Nandini Roy Choudhury, writer
Brief news
- ServiceNow plans to invest $1.5 billion in the UK over five years, expanding operations and workforce while localizing data processing for AI models.
- CoreWeave will invest £750 million to enhance AI infrastructure, following a previous £1 billion commitment.
- U.S. tech firms, including CyrusOne and CloudHQ, are investing billions in the UK, reflecting confidence in the country’s AI innovation potential.
Detailed news
In a demonstration of confidence in Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s efforts to attract foreign investment, enterprise software colossus ServiceNow and AI-focused startup CoreWeave have announced their intention to invest billions of dollars in the United Kingdom.
In order to expand its operations in the United Kingdom, ServiceNow has announced that it would make an investment of $1.5 billion over the next five years. The firm, which is headquartered in the United States, intends to extend its presence in the United Kingdom by acquiring additional office space and increasing its workforce beyond the current 1,000 employees.
Additionally, ServiceNow stated that it will contribute the funds to the localization of the processing of data for its large language models (LLMs). LLMs are artificial intelligence models that require a substantial amount of training data in order to comprehend and create text in a manner that is comparable to that of a human.
The company announced that it would install Nvidia GPUs (graphics processing units) in its data centers in London and Newport, Wales, to facilitate the processing of data on its LLMs in the United Kingdom. ServiceNow stated that this will facilitate the development of “domain-specific LLMs” for U.K. clients and governments.
In Europe, there has been a growing demand for “AI sovereignty” among policymakers and regulators. This concept proposes that the technologies and data that undergird sophisticated artificial intelligence systems should be stored in Europe, thereby more precisely reflecting the culture and history of Europeans.
CoreWeave, a cloud computing firm that rents out expensive GPUs to developers seeking to train and run large AI models, has announced that it will invest £750 million ($978.6 million) in the United Kingdom to support the demand for AI infrastructure. This is the company’s second significant investment in the country, following a £1 billion commitment in May.
In the interim, two data center operators from the United States also disclosed their intention to allocate billions of dollars to the United Kingdom. CyrusOne, a company, has announced its intention to increase its investment in the country to £2.5 billion in the coming years. CloudHQ, on the other hand, has committed to the development of a new £1.9 billion data center campus in Didcot, Oxfordshire.
The U.K. government has reported that the cloud infrastructure investments comprise £6.3 billion.
In a statement issued on Monday, U.K. Technology Minister Peter Kyle stated, “Today’s drumbeat of investment is a vote of confidence in Britain and our approach to working with business to deliver sustained growth for all.”
Upskilling initiatives
ServiceNow also announced its intention to provide new skills programs in the United Kingdom, which will benefit 240,000 individuals.
“The United Kingdom is adopting technology transformation on a large scale.” Bill McDermott, CEO of ServiceNow, stated in a statement on Monday that the nation remains a global leader in fostering innovation for the benefit of all its communities in the current era of AI.
“Our investment expedites the United Kingdom’s efforts to implement AI, thereby enhancing societal bonds, enriching experiences, and empowering individuals.” A future in which technology benefits all is being delivered by ServiceNow and our customers throughout the United Kingdom.
Keir Starmer, the leader of the United Kingdom, is scheduled to convene 300 business executives at the International Investment Summit to promote foreign investment. The pronouncements were made as part of this event.
ServiceNow, CoreWeave, CyrusOne, and CloudHQ are not the sole U.S. technology companies that are placing significant bets on the United Kingdom as a global hub for AI innovation. Salesforce inaugurated its inaugural global AI center in London earlier this year. The facility is being employed to facilitate artificial intelligence training and upskilling programs, as well as to foster industry collaboration.
In June of last year, Salesforce committed to make a $4 billion investment in the U.K. over the course of five years, which includes the AI center.
Source : CNBC News
