The Alan Turing Institute, supported by the British Standards Institution (BSI) and the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), will pilot a new initiative to lead in shaping global standards for Artificial Intelligence.
The new AI Standards Hub is part of the National AI Strategy and comes as new research finds more than 1.3 million UK businesses will use AI by 2040, with AI already increasingly being used in surveillance cameras for both security and additional business operations.
The Hub will work to improve the governance of AI, complement pro-innovation regulation and unlock the economic potential of these technologies to boost investment and employment now the UK has left the European Union.
DCMS Minister for Tech and the Digital Economy, Chris Philp, says: “It’s imperative the UK remains at the forefront of this transformative technology which is already improving our lives and has huge potential to create new jobs and wealth.”
He continues: “It marks the first step in delivering our new National AI Strategy and will develop the tools needed so organisations and consumers can benefit from all the opportunities of AI.” In 2020, UK businesses spent around £63 billion on AI technology and AI related labour and this is expected to reach more than £200 billion by 2040.
In its pilot phase, the new hub will focus on:
• Growing UK engagement to develop global AI standards by bringing together information about technical standards and development initiatives.
• Bringing the AI community together through workshops, events and a new online platform to encourage coordinated engagement in the development of standards across the world.
• Creating tools and guidance for education, training and professional development to help businesses engage with AI standards.
• Exploring international collaboration with similar initiatives to ensure the development of technical standards are shaped by a wide range of experts.
Scott Steedman, CBE FREng, Director-General, Standards at BSI, says: “International standards are a vital tool to help unlock the economic potential of AI, including establishing a common language for all to use. “BSI, as the National Standards Body is ideally placed to convene the AI community in the UK to identify and develop good practices for the development, governance and use of AI technologies that will be internationally recognised.”
