In the UK, the St Helens Council has added AI and digital disruption to its strategic risk register as it seeks to strengthen governance and oversight. The change reflects growing concern about how emerging technologies could affect operations and services.
The updated register, now featuring 12 strategic risks, was presented ahead of the audit and governance committee meeting. UK officials said effective risk management is vital to meeting the council’s objectives and mitigating potential challenges.
AI and digital disruption were cited for the first time alongside risks linked to extreme weather and community cohesion. The council noted that ethical, data privacy and workforce confidence issues are among the challenges associated with integrating AI into public services.
Leaders said other risks, including cybersecurity threats and budget pressures, remain under review. The move comes as local authorities across the UK weigh the impacts of new technologies on service delivery and strategic planning.
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A University of Essex robotics project designed to automate crop harvesting has won the Best Research Project (Industry Collaboration) award at the 2026 UKRI AI & Robotics Research Awards.
The Sustainable smArt Robotic Agriculture (SARA) project was developed in collaboration with industry partners Wilkin and Sons, JEPCO, and GyroPlant, and addresses three interconnected challenges: food security, labour shortages, and sustainability.
Central to the project is the development of low-cost AgriRobotics systems capable of adapting to different crops, tasks, and growing environments, automating repetitive, labour-intensive farm work whilst reducing wastage, carbon footprint, and dependence on increasingly scarce agricultural labour.
The team delivered a live strawberry-harvesting demonstration at the Innovate UK Robotics Industry Showcase in March, an event aligned with UKRI’s announcement of a £52 million competition for Robotics Adoption Hubs.
Building on the project’s success, lead researchers Professor Klaus McDonald-Maier and Dr Vishwanathan Mohan have launched a spinout company, Versatile RobotX, to accelerate the commercialisation of the technology and extend its global impact.
The SARA project previously won the Best Demonstration category at the same awards in 2025.
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AI is increasingly taking over the early stages of hiring, with 89% of UK recruiters planning to use it more in the recruitment process this year.
For graduates like Bhuvana Chilukuri, a third-year business student at Queen Mary University London who has applied for over 100 roles without a single offer, this means facing automatic CV screening and AI video interviews, with some rejections arriving in under two minutes.
The scale of the problem is significant on both sides. Denis Machuel, CEO of Adecco, one of the world’s largest recruitment specialists, noted that candidates now need to send an average of 200 applications to receive a single job offer.
Meanwhile, firms like law firm Mishcon de Reya received 5,000 applications for just 35 roles in its last hiring round, a volume driven in part by candidates using AI to write and mass-submit applications, prompting employers to deploy AI to filter them out.
Supporters of AI hiring tools argue they can reduce human bias and deliver more consistent decisions. But critics warn the process strips candidates of their personality and humanity, with applicants describing feeling ‘robotic’ and ‘monotone’ while recording answers into a screen with no human interaction.
Machuel acknowledged the tension, calling for AI and human judgement to be combined at the right moments in the process, arguing that balance is the only way to break what he described as a growing ‘arms race.’
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AI adoption is accelerating across UK businesses, with 78% now using the technology in some capacity, rising to 85% among mid-sized organisations. A further 14% are exploring or planning implementation by 2026, reflecting the continued momentum behind AI adoption.
Despite widespread use, tangible results remain limited. Just 31% of UK businesses report a positive return on investment, while 18% say their AI initiatives have failed to deliver expected benefits. Another 16% indicate it is still too early to assess outcomes, highlighting the long lead times often associated with AI deployments.
A major issue lies in defining success. Only 41% of organisations using AI say they have a clear understanding of what success looks like, suggesting that AI adoption is often not matched by clear strategic planning, even among mid-sized firms, the most active adopters; fewer than half can articulate measurable goals.
The findings suggest that rapid uptake has outpaced organisational readiness. Many businesses are deploying AI tools without defining how they fit into workflows, what decisions they are meant to support, or whether the goal is efficiency, cost reduction, or growth.
For AI adoption to translate into real business value, companies will need stronger governance, clearer objectives, and measurable success criteria. Without that foundation, AI risks remaining an expensive experiment rather than a driver of long-term transformation.
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The UK Government has abandoned its previous preference for an AI copyright opt-out model, signalling a shift in policy following strong opposition from creative industries.
Ministers now acknowledge that there is no clear consensus on how AI developers should access copyrighted material.
Liz Kendall confirmed that extensive consultation exposed significant disagreement, prompting the government to step back from its earlier position that would have allowed the use of copyrighted content unless creators opted out.
A joint report from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport states that further evidence is required before any legislative change.
Policymakers in the UK will assess how copyright frameworks influence AI development, while also examining international regulation, licensing models and ongoing legal disputes.
Government strategy now centres on balancing innovation with fair compensation.
No timeline has been set for reform, reflecting the complexity of aligning economic growth with intellectual property protection.
The debate unfolds alongside broader ambitions outlined by Rachel Reeves, who has identified AI as a central driver of future economic expansion, with the UK aiming to lead adoption across the G7.
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Amazon is rolling out an AI upgrade to its Alexa assistant, aiming to make interactions more conversational and responsive. The new version is designed to follow the context and respond more naturally.
The update comes as Amazon seeks to compete with advanced AI chatbots that have gained popularity in recent years. Critics have argued that smart speakers have fallen behind newer AI tools.
Users in the UK are expected to notice more personalised and proactive responses from the upgraded assistant. This will be based on user and customer personal data. The service will be included with Prime subscriptions or offered as a standalone monthly option.
Analysts say the update could help Amazon gather even more user data and improve engagement by picking up on customers’ habits through conversations. However, questions remain about whether the changes will drive revenue or revive interest in smart speakers.
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Debate over proposed UK digital market rules is intensifying, with Google outlining its position and emphasising the need to balance competition with user experience and platform integrity. The company said it supports the objectives of the Competition and Markets Authority but warned that some proposals could introduce risks for users.
Google argued that maintaining fair and relevant search results remains a priority, stating that its ranking systems are designed to prioritise quality rather than favour its own services. It cautioned that certain third-party proposals could expose its systems to manipulation, potentially weakening protections against spam and reducing the pace of product improvements.
The company also addressed user choice on Android devices, noting that existing options already allow users to select preferred services. It suggested that adding frequent mandatory choice screens could disrupt user experience, proposing instead a permanent settings-based option to change defaults without repeated prompts.
Regarding publisher relations, Google highlighted efforts to increase control over how content is used, particularly with generative AI features such as AI Overviews. It said new tools are being developed to allow publishers to opt out of specific AI functionalities while maintaining visibility in search results.
Google said it would continue engaging with UK regulators to shape rules that support users, publishers, and businesses, while ensuring that innovation and service quality are not compromised.
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Britain is opening access to its national AI Research Resource to support domestic AI development. Startups and spinouts can now use supercomputers previously reserved for frontier research.
The AIRR combines infrastructure from government, universities and leading technology firms. It provides the computing power needed to train models and run complex simulations.
Access will be worth around £20 million per year for participating companies. Officials say reducing compute barriers will help startups move faster from prototype to product.
The government’s Sovereign AI Unit, backed by up to £500 million, will also support long-term growth. The programme targets areas including advanced models, scientific discovery and trustworthy AI systems.
Concerns remain over regulatory alignment with the EU’s stricter AI rules. Tensions could shape whether the UK maintains a more flexible environment for innovation.
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Plans to accelerate technological leadership have been outlined by the HM Treasury and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with a £2.5 billion investment targeting AI and quantum computing.
Ambition has been reinforced by Rachel Reeves, who positioned AI as a central driver of economic growth, alongside closer European ties and regional development. Strategy aims to secure the fastest adoption of AI across the G7 while supporting domestic innovation ecosystems.
Significant funding in the UK will be directed towards a Sovereign AI initiative, quantum infrastructure and research capacity. Plans include procurement of large-scale quantum systems and targeted investment in startups, helping companies scale while strengthening national capabilities in advanced technologies.
Expectations surrounding quantum computing are framed as transformative, with potential to reshape industries from healthcare to energy. Combined investment reflects a broader effort to align innovation policy with long-term economic growth and global competitiveness.
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The UK Government has announced up to £2 billion in funding for quantum technologies, including more than £1 billion over the next four years, confirmed by UKRI in December 2025, and a new procurement programme called ProQure designed to support the scaling of quantum computing across the UK.
The announcement is being billed as the country’s ‘Quantum Leap’, positioning the UK as a first mover in quantum commercialisation.
The funding is distributed across several areas: over £500 million for quantum computing to help companies scale and develop applications in pharmaceuticals, financial services, and energy; £125 million for quantum networking; and £205 million for quantum sensing and navigation, with dedicated applications in medical diagnostics, greenhouse gas monitoring, and ultra-secure communications.
A further £13.8 million will be injected into the UK’s five National Quantum Research Hubs, with an additional £90 million for quantum infrastructure and £20 million for skills and commercialisation programmes.
techUK welcomed the announcement, noting that the UK is already home to 11% of the world’s quantum startups and has attracted 12% of global quantum private equity investment.
The trade association highlighted the ProQure procurement programme as a step in the right direction, but cautioned that sustained, long-term private investment will be essential to support deep-tech companies through lengthy development cycles.
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