Exclusive: Liz Kendall bets £55bn to close UK innovation gap Britain’s new tech secretary, Liz Kendall, insists the government’s record £55bn R&D package marks a turning point for UK innovation, but with the country still lagging global rivals in key sectors, questions remain over whether even this scale of investment can close the gap. The funding, confirmed on Thursday by the Department for Science, Innovation [...]
MPs urge Whitehall to prioritise AI training as digital gap widens Politics The government must urgently upskill civil servants to make effective use of AI, MPs have warned. In a new report published on Wednesday, Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said that gaps in digital advancements among government departments are leading to service backlogs, inefficiencies, and poorer outcomes for citizens. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, PAC chair, argued: [...]
‘The AI bubble won’t pop’, says Bain & Company tech expert Tech Despite mounting speculation of a possible ‘AI bubble‘, a senior Silicon Valley investor has told City AM that some concerns may be overblown. Anne Hoecker, Silicon Valley partner at Bain & Company and head of the company’s global tech practice, told City AM on Tuesday: “When people say a bubble, it feels like something that’s [...]
Beauty Tech makes strong debut on London Stock Exchange amid IPO drought October 3, 2025 Shares in Beauty Tech Group, the owner of at-home skincare device brands including CurrentBody, ZIIP Beauty and Tria Laser, rose on their first day of trading in London, offering a rare boost to the capital’s beleaguered stock market. The Cheshire-based firm priced its initial public offering (IPO) at 271p a share, giving it a market [...]
UK ‘open for business’ as tech M&A surges October 2, 2025 The UK tech sector is experiencing a resurgence in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), driven by a combination of domestic innovation, international investment and the rapid adoption of AI. “The UK is definitely open for business”, investment banker Victor Basta told City AM. “It has enormous talent, and for international companies, particularly those who can’t invest [...]
Converge AI: Meet the UK tech decarbonising concrete with AI September 24, 2025 Concrete is everywhere; It’s in the roads we drive on, the buildings we work in, and the infrastructure that shapes the UK’s cities. Yet despite its ubiquity, it’s also one of the hardest materials to make environmentally friendly. This is the challenge that British construction tech scale-up Converge AI, founded in 2014, is trying to [...]