Prime Minister Theresa May today launches the sixth annual London Tech Week festival, spearheaded by Informa Tech, bringing together many of the biggest names from global technology and business.
In her opening speech the Prime Minister is expected to say:
“Already we are one of the best places in the world to start and grow a tech business. British Tech is growing over one and a half times faster than the rest of the economy, adding more than one hundred and thirty billion pounds to our economy every year…
But if we are going to maintain our position as a global leader, our challenge is how we develop British Tech and make it even better. We want this to be the place everyone thinks of – and comes to – first when they want to develop their world changing tech ideas. This is a challenge shared between industry and Government…
Today as we sit on the cusp of the next great industrial revolution, we have the opportunity to work together and ensure that the advances we see transform our world for the better, and for the benefit of everyone. Government will back you all the way.”
The Prime Minister will also make a number of ambitious commitments that will ensure the UK remains the largest tech hub in Europe.
These include:
- £153million government funding, with an additional £205million pledged by industry, to unlock the potential of quantum technologies, including accelerated drug development from quantum computing.
- 2,500 places available for the first time for AI and data conversion courses starting next year, to equip tech-driven businesses and people across the country with the skills they need. This includes 1,000 government-funded scholarships to open up opportunities for people from all backgrounds.
- Launching a study into tech competitiveness to identify opportunities and support for digital businesses to ensure the UK remains the most attractive place to build a tech business. This will be led by industry: Cindy Rose from Microsoft UK, Suzanne Ashman from LocalGlobe, Stephen Coleman from CodeBase, and Avid Larizadeh Duggan from Kobalt.
We have the opportunity to work together and ensure that the advances we see transform our world for the better, and for the benefit of everyone.
Some of the UK’s biggest tech companies this morning applauded the new initiatives.
Cindy Rose CEO, Microsoft UK, said: “Given the pace of change in technologies like Artificial Intelligence, there has never been a more important time for London Tech Week. The UK has a long history of world leading technological innovation and is ideally placed to capitalise on the AI opportunity for economic growth. We have all the elements we need to succeed, a thriving start-up scene, a vibrant investment community, cloud-first government policy and a great pool of UK and global talent.”
Bill Kelleher, Chief Executive, IBM UK and Ireland said: “London is a major hub for innovation and creativity. New technologies such as AI, Blockchain, Cloud and Quantum are creating powerful opportunities for the tech ecosystem to transform businesses and empower people to do good.”
On Wednesday the 12th June, as an official part of London Tech Week, The Fintech Times will gather the leaders of Fintech to discuss the major trends in the payments industry.
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