UK Says Elite AI Squad Could Speed Up Asylum, Welfare Processes

  • Dowden sees taxpayer money being saved as AI use increases
  • Government plans to hire 20-30 artificial intelligence experts
UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden attends the AI Safety Summit 2023 at Bletchley Park.Photographer: Chris J. Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
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The UK is hiring a “hit squad” of artificial intelligence experts which could speed up government processing of asylum, immigration and welfare claims, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said.

The move is part of a plan by the Cabinet Office, which coordinates government departments, to make public services faster and cut civil service costs. The department proposes to employ between 20 and 30 experts in a so-called “incubator for AI,” at an initial cost of about £5 million ($6.2 million).