UK outlines £600 million AI security package

Britain’s government has announced around £600 million ($800 million) in funding largely aimed at defending against health and security threats from AI. The largest share will support a new biosecurity initiative, including £100 million for an AI Biosecurity Lab to detect biological threats and £65 million to develop countermeasures against pathogens. AI minister Kanishka Narayan said the lab would bring together scientific expertise to protect people from emerging biological threats.

OpenAI and Anthropic will offer up to £200 million in model credits to the biosecurity initiative, while Google Deepmind and London-based Basecamp Research will provide other assistance. The existing AI Security Institute will receive an extra £120 million. Another £130 million will support the National Cyber Shield and the National Exposure and Real-Time Vulnerability Centre, projects intended to strengthen cyber defences across critical infrastructure and the wider economy.

The package also allocates £60 million to a fund investing in British companies applying AI to robotics, autonomous systems and manufacturing, alongside £60 million for AI research and procurement contracts. Further funding will support economic impact research, a chip design academy, healthcare-focused public policy solutions and local AI work. The National Cyber Security Centre will receive an unspecified sum to expand in Manchester.