Announcing the UK and France AI Research Institutes’ collaboration

Title: UK and France to deepen research and AI links following Horizon association

URL Source: https://www.aisi.gov.uk/blog/announcing-the-uk-and-france-ai-research-institutes-collaboration

Markdown Content: French Minister for Higher Education and Research meets DSIT Secretary of State to deepen UK-France research and AI ties £800,000 joint funding announced to support more UK-French bids for research funding, like Horizon Europe UK-France AI partnership builds on plans to work together ahead of the AI Safety Summit that France will host later this year

This includes a commitment to £800,000 in new funding towards joint research efforts both the UK and France are already involved in, such as Horizon Europe, to unlock more UK-France joint bids for grants to support cutting-edge R&D. This could spearhead research that improves lives around the world; under Horizon’s predecessor, British and French experts worked together to bring potential HIV-AIDS vaccines to the clinical trial stage.

They will also announce a landmark new partnership between the UK AI Safety Institute and France’s Inria (The National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology), to jointly support the safe and responsible development of AI technology. This comes ahead of France hosting the next in-person AI Safety Summit later this year, which will build on the historic agreement on frontier AI testing struck between world leaders and businesses at the UK’s world-first Summit, last year.

> The links between the UK and France’s brightest minds are deep and longstanding, from breakthroughs in aerospace to tackling climate change. It is only right that we support our innovators, to unleash the power of their ideas to create jobs and grow businesses in concert with our closest neighbour on the continent. > > > Research is fundamentally collaborative, and alongside our bespoke deal on Horizon Europe, this deepening partnership with France – along with our joint work on AI safety – is another key step in realising the UK’s science superpower ambitions.

New funding to boost research collaboration and a new partnership to further global AI safety are part of measures announced by the UK and France today (Thursday 29 February).

The French Minister for Higher Education and Research Sylvie Retailleau will visit London today for her first face-to-face meeting with Secretary of State Michelle Donelan since the UK’s association to Horizon Europe.

The two ministers will build on the already extensive links between British and French scientists, researchers, and businesses – which historically has led innovations like the Concorde making commercial supersonic flight a reality and the engineering marvel of the Channel Tunnel – by endorsing a joint declaration to strengthen UK-French research ties even further.