Britain has unveiled a new £1.1bn strategy to expand domestic AI computing capacity, including plans for a national AI supercomputer and major investment in UK semiconductor technology. The initiative builds on a £400m commitment announced by Prime Minister Keir Starmer during London Tech Week to strengthen the country’s sovereign AI infrastructure.
Under the plan, a £750m national AI supercomputer is scheduled to be deployed by 2030, using a combination of established and next-generation processors to support advanced artificial intelligence workloads and research activities.
Around £400m of the supercomputer budget will be allocated to next-generation chip technologies, including £150m earmarked for inference chips that will be purchased from British companies later this year.
A new investment fund led by U.S.-based venture capital firm Playground Global, with backing of up to £150m from the British Business Bank, will provide funding for UK AI hardware startups and technology firms.
The British Business Bank’s contribution represents the largest single fund investment in its history, while Playground Global has confirmed plans to establish its first office outside the United States in the UK.
The government has also announced a £120m AI hardware innovation programme to support British companies developing, testing and commercialising new semiconductor technologies and advanced chip designs.
An additional £45m will be invested in AI skills and workforce development, bringing total government funding for skills within the UK AI hardware sector to £80m.
