The UK government announced a new programme of industry-funded AI Masters courses coupled with work-based placements designed to drive growth and productivity and create high-skilled jobs.

The programme will see thousands of graduates become qualified experts in artificial intelligence.

The new skills and talent package is a major milestone of the modern Industrial Strategy’s AI Sector Deal which was launched in April 2018.

It is supported by industry funding and up to £110 million government investment, including up to 200 new AI Masters places at UK universities funded by companies such as DeepMind, QuantumBlack, Cisco and BAE Systems. The Masters programme marks the first nationwide effort to address the skills gap at this level, in collaboration with the Institute of Coding and British Computer Society.

Furthermore, 1,000 students will have the opportunity to enhance their skills with new PhDs at 16 dedicated UK Research and Innovation AI Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs), located across the country. The government also announced up to 5 AI research Fellowships, created in collaboration with The Alan Turing Institute to both attract and retain the best research talent from around the world.

Business Secretary Greg Clark, commented, “This AI skills and talent investment will help nurture leading UK and international talent to ensure we retain our world-beating reputation in research and development.”

“Artificial intelligence has great potential to drive up productivity and enhance every industry throughout our economy, from more effective disease diagnosis to building smart homes. Today’s announcement is our modern Industrial Strategy in action, investing in skills and talent to drive high skilled jobs, growth and productivity across the UK,” Clark said.

The programme is aimed at people of different stages in higher education and available to researchers at a variety of levels, helps to build advanced AI skills at all levels, a key commitment contained within the AI Sector Deal.

A number of companies have already committed their early support to collectively fund up to 50 of these additional places and work-based placements.