Google investment in UK AI is a vote of confidence in UK tech
Following news of Google owner Alphabet’s £5bn investment in UK artificial intelligence, Ben Bilsland, Head of Technology industry at RSM UK comments:
“This latest investment in UK AI will no doubt come as a vote of confidence in the United Kingdom. AI is a key component of the present and future of our tech industry, where UK is well positioned as a global player given our strong ecosystem of successful, high growth technology companies. The latest data points to the number of new UK tech companies being incorporated reached a record high in Q2 2025, showing the industry is well placed to ride out the wave of ongoing economic uncertainty.
“The often cited headline is that AI is extremely powerful and has the potential to unlock massive economic growth in the UK. However, while the impacts we are seeing today around automation and efficiencies are important, they are unlikely to be the turnkey to once in a generation economic growth and change. As a country and as business leaders, we will need to ensure our focus moves away from efficiencies being the be-all and end-all, and instead focus on innovation, new markets and products that emerge in a world where AI technologies can be used with deep and lasting impacts. Our government will have a crucial role in establishing the regulation and regulatory environment that balances innovation against protecting the safety of users.
“To achieve growth, further investment will be needed to build on the momentum already established. Apple’s grand opening of a $1bn data centre in Hertfordshire is a clear symbol of the sort of infrastructure that is required. In comparison, US investment in data centres reached $40bn in June alone, while Amazon has committed to investing $35bn by 2040 in developing data centres in Virginia.
“However, it is the deeper investments outside physical infrastructure that will have a lasting impact and unlock the UK’s potential. Large corporate inbound investment and global venture funding will have a crucial role in backing the groundbreaking, innovative research projects that lead to the next phase of companies. Funding for facilities and education programmes in key tech skills will upskill our workforce of the future.”