UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has unveiled a series of investments bringing academia and industry partners together in the development of AI.
They include £31 million to create a UK and international research and innovation ecosystem for responsible and trustworthy AI and £13 million to fund 13 projects to help the UK meet its net zero targets.
Also covered are £8 million for two AI researcher fellowships at the Alan Turing Institute and £2 million for feasibility studies on 42 projects under the BridgeAI programme for developing AI solutions.
UKRI said the investments, made through its Technology Missions Fund, will support work on ensuring AI is used for the public good and to solve global challenges.
The consortium, named Responsible AI UK, will be led by the University of Southampton and aims to create a UK and international research and innovation ecosystem for responsible and trustworthy AI that will be responsive to the needs of society.
Reflective approach
It will be headed up by Professor Gopal Ramchurn and take a reflective, inclusive approach to responsible AI development, working across universities, businesses, public and third sectors and the general public.
It will fund multidisciplinary research that helps understand what responsible and trustworthy AI is, how to develop it and build it into existing systems, and the impacts it will have on society.
Activities will include large scale research programme, collaborations between academia and business, skills programmes for the public and industry, and the publication of white papers on approaches to AI.
The efforts to use the technology in meeting net zero targets will be led by a number of universities and focus on areas such as: sustainable land management; accelerating energy efficient carbon dioxide capture; improving resilience to natural hazards and extreme events that could affect energy bills; and accelerating the selection of biofuel crops with higher yields that are climate resistant and have minimal environmental impact.
Government priority
Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology Chloe Smith MP said: “The safe and responsible development of AI is one of the government’s top priorities and this announcement is a substantial investment in that mission, complementing our existing work such as the global summit on AI safety, the Foundation Model Taskforce, and implementing our AI regulatory framework.
“In recognition of the enormous benefits it can have across wider society, we are also today supporting projects which help us reach our net zero ambitions. Through two new Turing AI fellowships, we are placing our unrivalled British academic expertise at the heart of ground-breaking work on some of the biggest challenges in the field, ensuring our AI workforce stays at the cutting edge.”
