UK-EU collaboration accelerates strategic artificial intelligence alliance
The United Kingdom and the European Union have launched a collaborative initiative to boost artificial intelligence (AI) research and development across the continent. This partnership invites leading UK public research organizations to apply for the position of the UK's gateway to Europe's most advanced supercomputing facilities, essential for accelerating AI breakthroughs.
Following the Prime Minister's negotiations to secure a new UK-EU deal, the government is now working towards utilizing this partnership for AI advancement. At the heart of this effort is the establishment of the UK's AI hub, Antenna, which promises to connect British researchers, startups, and institutions with Europe's cutting-edge supercomputers through a dedicated collaboration.
This facility is set to provide the UK with unprecedented access to high-performance computing resources, crucial for handling vast sets of data and complex AI models. By expanding cross-border cooperation, ministers hope the initiative will help tackle critical challenges like climate change, healthcare innovation, and clean energy development, while driving economic growth and creating high-skilled jobs in the UK.
Public research organizations have been invited to submit expressions of interest for the government-backed funding of up to €5m to establish the AI factory. The partnership leverages the UK's growing investment in AI infrastructure, including a £44bn investment in data centres since last year. This forms part of the government's ambitious compute strategy, a ten-year roadmap designed to increase national computing capacity twenty-fold, allowing for faster innovation cycles and stronger global competitiveness.
Minister for AI, Feryal Clark, emphasized the importance of the collaboration: "By linking British innovators to Europe's most advanced supercomputers, we are turbocharging our ability to address global challenges, drive economic growth, and lead in AI development. This partnership is a cornerstone of our plan for change and a clear signal that the UK is committed to being a trusted global AI partner."
The initiative follows Keir Starmer's "AI opportunities action plan," a government strategy launched in January that aims to accelerate AI adoption across the UK economy through enhanced infrastructure, innovation, and collaboration with the private sector. The plan has already catalysed over £14bn in private investments from leading data centre operators.
This new wave of AI collaboration follows the controversial new UK-EU agreement, which aims to remove trade barriers, support British industries, and strengthen partnerships across borders, though critics argue it leaves the UK as a mere 'rule-taker.' The announcements come amid growing concerns over the UK's competitiveness in the field of AI, with Paris recently overtaking London as Europe's leading tech hub for the first time.
While London saw the collapse of one of its best-known AI unicorns, Builder AI, last week, and earlier this month London-listed Deliveroo agreed the terms of a takeover by its larger US rival Doordash, the fintech giant Revolut recently chose Paris as a base for continental European expansion in a blow to the city it was founded in. However, the AI Factory Antenna and the broader UK-EU collaboration aim to turn these circumstances around and reposition the UK as a global player in AI research and application.
The UK-EU collaboration is investing €5m in public research organizations, aiming to establish the AI Factory, a hub connecting Britain with advanced European supercomputers. This initiative is part of the UK's ambitious compute strategy, aiming to increase national computing capacity and foster AI development. Minister for AI, Feryal Clark, believes this partnership will help tackle global challenges, drive economic growth, and secure the UK's position as a leading AI player, countering recent concerns about its competitiveness in the field.
