'I am betting big,' said Peter Kyle at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. 'I am betting big,' said Peter Kyle at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. 'I'm picking winners': UK business secretary takes activist approach to economic growth AI evangelist Peter Kyle wants to scale up businesses, attract overseas investors and look out for UK's poorer regions The UK business secretary, Peter Kyle, has said he is "betting big" and "picking winners" as the government takes direct stakes in growing businesses to boost economic growth. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, have been talking up Britain's prospects, Kyle said ministers were taking an "activist" approach to industrial policy. The idea of "picking winners" is closely associated with the Conservative prime minister Margaret Thatcher's attacks on Labour's 1970s strategy and her argument that it should be the private sector that decides which companies thrive.

In the old Camden Town Hall opposite London's St Pancras station, away from the white tie and tails of the pageantry at Windsor Castle, was perhaps the most substantive display of the consequences of Donald Trump's state visit. In front of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, many members of the British and US cabinets and the cream of the European tech industry, a highly-crafted video played, featuring the long history of UK science. It included George Stephenson, Charles Babbage, Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing and Sir Demis Hassabis, with dozens of UK start-up companies from every corner of the country listed. It was a cross between a UK government investment promotion video and the Danny Boyle 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony, except for one crucial detail - it was voiced by Jensen Huang, the American Nvidia artificial intelligence (AI) and microchip magnate. This week, Trump said the tech tycoon was taking over the world and the boss of the company, which hit a market value of $4tn (£2.9tn) this summer, appears to have gone all-in on the UK in quite an extraordinary way.

Microsoft says its new $30bn (£22bn) investment in the UK's AI sector - its largest outside of the US - should significantly boost Britain's economy in the next few years. Its package forms a major part of a £31billion agreement made between the UK government and various other US tech giants, including Nvidia and Google, to invest in British-based infrastructure to support AI technology, largely in the form of data centres. Microsoft will also now be involved in the creation of a powerful new supercomputer in Loughton, Essex. Speaking exclusively to the BBC Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told the BBC of the tech's potential impact on economic growth. It may happen faster, so our hope is not ten years but maybe five.

Google predicted the investment would help to create 8,250 jobs annually at UK companies. Google predicted the investment would help to create 8,250 jobs annually at UK companies. Rachel Reeves says move is a'vote of confidence' in British economy as she prepares to open firm's first UK datacentre Google has said it will invest £5bn in the UK in the next two years to help meet growing demand for artificial intelligence services, in a boost for the government. The investment, which comes as Google opens its new datacentre in Waltham Cross in Hertfordshire, is expected to contribute to the creation of thousands of jobs, the US tech company said. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves - who is attempting to drive growth amid pressure over the lacklustre state of the UK economy - said the investment into research and development, capital expenditure and engineering was a "vote of confidence" in the UK economy.

Chatbots could take over eight million jobs in the UK - and women will be worst affected, a leading think tank has warned. Analysis has found nearly two-thirds of tasks carried out by workers could be automated by AI, with admin and entry-level jobs most at risk. But the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) claims the'jobs apocalypse' is not inevitable if the Government acts fast to ensure humans are not replaced. With the right regulation and fiscal incentives, it has estimated AI could instead boost the UK economy by 306bn - and even increase salaries for some by over a third. The report is the first of its kind to look at the impact of generative AI - the technology that mimics the human brain in generating text, images, and videos from scratch - on the UK labour market.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the way we live, work, travel, and do business. The expertise of British AI companies, some of the world's most innovative, contributes significantly to this increase in global economic growth and productivity. Recently, Tech Nation, the leading growth platform for UK tech companies, released data on the growth of the AI tech ecosystem in the UK. According to this new data, the UK is now home to over 1,300 AI companies, up from 180 companies in 2011, representing a 600% increase. AI companies are scaling across all regions of the UK, with 50% of the top scaling AI companies being outside of London with Cambridge and Edinburgh being major hubs. Furthermore, Venture Capital investment into UK AI companies also rocketed from $120 million in 2010 to $3.4 billion in 2020.

The coronavirus pandemic lockdown has highlighted a series of new social changes, but with it, a whole new set of software and hardware technologies have become our coping mechanisms. During the onset of the lockdown in March this year, businesses across a broad range of industries were forced to adapt rapidly in order to survive. Across the country, millions of staff began working from home and shoppers were unable to visit the high street. However, despite the disruption and challenges of Covid-19, a host of sectors are thriving. In this article, we will look at some of the major sectors that have benefitted from the'stay at home' culture and explore how the digital transformation of our daily lives has allowed us to cope with lockdown measures.

A recent virtual event addressed another such issue: the potential impact machines, imbued with artificial intelligence, may have on the economy and the financial system. The event was organised by the Bank of England, in collaboration with CEPR and the Brevan Howard Centre for Financial Analysis at Imperial College. What follows is a summary of some of the recorded presentations. The full catalogue of videos are available on the Bank of England's website. In his presentation, Stuart Russell (University of California, Berkeley), author of the leading textbook on artificial intelligence (AI), gives a broad historical overview of the field since its emergence in the 1950s, followed by insight into more recent developments.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can transform the productivity and GDP potential of the UK landscape. But, we need to invest in the different types of AI technology to make that happen. Our research shows that the main contributor to the UK's economic gains between 2017 and 2030 will come from consumer product enhancements stimulating consumer demand (8.4%). This is because AI will drive a greater choice of products, with increased personalisation and make those products more affordable over time. Labour productivity improvements will also drive GDP gains as firms seek to "augment" the productivity of their labour force with AI technologies and to automate some tasks and roles.

In collaboration with CEPR and the Brevan Howard Centre, Imperial College, the Bank of England is hosting a research conference on "the impact of machine learning and AI on the UK economy." The purpose of the conference is to stimulate academic research and public debate on how machine learning and AI will impact issues that matter to the Bank of England's policy objectives. The programme will include Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden and other senior Bank members. The call for papers is below and the submission deadline is 30 September 2019.