UK Signals Shift to "AI Producer Nation"... Sends SOS to Nvidia's Jensen Huang

Keir Starmer, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Photo by AFP Yonhap News

The United Kingdom, which has announced its intention to transform into an "AI producer nation," has joined forces with Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia. The UK will receive support from Nvidia in advancing its lagging AI technology and talent development, while Nvidia is set to supply at least 14,000 units of its latest semiconductor chip, "Blackwell," to British companies.

According to Bloomberg News, on June 8 (local time), the UK government unveiled its economic growth strategy centered on AI technology at "London Tech Week" in London, together with CEO Jensen Huang. This serves as a roadmap to realize Prime Minister Keir Starmer's ambition to shift the UK from an "AI consumer nation" to an "AI producer nation."

On this day, the UK government formalized an agreement in which Nvidia will support the training of AI talent and the expansion of research within the UK. By strengthening collaboration between Nvidia's AI research centers in the UK and British universities, the program will provide practical, hands-on AI education. Nvidia also plans to launch the UK's first "Sovereign AI Industry Forum" in partnership with British companies such as Babcock and Standard Chartered (SC).

This AI education program is part of the UK government's broader science and technology investment plan, which totals 86 billion pounds (158 trillion won). Alongside pharmaceuticals, green energy, and military technology, the plan places a strong emphasis on fostering AI technology. The government intends to allocate 187 million pounds (approximately 345 billion won) specifically for AI education. Despite facing fiscal pressures and implementing austerity measures, the Starmer administration is determined to pursue high growth through technological investment.

Conversely, for Nvidia, this partnership secures a sales network for its new Blackwell chip. Although the UK has led as the top AI nation in Europe, it has faced growth limitations due to a lack of infrastructure capable of supplying stable power, such as London data centers. Through this collaboration, British cloud infrastructure company Nscale and European firm Nevious are expected to receive a total of more than 14,000 Blackwell GPUs.

Amid intensifying global competition for AI sovereignty, governments around the world are increasingly seeking partnerships with Nvidia. The US-based company has recently strengthened cooperation with AI alliance nations centered around the West, including the UK, Japan, France, Singapore, and Israel. In addition, Nvidia is working closely with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Middle Eastern country, through the state-owned company G42.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.