LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will say on Monday he wants the UK to become the world leader for artificial intelligence, promising to create special zones for data centres and encouraging more graduates to study technology-focused courses.
Starmer will say he wants to put AI at the heart of his ambition to grow the economy, while the government will claim if the technology is fully adopted it could increase productivity by 1.5% a year, worth an extra 47 billion pounds ($57 billion), annually over a decade.
Ahead of a speech in London by Starmer on AI, the government said it will adopt all the 50 recommendations set out in the report “AI Opportunities Action Plan” by venture capitalist Matt Clifford, submitted to the government last year.
This includes making it easier to build data centres by accelerating planning permission and giving them energy connections. The first such centre will be built in Culham, Oxfordshire, home to Britain’s Atomic Energy Authority.
“Our plan will make Britain the world leader,” Starmer was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. “That means more jobs and investment in the UK, more money in people’s pockets.”
Countries across the world are competing to turn their countries into AI hubs, while balancing the need for some restrictions on the technology.
Britain is the third-largest AI market in the world behind the U.S. and China, when measured by indicators such as investment and patents, according to Stanford University.
However, the Labour government’s decision to set out the highest tax-raising budget since 1993 has damaged some business confidence and the Bank of England estimated last month that the economy did not grow in the last quarter.
Starmer will say on Monday that AI has the power to transform the lives of people, including speeding up planning consultations, helping small businesses, and driving down admin for teachers so they can concentrate on teaching.
“And in a world of fierce competition, we cannot stand by,” he will say. “We must move fast and take action.”
($1 = 0.8194 pounds)
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by David Holmes)
Comments