The UK risks a “long, slow death” of its economic engines if businesses continue to trail international rivals in adopting artificial intelligence, according to Matt Clifford, the prime minister’s former AI adviser.
Clifford, who also chairs the Advanced Research and Invention Agency (Aria), said Britain is guilty of “dangerous complacency” despite its reputation as a hub for technology and innovation.
Speaking at the Royal Television Society’s conference in Cambridge, Clifford warned that sectors where Britain has clear strengths, such as life sciences, financial services and media, could lose their edge if firms remain slow to integrate AI. “We kid ourselves that, because we have some good tech firms, Britain is good at tech,” he said. “The truth is we’re probably the worst adopter of new technology in the developed world.”
A government review earlier this year found that AI could add £47 billion annually to the UK economy over the next decade, boosting productivity by 1.5% each year if adopted widely and safely. Yet adoption remains patchy. Only 8% of manufacturers had deployed AI or machine learning, while most creative industry companies were considered too small to commit significant capital. In life sciences, limited access to high-quality health data has slowed innovation. The review concluded that the main barriers are high upfront costs, lack of workforce skills, poor information on use-cases, and regulatory uncertainty.
A spokesman for the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology said the government is working with industry to train a fifth of the UK workforce in AI by 2030. It is also appointing “AI sector champions” and implementing an action plan to break down barriers to adoption.
Separate research highlighted infrastructure as another pressing challenge. A survey of FTSE 250 executives by the Energy Networks Association found that nearly nine in ten believed upgrading the national grid was essential for unlocking growth in high-demand industries such as AI. Eight in ten warned the UK would be unable to compete globally without reliable, high-capacity power for data centres.
Clifford’s warning underlines a growing consensus that Britain’s research strength and entrepreneurial talent risk being undermined by weak execution. Unless adoption accelerates and infrastructure improves, the UK could lose market share in industries already being rapidly reshaped by artificial intelligence.
