During US president Donald Trump’s state visit, the UK and US have come together to establish the Tech Prosperity Deal, aimed at advancing the development and implementation of artificial intelligence (AI), quantum, and nuclear technologies.
Building upon the UK government’s £44 billion investment in the AI and tech sector, along with commitments totaling £31 billion from industry giants such as Microsoft, Nvidia, Google, OpenAI, and CoreWeave, Labour is striving to make the UK the largest gigafactory in Europe.
As part of this agreement, the UK and US will collaborate on joint research initiatives to enhance the use of AI for targeted treatments and mutual priorities like fusion energy. This partnership could lead to groundbreaking advancements in healthcare, such as personalized treatments for cancer and other complex diseases.
Kanishka Narayan, the Parliamentary under-secretary of state for the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology, hailed this deal as the “first-ever UK-US tech deal,” emphasizing its potential to positively impact lives across Britain.
In response to concerns about the shortage of tech skills domestically, Narayan highlighted the exceptional talent already present in the UK. He also discussed Labour’s 50-point plan for AI opportunities, underscoring the government’s commitment to nurturing British talent and fostering innovation.
One of the key objectives of the UK-US tech partnership is to attract top global founders to establish their ventures in Britain. To achieve this, the government is collaborating with UK startup Nscale to deploy Europe’s largest GPU clusters, with commitments from Nvidia to supply 120,000 GPUs and OpenAI to deploy 8,000 GPUs initially.
Microsoft has also pledged £22 billion, including 23,000 advanced GPUs, to build the UK’s largest AI supercomputer in Loughton. Additionally, Google has invested £5 billion in a datacentre facility in Waltham Cross, further solidifying the UK’s position as a hub for cutting-edge technology.
Narayan emphasized that the UK’s opportunity lies not only in establishing sovereign compute capabilities but also in becoming a global leader in the adoption and application of AI to enhance people’s lives.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed optimism about the partnership, stating that by collaborating with leading companies from the UK and US, they are paving the way for a future where both nations excel in tomorrow’s technology, creating high-skilled jobs and driving economic growth across the UK.
