Science Fiction Author William Gibson is often credited with saying “the future is already here, it’s just not evenly distributed”. David Reid, Professor of AI and Spatial Computing, shares his thoughts on the Prime Minister’s AI Opportunities Action Plan.
On January 13, Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer launched the UK's AI Opportunities Action Plan.
In a 50-point action plan, Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, spoke about how Britain has previously been involved in shaping the development of AI and how this rich history can now be used to advance the nation’s future.
Although this type of AI-driven initiative has been attempted many times in the past, this particular effort is in its early stage so it is unsurprising that the document is heavy on ambition but light on detail.
However, it does state that Britain should be an “AI maker, not an AI taker” and it discusses the importance of AI as a contributor to economic growth. There is particular focus on the importance of preparing the workforce for the coming challenges that AI will inevitably bring.
It also explores a problem that has plagued this sector in the past - how to scale. As a country, we are prodigious at AI innovation, but we can’t seem to grow our nascent industries without them being gobbled up by (usually) big American companies. There are no native companies anywhere near the size of Apple, Google, Meta, IBM or Nvidia, despite many of the technologies, research and ideas originating from here.
Breaking down the plan into three ‘pillars’
Building an AI infrastructure: This includes building a new supercomputer and supporting research and development in industry and universities.
Unlocking data assets to the public and private sector: While this has mainly focused on reducing regulation so that companies can access the pool of data that is unique in its scale and complexity provided by the NHS, this is not the only source of data. Local authorities are encouraged to explore what data sets they may have, as have libraries, museums, the BBC and The National Archive.
Training: This includes not only the expansion of AI teaching and research at University level (such as Masters and conversion courses) but also the increased provision for retraining and AI literacy. Associate Dean for External Engagement within Hope’s Faculty of Education and Social Sciences Damien Maguire and myself are advocates of taking this even further by providing AI training for teachers, and by osmosis, schools.
The local impact of AI
This neatly dovetails into what is happening at a local level. The recently formed AI Task Force for the Liverpool City Region is exploring how AI can benefit the area; this is so called “AI for Good”. Initially three main themes were explored: health, transport and logistics and education. This has now expanded to other domains such as green AI, horizon scanning for opportunities and business innovation.
The announcement yesterday also mentioned 8 AIGZ (AI Growth Zones). Only one has been verified so far in Culham, Oxfordfordshire. These will focus on de-industrialised areas and are intended to create local jobs, attract international investment and drive regional rejuvenation. They must have existing energy capacity and strong local government support. At the same time as the AIGZ announcement, Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram welcomed a huge AI investment by the world’s largest IT infrastructure services provider, Kyndryl, that’s set to bring up to 1,000 jobs to the area.
After the relative failure of HS2, and ‘levelling up’ for the North, perhaps this region, like it was in the past with the Industrial Revolution, may be a fertile ground for the AI industries of the future.
As William Gibson said, the future isn’t evenly distributed, but perhaps this is a first attempt to spread it around a bit.