Labour scraps plan to spend £1.3bn on AI projects
The new Labour government has scrapped plans to spend £1.3bn on AI projects after stating it needs to take “difficult and necessary” decisions to “restore economic stability”.
The previous Conservative government had signed off on a £800m investment in an exascale supercomputer in Scotland and pledged £500m for the AI Research Resource last year.
The investment was designed to make the UK a leader in artificial intelligence. However, Labour claims it was an “unfunded commitment”.
Since coming to power last month, the new government has been wrestling with a “catastrophic” black hole in public finances.
While the government believes taxpayers’ money can be better used, leading figures in the tech industry say shelving AI funding is short-sighted.
The exascale computer, which would be around 50 times faster than other large computers in the UK, was set to help researchers in various industries, including astrophysics, advanced engineering, and pharmaceuticals.
The project’s future is unclear, despite Edinburgh University having spent £31m on a project to house the machine.
Angus Robertson, an MP in Scotland, said the latest decision was “bad news”.
Trade body techUK has urged the government to outline new proposals or risk falling behind other countries in emerging industries, such as AI.
Labour had pledged to prioritise economic growth in the run-up to this summer’s UK election, and the tech sector was seen as a vital lever in that quest.
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) says it’s still committed to innovation in science and tech, but at least some of the funding must come from elsewhere.