Britain wants to become an AI powerhouse. Here’s how

The British government pledged on Monday to rip up the red tape hindering construction of data centers that underpin artificial intelligence while promoting its “pro-innovation” approach to regulating the technology.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer hailed the potential of AI as he outlined wide-ranging plans to harness the technology, indicating that it will be a key part of his government’s efforts to “turn around the economy” and jump-start lackluster growth.

Starmer said he wanted to Britain to become “one of the great AI superpowers” that can keep up with other countries like the United States and China that have led advances in the technology.

Under the 50-point plan, which provided few details on investment amounts, the government plans to massively expand public computing power, including by building a new national supercomputer and setting up AI “growth zones” with “streamlined” building approval process.

“So if you’re looking at where to build your data centers, we will speed up planning permission if you need better access to power,” Starmer said.

Britain’s complex building permission rules are frequently blamed for preventing development of big projects such as data centers. After taking power in July, Starmer’s Labour government vowed to review decisions by local authorities to reject some projects.

The government will also stick to its “pro-innovation” approach to regulating AI, which involves giving responsibility to existing industry regulators instead of drawing up a new set of rules like the European Union has done. It will also continue to support of U.K.’s AI Safety Institute, set up under Starmer’s Conservative predecessor Rishi Sunak to carry out research on the most cutting-edge AI models and the existential but far-off risks they pose.

“We will test and understand AI before we regulate it to make sure that when we do it, it’s proportionate and grounded in the science,” Starmer said.

https://www.fastcompany.com/91259634/britain-ai-powerhouse-data-centers-keir-starmer?partner=rss&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=rss+fastcompany&utm_content=rss

Vytvořeno 1mo | 13. 1. 2025 22:10:06


Chcete-li přidat komentář, přihlaste se

Ostatní příspěvky v této skupině

5 time-saving Alexa commands you’re probably not using yet

Even if you’re a regular Alexa user, there’s a good chance you haven’t discovered some of its most efficient features.

Actually, strike that: There’s a good chance you’

25. 2. 2025 7:50:02 | Fast company - tech
Why today’s youth need more math, logic, and grammar skills

The Fast Company Impact Council is a private membership community of influential leaders, experts, executives, and entrepreneurs who share their insights with our audience. Members pay annual

25. 2. 2025 3:10:10 | Fast company - tech
Here are crypto’s biggest heists after Bybit’s $1.5 billion hack

Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit said last week hackers had stolen digital tokens worth around $1.5 billion, in what researchers called the biggest crypto heist of all time.

Bybit CEO Ben Z

24. 2. 2025 22:30:07 | Fast company - tech
‘We are never going to stop existing’: Hunter Schafer called out Trump’s passport policy on TikTok

“I had a bit of a harsh reality check today, and felt like it’s important to share with whoever is listening,” model and actress Hunter Schafer said in an eight-minute

24. 2. 2025 20:20:06 | Fast company - tech
Anthropic’s new Claude AI model can decide between speed and deep thinking

Anthropic released on Monday its Claude 3.7 Sonnet model, which it says returns results faster and can show the user the “chain of thought” it follows to reach an answer. This latest model also po

24. 2. 2025 20:20:05 | Fast company - tech
Ai2’s Ali Farhadi advocates for open-source AI models. Here’s why

A year before Elon Musk helped start OpenAI in San Francisco, philanthropist and Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen already had established his own nonprofit

24. 2. 2025 17:50:07 | Fast company - tech