Our story

Built in Cambridge.
Driven by purpose.

We believe every business deserves the kind of intelligent automation that was once reserved for the world's biggest banks — and we're here to make that a reality.

20+
Years in technology
5+
Years in AI
100%
Call answer rate
4k+
App integrations

Our purpose

We help businesses work smarter — not harder

At Macaws.ai, our mission is simple: to put the power of AI and automation in the hands of every business, regardless of size. The same algorithmic precision that drives multi-billion-pound trading floors can — and should — be at work answering your phones, booking your appointments, and growing your revenue.

We are obsessively focused on two outcomes for our customers: efficiency and productivity. Every feature we build is measured against those standards. If it doesn't make your business faster or more profitable, it doesn't ship.

  • Automation-first thinking

    We design every system to remove friction by default — not as an afterthought. Your team should focus on decisions, not administration.

  • Relentless optimisation

    Good enough is never good enough. We tune, iterate, and improve continuously — the same mindset that drives high-frequency trading performance.

  • Human-centred AI

    Our AI doesn't replace your people — it amplifies them. Every interaction is designed to feel natural, warm, and on-brand for your business.

Cambridge, United Kingdom — home of Macaws.ai
Cambridge, UK Where innovation meets execution

Royal recognition

Queen's Award for Enterprise — 2020

Macaws.ai founder Chao Liu was recognised with the Queen's Award in 2020 — the United Kingdom's most prestigious business honour, awarded by Her Majesty The Queen in recognition of outstanding achievement in innovation and international trade. It is a distinction held by fewer than 0.1% of UK businesses.

CL
Queen's Award
Winner 2020
👑

Founder & CEO

Chao Liu

Founder & CEO, Macaws.ai

Chao Liu has spent over 20 years at the cutting edge of technology — first in the high-octane world of investment banking, where he developed high-frequency trading algorithms that executed thousands of decisions per second. Long before "AI" became a buzzword, Chao was building the early quantitative models that would come to define modern algorithmic finance.

A Cambridge University alumnus, Chao brings a rare combination of deep technical rigour and commercial acuity to everything he builds. His academic foundation in mathematics and computer science, forged in one of the world's leading institutions, underpins Macaws.ai's approach to every problem: model it precisely, test it relentlessly, deploy it confidently.

After two decades building systems for institutions managing billions in capital, Chao turned his attention to a different kind of opportunity: the millions of small and medium businesses that are haemorrhaging revenue every day simply because they can't answer every call. Macaws.ai is his answer — bringing institutional-grade AI automation to every business on the planet.

In 2020, Chao's work was recognised with the Queen's Award for Enterprise — Britain's highest business honour — a testament to the impact and innovation at the heart of his work.

Cambridge University
20+ Years in Tech
HFT & Algo Trading
Queen's Award 2020
5+ Years in AI

The journey

From trading floors to AI receptionists

Two decades of building high-performance technology — from the millisecond-precision world of quantitative finance to the frontier of conversational AI.

Early 2000s
Investment Banking & HFT
Joined a major investment bank, building high-frequency trading algorithms — the earliest practical applications of machine learning and AI in financial markets.
Cambridge University
Academic foundation
Studied at the University of Cambridge, developing the mathematical and computational foundations that underpin everything built at Macaws.ai today.
2019–2020
Queen's Award for Enterprise
Recognised by Her Majesty The Queen for outstanding achievement in innovation — Britain's most prestigious business honour.
2020+
5 years deep in AI
Dedicated focus on applied AI — large language models, voice synthesis, and intelligent automation — building the technology stack that powers Macaws.ai.
Today
Macaws.ai — Cambridge, UK
Helping businesses of every size answer every call, book every lead, and grow faster — with AI that works 24/7.

Ready to put 20 years of expertise to work for your business?

Join hundreds of businesses using Macaws.ai to answer every call, every day — powered by the same rigorous thinking that drove performance on the world's trading floors.

See our plans