UK government launches AI ‘action plan’ to drive national adoption

The UK government is set to create an ‘AI Opportunities Action Plan’ headed by tech entrepreneur Matt Clifford to identify ways in which AI can drive economic growth and deliver better outcomes for the economy.

The aim isn't just to build a globally competitive AI sector, but also to boost adoption of the technology across all parts of the economy, public and private, and help support the infrastructure, talent, and data access required.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates indicate that by exploiting AI, the UK could ultimately see productivity gains of up to 1.5% annually.

"Growing our economy and rebuilding Britain to make everyone better off is our number one mission - and artificial intelligence has the potential to raise productivity and help us do that," said chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves.

"Our AI Opportunities Unit will unlock its full potential to grow a more productive economy, create good jobs across the country and deliver the excellent public services that people deserve whilst saving taxpayers money."

Matt Clifford is the co-founder of Entrepreneur First, an international talent investor and startup accelerator founded in 2011 and specializing in university spin-offs.

Clifford will deliver a set of recommendations to the Science Secretary in September. Alongside this, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) will also establish an AI Opportunities Unit to take advantage of AI and implement recommendations from the Action Plan.

"AI presents us with so many opportunities to grow the economy and improve people’s lives. The UK is leading the way in many areas, but we can do even better," said Clifford.

"I’m excited to start work and develop an ambitious road map to identify the biggest opportunities and support the new government as it makes important choices about where to focus its efforts."

The action plan will also consider key enablers such as the UK’s compute needs and broader infrastructure requirements over the next five years, how this infrastructure is made available for startups and scale-ups , and how to develop and attract top AI talent in the public and private sector.

In particular, it will cover how the UK can build an AI sector that can scale and be competitive globally, and how it can adopt the technology to enhance growth and productivity.

Turn your workforce into a talent force

It will look at how AI can be used in government to improve the experience of citizens interacting with the state, aiming to boost adoption in all parts of the public sector and the wider economy.

Similarly, it will also aim to strengthen the foundations of AI adoption, such as data, infrastructure, public procurement processes, and policy and regulatory reforms.

"We’re putting AI at the heart of the government’s agenda to boost growth and improve our public services," said science secretary Peter Kyle.

"Together we will use AI to drive productivity and economic growth in every part of the country so we can make everyone better off."