A “revolutionary” plan to establish Britain as a world centre for Artificial Intelligence while harnessing the technology in the public sector will be unveiled this week.
Labour will announce a radical change in approach so the country makes the most of its potential rather than obsessing about risks.
Ministers want to “shake the UK out of its safety-induced slumber”. It is claimed that “crumbling” public services have been “robbed” of the benefits AI can bring.
Science Secretary Peter Kyle said: “For the past decade, we’ve been asleep at the wheel when it comes to the near boundless potential of this technology. Ensuring the safety of AI and public trust in the technology is important, but we can’t go on with an approach which allows AI-driven opportunity and prosperity to trundle along at a snail’s pace.”
The Government wants Britain to “lead the pack in the global AI race” and claims a “course correction” is needed because under the Conservatives “an over-bearing focus on safety blinkered innovation and hampered growth”.
Under the plan, experts within Government will seek to make the public sector work better and “remove bugbears for citizens” by developing new AI tools.
A “Sovereign AI” team will be launched to build bridges with industry and ensure Britain is the “natural home” for companies at the cutting edge of the new technology.
A key goal will be delivering “real change for working people in all communities”. It is hoped this will set the UK apart from its closest competitors in the United States and the EU.
The Government boasts that AI is already being used in hospitals to help spot cancers more quickly, by teachers to put together lessons and devise personal learning plans for students, and to scan for potholes on the nation’s roads – but it wants to achieve much more.
Mr Kyle vowed to leave “no stone unturned to ensure every corner of our country can realise the opportunities of AI to spark new investment, deliver new jobs, and put more money in people’s pockets – building an AI sector which will become the envy of the world.”
The launch of the plan comes on the heels of the announcement that French AI giant Mistral will open its first European office outside of France in London.
