The U.K government allocates over £100 million to support regulators and advance research and innovation on AI, including Hubs in healthcare and chemical discovery. This is part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) response to the AI Regulation White Paper .
It comes as £10 million is announced to prepare and upskill regulators to address the risks and harness the opportunities of this defining technology. The fund will help regulators develop cutting-edge research and practical tools to monitor and address risks and opportunities in their sectors, from telecoms and healthcare to finance and education. For example, this might include new technical tools for examining AI systems.
In a drive to boost transparency and provide confidence to British businesses and citizens, key regulators, including Ofcom and the Competition and Markets Authority, have been asked to publish their approach to managing the technology by 30 April. It will see them set out AI-related risks in their areas, detail their current skillset and expertise to address them, and a plan for how they will regulate AI over the coming year.
The DSIT said in a press release that this forms part of the AI regulation white paper consultation response, published today, which carves out the UK’s own approach to regulation and which will ensure it can quickly adapt to emerging issues and avoid placing burdens on business which could stifle innovation.
“This approach to AI regulation will mean the UK can be more agile than competitor nations, while also leading on AI safety research and evaluation, charting a bold course for the UK to become a leader in safe, responsible AI innovation,” reads the statement.
It further stated that the the UK government will not rush to legislate, or risk implementing ‘quick-fix’ rules that would soon become outdated or ineffective. Instead, the government’s context-based approach means existing regulators are empowered to address AI risks in a targeted way.
The UK government has for the first time, however, set out its initial thinking for future binding requirements which could be introduced for developers building the most advanced AI systems – to ensure they are accountable for making these technologies sufficiently safe.
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, Michelle Donelan said:
The UK’s innovative approach to AI regulation has made us a world leader in both AI safety and AI development.
I am personally driven by AI’s potential to transform our public services and the economy for the better – leading to new treatments for cruel diseases like cancer and dementia, and opening the door to advanced skills and technology that will power the British economy of the future.
AI is moving fast, but we have shown that humans can move just as fast. By taking an agile, sector-specific approach, we have begun to grip the risks immediately, which in turn is paving the way for the UK to become one of the first countries in the world to reap the benefits of AI safely.
Meanwhile, nearly £90 million will go towards launching nine new research hubs across the UK and a partnership with the US on responsible AI. The hubs will support British AI expertise in harnessing the technology across areas including healthcare, chemistry, and mathematics.
£2 million of Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funding is also being announced today, which will support new research projects that will help to define what responsible AI looks like across sectors such as education, policing and the creative industries.
£19 million will also go towards 21 projects to develop innovative trusted and responsible AI and machine learning solutions to accelerate deployment of these technologies and drive productivity.
The government will also be launching a steering committee in spring to support and guide the activities of a formal regulator coordination structure within government in the spring.
These measures sit alongside the £100 million invested by the government in the world’s first AI Safety Institute to evaluate the risks of new AI models, and the global leadership shown by hosting the world’s first major summit on AI safety at Bletchley Park in November.
Hugh Milward, Vice-President, External Affairs Microsoft UK said:
The decisions we take now will determine AI’s potential to grow our economy, revolutionise public services and tackle major societal challenges and we welcome the government’s response to the AI White Paper.
Seizing this opportunity will require responsible and flexible regulation that supports the UK’s global leadership in the era of AI”.
