since launching in May 2025, NoCodeLab.ai has trained almost 3,000 individuals across all ages and backgrounds. The veterans pilot represents a natural extension of that mission, with one important difference: the training is delivered veteran-to-veteran.
Mark Horsham, who co-founded Web3 Veterans alongside Dr Cameron, was invited into the NoCodeLab Accelerator by founder Sara Simeone and co-founder Deborah Cleary, before bringing the methodology back to his community.
"When Mark came through the Accelerator, it was immediately clear that the veteran mindset is perfectly suited to this way of building," says Deborah Cleary, co-founder of NoCodeLab.ai. "The focus, the adaptability, the drive to get something done and get it right. We knew from that point that this partnership had the potential to reach a lot of people who deserve a route into this industry."
His journey from the early days of coding to military service and back again gives the programme its human core.
"I was writing code for games in the early nineties, then went on to serve," says Mark Horsham. "Life took me a long way from technology. When I went through the NoCodeLab programme I realised my digital instincts were still there, but the tools had become extraordinary. You no longer need years of technical training to create something real. That is why I am committed to bringing this to as many of my fellow veterans as possible."
The peer-led model is deliberate. Veterans trust veterans. By placing a trained and certified veteran at the front of the room, the programme removes one of the most common obstacles to retraining: the sense of being out of place in a technical environment.
Web3 Veterans and NoCodeLab.ai are now looking to scale the programme nationally and internationally, with industry and government support central to that ambition. Organisations attending the House of Lords event were invited to consider placements, funding and in-kind support for future pilots.
For the people behind this great initiative, the stakes extend well beyond a single training session. The veterans community, in the UK alone, represents 10s of thousands of individuals with the capability, the mindset and the motivation to become technology builders. The only thing missing, until now, was the right place to start!
At the heart of it all is a shared sense of purpose. NoCodeLab's mission is simple: leave no one behind. It is a principle that sits in direct alignment with the Armed Forces Covenant, the commitment made by the nation to ensure that those who serve and have served are not disadvantaged in civilian life.
For Web3 Veterans and NoCodeLab, this programme is not just a training initiative. It is that mission made real.