Following on from the earlier story about the UK Government’s new AI Action Plan (see here), there is one item that this site has spotted that may make a difference to legal tech: the creation of a UK Sovereign AI body which will ‘direct investment into startups’.
While many of the other points in the plan may have a trickledown effect on legal tech, this one may have a direct impact.
Here’s what the Government says, with this body formed as part of the overall plan to advance the UK’s standing as a centre for AI use and development:
- ‘UK Sovereign AI should lead the delivery of a government offer to new and existing frontier AI companies that includes:
- Direct investment into companies, including promising start-ups as well as joint ventures with other commercial partners.
- Delivering appropriate sites for compute in the UK, including through AI Growth Zones, and international partnerships to guarantee compute access from appropriate allies.
- Packaging and providing responsible access to the most valuable UK-owned data sets and relevant research.
- Supporting UK-based AI organisations working on national priority projects to bring in overseas talent and headhunting promising founders or CEOs (and their teams) by convincing them to relocate to the UK.
- Facilitating deep collaboration with the national security community.’
Now, it’s the second one in the list that looks most exciting to those running startups, or larger companies in the UK.
It’s not clear how much money is on the table, or where it will come from. Elsewhere in the announcement are several mentions of working with the private sector, so perhaps this means the Government AI body steering cash from VCs and others to startups, or maybe there will be a sharing of investment between public and private. It’s unclear so far.
But, is this a good thing? One might say: ‘Well, of course Government getting involved in startup funding is a good thing, the more interest the merrier.’ And that’s a fair point. But, do legal tech startups in the UK struggle to find funding? And would the State, with or without allied private money, be the best investor or decision-maker on where to invest?
Do Government bodies, or Quangos, do well when it comes to spending taxpayer money on frontier tech? One could say they have proven they do well in the Defence sector. So, perhaps why not in legal tech also?
But, if a startup in the UK can’t find any investors, isn’t that a sign of something? Conversely, perhaps there are very successful UK legal tech companies, using AI, but they can’t get decent funding? The data is not there yet, although last week’s piece on investment suggests some mid-size companies that are neither new, nor scaled-up, are struggling to get cash. So maybe the project can help here?
Overall, the idea of the State getting into startup funding is conflicting. It’s good to see the support there, but do we want startups depending on this kind of investment? That said, one could argue that other countries see their governments getting behind ‘national champions’ across a range of sectors, so why not legal tech? Plus, Innovate UK, which is also using taxpayer funds, already hands out money to British legal tech companies – although it is debatable if in some cases it has seen value for money.
Well, you decide. It’s hard to say no to money, but then, do you want State intervention?
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One other area of interest that also connects more directly to legal tech is around training and hiring. The AI Plan also covers the idea to:
‘Expand education pathways into AI. Higher education is the most common pathway into AI careers and will likely remain so at least until 2030. To meet the demands of the labour market and the changing skills needs of the future, however, government should encourage and promote alternative domestic routes into the AI profession – including through further education and apprenticeships, as well as employer and self-led upskilling.’
And,
‘Launch a flagship undergraduate and masters AI scholarship programme on the scale of Rhodes, Marshall, or Fulbright for students to study in the UK. Open to a diverse initial cohort of 100 scholars from the UK and abroad, the programme would combine financial support, cohort building, industry co-investment, and placements in government or private sector AI organisations. Potential scholars must show exceptional promise, but recognising the broad range of talents needed for success in AI, this could be in a variety of fields, such as strong performance in a leading STEM competition (e.g. the International Mathematical or Informatics Olympiads).’
More local AI talent, means more people available to help drive forward legal tech and also work on AI inside law firms. So, another positive.
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Overall, as noted in the previous article, there is much to feel good about here. Will it be a game-changer for legal tech and the legal sector? Probably not. Why? Because, unlike some sectors, the legal world has been fast to see the value of AI and engage with it. That said, all the various positives in the AI Plan will help, even if indirectly.
As to taking money from, or via, this – so far unformed – Government body, well, that’s down to the founders and if they want the UK Government on their cap table or involved in VC decisions.
Here’s more info on the plans.
