OpenAI and DeepMind to Share Models with UK Government

Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and Anthropic have agreed to allow the UK government access to their AI models for research and safety purposes. The announcement was made at London Tech Week by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Sunak emphasized the potential of AI to revolutionize areas like education and healthcare and praised the UK’s capacity for innovation. The priority access granted to the British government will help create better evaluations and a deeper understanding of the opportunities and risks presented by AI. Sunak has spoken previously about the need for guardrails in the rapidly evolving AI sector and is eyeing a leadership role in global AI safety regulation. The UK plans to host an AI safety summit in the fall that Sunak has compared to climate change conferences. A Foundation Model Taskforce, backed by £100 million in funding, will also explore research on AI safety and assurance techniques. The UK’s approach to regulation is meant to ensure that investing in the country remains attractive, and Sunak highlighted semiconductors, quantum, and synthetic biology as key areas of focus. Both OpenAI and Anthropic have set up European headquarters in the UK, while Palantir announced plans for an AI research hub in the country last week.