UK to boost 'homegrown talent' in new AI skills drive

By AFP/Akshata KAPOOR

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday pledged to boost "homegrown talent for the AI age" by teaming up with tech giants to train 7.5 million workers in artificial intelligence skills.

Speaking at the start of London's Tech Week, with a line-up of speakers including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Starmer said: "In this global race, we can be an AI maker and not an AI taker."

Starmer was due to have a one-on-one conversation with the chief of the star Silicon Valley semiconductor firm whose chips are critical for artificial intelligence applications and research.

Ahead of the event bringing together industry giants, Starmer announced a government-industry partnership to train 7.5 million workers in AI skills, including in using chatbots and large language models to boost productivity.

Tech firms including Nvidia, Google, Microsoft and Amazon committed to make training materials freely available to businesses over the next five years.

Google EMEA region President Debbie Weinstein called it a "crucial initiative" essential for developing AI skills, unlocking AI-powered growth "and cementing the UK's position as an AI leader".

In his opening speech, Starmer said Britain must build "the digital infrastructure that we need to make sure AI improves our public services".

The UK has a "responsibility" to "harness this unprecedented opportunity and to use it to improve the lives of working people", Starmer added.

"We are going to build more homes, more labs, more data centres, and we're going to do it much, much more quickly."

Economic growth

His government has pledged to fire up the UK's flagging economy, including with "pro-growth" AI regulations to attract tech investment and turn Britain into an "AI superpower".

"We are putting the power of AI into the hands of the next generation -- so they can shape the future, not be shaped by it," Starmer said in a press release before the event.

The British leader unveiled £187 million ($253 million) in funding to help develop tech abilities including training for one million secondary school students, as part of its "TechFirst" programme.

He called it a "step change in how we train homegrown talent for the AI age".

The investment will "embed AI right through our education system", he said, announcing nearly £150 million in undergraduate and PhD research scholarships in AI and tech.

Starmer also announced a "commitment from Nvidia to partner on a new AI talent pipeline", including through expanding a Nvidia lab in Bristol, southwest England.

The UK's AI sector is valued at £72 billion, employing over 64,000 people, and is projected to exceed £800 billion by 2035.

It was growing 30 times faster than the rest of the economy, according to government figures from 2023 -- an "incredible" rate, according to Starmer.

Other speakers at the tech conference include the CEO of Mistral AI, Arthur Mensch, the UK's Science Secretary Peter Kyle and Markus Villig, founder of ride-hailing app Bolt.