The Prime Minister is set to unveil his Government’s AI Opportunity Action Plan on Monday, with the aim of making Britain a world leader in the technology.
He said: “The AI industry needs a Government that is on their side, one that won’t slip back and let opportunities slip through its fingers.
“And in a world of fierce competition, we cannot stand by. We must move fast and take action to win the global race.”
Monday’s plan will take forward all 50 recommendations made by tech entrepreneur Matt Clifford, who was commissioned by Science Secretary Peter Kyle in July to come up with a plan to identify AI opportunities.
It will see the Government create a series of AI “growth zones”, starting in Culham, Oxfordshire, where it will accelerate planning approvals for data centres and improve access to the energy grid.
The Government has also pledged to increase the UK’s computer capacity 20-fold by 2030, including by building a new supercomputer.
Clifford had called for a significant increase in the UK’s computation power as a way of attracting AI investment.
The previous government had said it would support an exascale supercomputer at Edinburgh University, but the plans were shelved shortly after Labour came to power with the Government saying the Tories had failed to allocate any money to the project.
Construction of a new supercomputer, at a location yet to be decided, is expected to be funded in partnership with the private sector.
Ministers argue that using AI could boost GDP – after a grim start in office for Chancellor Rachel Reeves (above) defined by sluggish growth, the stubborn pressure of inflation and record-high borrowing costs which it’s feared will result in more cuts from Labour.
Reeves was panned after returning from a trip to China with promises of investment worth £600 million over the next five years – derided by the Tories as “small change”.
The Government is not just hoping to attract AI investment with its action plan, but also spur the adoption of the technology across Whitehall in a bid to improve productivity and cut costs.
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Stamer has written to Cabinet ministers ordering them to make driving AI adoption and growth in their departments a top priority.
The Science Secretary said on Sunday that while safety must be the “first step”, and should not be “pitted against economic investment”, it had proved to be “the only step” under the Conservatives.
Speaking ahead of Monday’s launch, Kyle (below) added: “AI has the potential to change all of our lives but for too long we have been curious and often cautious bystanders to the change unfolding around us.
“With this plan, we become agents of that change.”
But as well as safety, the Government must grapple with competing demands of different sectors such as the creative industries.
Artists and media companies have complained that AI developers’ use of their material to train programmes such as Chat-GPT has infringed their copyright, and the Government is currently consulting on the issue.
Monday’s plan is also expected to set out the Government’s approach to building the infrastructure required to develop AI.
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This includes building more data centres, something the Government has appeared to make a real focus for the UK, including by declaring them “critical national infrastructure” in September.
In addition, the Government will have to address the energy and water needs of the AI industry, with the technology requiring significant amounts of both to operate.
Under Monday’s plan, Kyle and the Energy Secretary, Ed Miliband (above), will chair an AI Energy Council tasked with understanding the demands and challenges AI presents for energy companies.
Alongside Monday’s announcement, the Government revealed tech companies had committed a total of £14 billion of investment in AI infrastructure in the UK, expected to create 13,250 jobs.
This includes a £12bn commitment from Vantage Data Centres, which is already building one of Europe’s largest data centres in Wales, and $2.5bn (£2bn) from Nscale, including a contract to build the largest UK sovereign data centre at Loughton, Essex, by 2026.