The UK government is celebrating £2 billion of investment made in the country’s tech sector last week, most notably a £1 billion deal from US AI firm CoreWeave.
CoreWeave revealed its new European headquarters will be based in London as part of a major expansion drive. The plan is to create the necessary processing power for machine learning and AI, graphics and rendering, life sciences, and real-time streaming applications.
"We are seeing unprecedented demand for AI infrastructure and London is an important AI hub that we are investing in. Expanding our physical footprint in the UK is an important milestone in the next phase of CoreWeave’s growth," said Mike Intrator, cofounder and chief executive officer of CoreWeave.
"CoreWeave’s infrastructure will fill a void in the cloud market by providing AI enterprises with localized high-performance compute solutions that will help build and deploy the next generation of AI applications."
Meanwhile, Siemens Healthineers announced plans to invest £250 million to design and manufacture superconducting magnets for MRI scanners at a new facility in North Oxfordshire that's expected to support 1,300 jobs.
"MRI technology plays a vital role in diagnosing disease, helping patients to get healthy and stay healthy," says chief executive Bernd Montag.
"This factory will be the global center for our innovative low-helium magnet technology, meaning we consume far less of a scarce natural resource and enable access to MRIs for many more patients."
The deals follow similar investment from Scale AI, which also recently picked London as the location for its first European headquarters.
Wayve also announced it had secured over $1.05 billion to develop the next generation of AI-powered self-driving vehicles in the UK.
Michelle Donelan, secretary of state for science, innovation and technology, said the investment flurry highlights the global appeal of the UK tech sector.
"Time and again, world leading tech companies are choosing the UK to invest in – bringing new jobs and opportunities for people to gain valuable skills," she said.
"Siemens, Wayve, CoreWeave, ScaleAI – these are major players that countries all across Europe and the world are keen to attract."
According to the government, the UK now accounts for around half of all AI private capital investment in Europe, with hundreds of AI companies starting up in the UK every year.
The UK AI sector employs more than 50,000 people in the UK and contributes more than £3.7 billion to the economy every year; by 2035, it's forecast to grow to over $1 trillion.
The announcement has been welcomed by the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA).
"If the UK can leverage its longstanding strengths in the digital economy, it can attract exciting new opportunities for British workers and contribute to the country’s long-term economic recovery from the challenges of recent years," said senior director and head of CCIA’s London office Matthew Sinclair.
"Policymakers need to keep these opportunities in mind and ensure that the UK secures a reputation for proportionate and responsible regulation, however, or they could undermine a hard-won reputation as the right place to build services for global markets.”
