Microsoft believes the UK can become a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI) so long as it can get a grip on responsible governance and regulation of the technology.
Clare Barclay, CEO of Microsoft UK, said the country is “well placed” to establish itself as a global leader in AI across a range of industries, including healthcare, education, manufacturing, and agriculture.
"As one of the most digitally advanced economies in the world, the UK is well placed to lead the way in AI development and deployment. The home of innovative businesses, research institutions and world leading universities, the UK is quick to adopt emerging technologies and use them to solve real-world challenges," she said.
"For example, AI is helping improve patient outcomes in the National Health Service; monitor puffin and salmon populations in Scotland; and accelerate clinical research."
Barclay’s comments coincide with the release of a new report from the tech giant, Governing AI: A Blueprint for the UK, in which it specifically highlighted the country as having the necessary infrastructure to drive AI innovation.
Over the next three years, says Microsoft, it will spend £2.5 billion on expanding its AI data center infrastructure in the UK, bringing more than 20,000 of the most advanced GPUs to the UK by 2026.
It will extend its Accelerating Foundation Models Research (AFMR) program to give priority access to GPUs for the UK’s science and research community, the company confirmed, and make a multi-million-pound investment to train a million people in AI skills.
RELATED WEBINAR
In particular, it plans to try and help the UK’s AI developer ecosystem to embed safety and security measures into their own systems and processes.
"We applaud the steps taken by the UK to contribute to the debate on AI governance globally, through publishing guidelines for secure AI development, producing a principles-based white paper on AI governance, and holding a global summit on AI safety," said Microsoft vice chair and president Brad Smith.
"The challenge facing policymakers around the world is how to establish a governance framework that will encourage the use of safe, secure and trustworthy AI for years to come."
Microsoft: AI safety must be center of mind
Microsoft recommended that the UK build upon new government-led AI safety frameworks, require safety brakes for AI systems that control critical infrastructure, and develop a broader legal and regulatory framework based on the technology architecture for AI.
Similarly, it should promote transparency and ensure academic and public access to AI and pursue new public-private partnerships to use AI to address the inevitable societal challenges that come with new technology.
"As technology moves forward, it’s just as important to ensure proper control over AI as it is to pursue its benefits. We are committed and determined as a company to develop and deploy AI in a safe and responsible way," Smith said.
"We also recognize, however, that the guardrails needed for AI require a broadly shared sense of responsibility and should not be left to technology companies alone. In short, tech companies will need to step up, and governments will need to move faster."
-
Cloudflare is cracking down on AI web scrapersNews Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince said AI companies have been "scraping content without limits" - now the company is cracking down.
-
Swiss government data published following supply chain attack – here’s what we know about the culpritsNews Radix, a non-profit organization in the health promotion sector, supplies a number of federal offices, whose data has apparently been accessed.
-
‘Using generative AI as a copilot is the sweet spot’: A look at Nationwide’s AI approachCase study Nationwide Building Society is expanding its use of generative AI in 2025, with the core focus of making the lives of its staff easier
-
“Governance is an irreplaceable role”: Microsoft Security VP on why diversity and sector expertise will keep security workers relevant in the age of agentic AINews Improved AI skills and a greater focus on ensuring agents are secure at point of deployment will be key for staying ahead of attackers
-
Microsoft says workers should believe the hype with AI tools: Researchers found Copilot users saved three hours per week sifting through emails, gained more focus time, and completed collaborative tasks 20% fasterNews Using AI tools paid dividends for some workers, but alternative research shows it could create problems for others down the line.
-
Third time lucky? Microsoft finally begins roll-out of controversial Recall featureNews The Windows Recall feature has been plagued by setbacks and backlash from security professionals
-
Microsoft launches new security AI agents to help overworked cyber professionalsNews Microsoft is expanding its Security Copilot service with new AI agents to help overworked IT teams deal with surging security threats.
-
‘The entire forecasting business process changed’: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says Excel changed the game for enterprises in 1985 – he’s confident AI tools will do the sameNews The Microsoft CEO says we need to change how we measure the value of AI
-
Microsoft exec touts benefits of AI productivity gainsNews Microsoft CCO Judson Althoff said the company is unlocking significant efficiency gains from AI tools internally.
-
‘We’ve created an entirely new state of matter’: Satya Nadella hails Microsoft’s 'Majorana' quantum chip breakthroughNews Microsoft has unveiled a new chip it says could deliver quantum computers with real-world applications in ‘years, not decades'.
