The UK wants to do its ‘own thing’ on AI regulation, suggesting a divergence from U.S. and EU
Jaque Silva | Nurphoto | Getty Images
LONDON — The U.K. says it wants to do its “own thing” when it comes to regulating artificial intelligence, hinting at a possible divergence from approaches taken by its main Western peers.
“It’s really important that we as the U.K. do our own thing when it comes to regulation,” Feryal Clark, Britain’s minister for AI and digital government, told CNBC in an interview that aired Tuesday.
She added the government already has a “good relationship” with AI companies like OpenAI and Google DeepMind, which have voluntarily opened their models up to the government for safety testing purposes.
“It’s really important that we bake in that safety right at the beginning when models are being developed … and that’s why we’ll be working with the sector on any safety measures that come forward,” Clark added.
Her comments echoed remarks from Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday that Britain has “freedom now in relation to the regulation to do it in a way that we think is best for the U.K.” after Brexit.
“You’ve got different models around the world, you’ve got the EU approach and the U.S. approach – but we have the ability to choose the one that we think is in our best interest and we intend to do so,” Starmer said in response to a reporter’s question after announcing a 50-point plan to make the U.K. a global leader in AI.
Divergence from the U.S., EU
So far, Britain has refrained from introducing formal laws to regulate AI, instead deferring to individual regulatory bodies to enforce existing rules on businesses when it comes to the development and use of AI.
This is different from the EU, which has introduced comprehensive, pan-European legislation aimed at harmonizing rules for the technology across the bloc taking a risk-based approach to regulation.
The U.S., meanwhile, lacks any AI regulation whatsoever at a federal level and has instead adopted a patchwork of regulatory frameworks at the state and local level.
During Starmer’s election campaign last year, the Labour Party committed in its manifesto to introducing regulation focusing on so-called “frontier” AI models — referring to large language models like OpenAI’s GPT.
However, so far, the U.K. is yet to confirm details on proposed AI safety legislation, instead saying it will consult with the industry before proposing formal rules.
“We will be working with the sector to develop that and bring that forward in line with what we said in our manifesto,” Clark told CNBC.
Chris Mooney, partner and head of commercial at London-based law firm Marriott Harrison, told CNBC that the U.K. is taking a “wait and see” approach to AI regulation even as the EU is forging ahead with its AI Act.
“While the U.K. government says it has taken a ‘pro-innovation’ approach to AI regulation, our experience of working with clients is that they find the current position uncertain and, therefore, unsatisfactory,” Mooney told CNBC via email.
One area Starmer’s government has spoken up on reforming rules for AI has been around copyright.
Late last year, the U.K. opened a consultation reviewing the country’s copyright framework to assess possible exceptions to existing rules for AI developers using artists and media publishers’ works to train their models.
Businesses left uncertain
Sachin Dev Duggal, CEO of London-headquartered AI startup Builder.ai, told CNBC that, although the government’s AI action plan “shows ambition,” proceeding without clear rules is “borderline reckless.”
“We’ve already missed crucial regulatory windows twice — first with cloud computing and then with social media,” Duggal said. “We cannot afford to make the same mistake with AI, where the stakes are exponentially higher.”
“The U.K.’s data is our crown jewel; it should be leveraged to build sovereign AI capabilities and create British success stories, not simply fuel overseas algorithms that we can’t effectively regulate or control,” he added.
Details of Labour’s plans for AI legislation were initially expected to appear in King Charles III’s speech opening U.K. Parliament last year.
However, the government only committed to establishing “appropriate legislation” on the most powerful AI models.
“The U.K. government needs to provide clarity here,” John Buyers, international head of AI at law firm Osborne Clarke, told CNBC, adding he’s learned from sources that a consultation for formal AI safety laws is “waiting to be released.”
“By issuing consultations and plans on a piecemeal basis, the U.K. has missed the opportunity to provide a holistic view of where its AI economy is heading,” he said, adding that failure to disclose details of new AI safety laws would lead to investor uncertainty.
Still, some figures in the U.K. tech scene think that a more relaxed, flexible approach to regulating AI may be the right one.
“From recent discussions with the government, it is clear that considerable efforts are underway on AI safeguards,” Russ Shaw, founder of advocacy group Tech London Advocates, told CNBC.
He added that the U.K is well positioned to adopt a “third way” on AI safety and regulation — “sector-specific” regulations that rules to different industries like financial services and health care.
Technology
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A Waymo autonomous self-driving Jaguar electric vehicle sits parked at an EVgo charging station in Los Angeles, California, on May 15, 2024.
Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty Images
Waymo said it will begin testing in Philadelphia, with a limited fleet of vehicles and human safety drivers behind the wheel.
“This city is a National Treasure,” Waymo wrote in a post on X on Monday. “It’s a city of love, where eagles fly with a gritty spirit and cheese that spreads and cheese that steaks. Our road trip continues to Philly next.”
The Alphabet-owned company confirmed to CNBC that it will be testing in Pennsylvania’s largest city through the fall, adding that the initial fleet of cars will be manually driven through the more complex parts of Philadelphia, including downtown and on freeways.
“Folks will see our vehicles driving at all hours throughout various neighborhoods, from North Central to Eastwick, and from University City to as far east as the Delaware River,” a Waymo spokesperson said.
With its so-called road trips, Waymo seeks to collect mapping data and evaluate how its autonomous technology, Waymo Driver, performs in new environments, handling traffic patterns and local infrastructure. Road trips are often used a way for the company to gauge whether it can potentially offer a paid ride share service in a particular location.
The expanded testing, which will go through the fall, comes as Waymo aims for a broader rollout. Last month, the company announced plans to drive vehicles manually in New York for testing, marking the first step toward potentially cracking the largest U.S. city. Waymo applied for a permit with the New York City Department of Transportation to operate autonomously with a trained specialist behind the wheel in Manhattan. State law currently doesn’t allow for such driverless operations.
Waymo One provides more than 250,000 paid trips each week across Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin, Texas, and is preparing to bring fully autonomous rides to Atlanta, Miami, and Washington, D.C., in 2026.
Alphabet has been under pressure to monetize artificial intelligence products as it bolsters spending on infrastructure. Alphabet’s “Other Bets” segment, which includes Waymo, brought in revenue of $1.65 billion in 2024, up from $1.53 billion in 2023. However, the segment lost $4.44 billion last year, compared to a loss of $4.09 billion the previous year.
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