Government cancels £1.3bn of AI and tech funding, but launches an Action Plan for AI growth

The new Labour government has cut £1.3 billion of funding for technology and artificial intelligence (AI) research and development.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) said the money was promised by the previous administration but was never allocated in its budget.

DSIT said: "The government is taking difficult and necessary spending decisions across all departments in the face of billions of pounds of unfunded commitments," it said in a statement.

"This is essential to restore economic stability and deliver our national mission for growth."

But in another move, UK Science Secretary Peter Kyle has commissioned an Action Plan to identify how AI can drive economic growth.

The Secretary of State has appointed Tech entrepreneur and Chair of Advanced Research And Invention Agency (ARIA), Matt Clifford, to kickstart this work. He will deliver a new AI Opportunities Action Plan to identify ways to accelerate the use of AI to improve people’s lives by making services better and developing new products.  

Matt Clifford will deliver a set of recommendations to the Science Secretary in September. Alongside this, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) – acting as the digital centre of government - will also establish an AI Opportunities Unit to bring together the knowledge and expertise to take full advantage of AI and implement recommendations from the Action Plan.