Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the chief executive of US chip maker Nvidia have launched a major AI initiative at London Tech Week.
On Monday, the pair unveiled a series of measures to enhance the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's AI infrastructure, research, and industrial capacity, with the aim of transforming the º£½ÇÊÓƵ into an "AI maker, not an AI taker."
As part of the proposals, Nvidia has pledged to invest in its own AI lab at the University of Bristol, which is home to Isambard-AI, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's most powerful supercomputer.
The company, a key contender in the global AI race, also launched the first º£½ÇÊÓƵ sovereign AI industry forum in collaboration with major British companies, including BAE Systems, BT, Babcock, National Grid, and Standard Chartered.
The forum commits to bolstering the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's domestic computing capabilities by 20 times and supporting the country's thriving AI startup ecosystem with a £1.5bn investment, as reported by .
"This is a huge vote of confidence for the º£½ÇÊÓƵ", declared Mr Starmer while inaugurating London Tech Week. "We are truly leaning into this, and we are excited about the potential this could, and will have on millions on people."
Mr Starmer discussed the wider implications of the technology for British society and public services.
"AI and tech make us more human", he said, "and it is making a huge difference for working people. We're now looking at how it can speed up hugely important areas like hospitals or education", he added.
Nvidia's chief, Jensen Huang, also spoke at the forum, describing the current moment as "extraordinary" and praising the º£½ÇÊÓƵ as "one of the richest AI communities globally", due to its research institutions, startup ecosystem, and academic prowess.
"The º£½ÇÊÓƵ is the third largest AI venture capital ecosystem in the world", he said. "It's just missing one thing – and that is infrastructure. That's why Keir Starmer's announcement of more computing investment in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ is so vital."
The º£½ÇÊÓƵ leads Europe in AI investment, with the government reporting over $28bn in private investment funnelled into the sector since 2013.
Moreover, a recent study by consultancy firm Public First linked increased data centre capacity to accelerated economic growth.
The report suggested that a significant boost in AI infrastructure could contribute up to £36.5bn annually to the national economy.
Cloud providers Nscale and Nebius took advantage of London Tech Week's opening to announce their new º£½ÇÊÓƵ-based deployments.
While Nscale plans to install 10,000 of Nvidia's latest GPUs by the end of 2026, Nebius announced it would bring 4,000 of them online, with applications spanning research and public services.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle welcomed the series of announcements, labelling infrastructure as "central" to the government's AI strategy.
"We're looking across all the functions of government in each of the departments", Starmer declared. "I've asked every single department to take on the challenge: how can you use AI and tech to transform what you're doing?"
Nvidia has announced it would back the government's skills agenda by launching a new AI technology centre in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ – a £185m investment into education at school and university level, aimed at "building a better future" for children across the º£½ÇÊÓƵ.
The centre will provide training in AI, data sciences and accelerated computing, with a focus on areas such as foundation models and climate modelling.
"We're making a step change in how much homegrown talent we have", the Prime Minister added, "and we're going to bring in full powers of government with a new tech-first training programme, which will train up to one million young people".
In the financial services sector, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is planning to deploy an AI-powered 'digital sandbox' to facilitate safe testing of new technologies.
Barclays Eagle Labs also announced an innovation hub in the capital, with a focus on AI and deep tech startups.
Nvidia will offer support through its 'Inception' programme, providing early-stage firms with access to tools and training.
º£½ÇÊÓƵ universities are playing a pivotal role in the nation's overarching strategy, with the JADE consortium—a partnership involving Oxford University, the Turing Institute, and 20 other academic institutions—leveraging Nvidia's technology for AI development and safety research.
Notable projects include the creation of a digital twin of the human body at University College London, the Isambard-AI supercomputer at the University of Bristol, and advanced pollution-modelling systems at the University of Manchester.
"The º£½ÇÊÓƵ is a fantastic place to invest," Mr Huang remarked. "Infrastructure enables more research, more research leads to more breakthroughs, and breakthroughs lead to more companies."
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has confirmed its collaboration with Nvidia to enhance AI-focused telecoms research, providing tools and training to top º£½ÇÊÓƵ universities.
A number of British firms are already utilising Nvidia's platforms for commercial purposes. Wayve is at the forefront of developing AI for self-driving vehicles; JBA Risk Management employs AI for climate risk analysis; and Stability AI is at the cutting edge of creating generative AI tools for text and image production.
