Technology · 2026-10-24 · Morning briefing

UK to build £100m AI lab to counter biological threats

The UK government will establish a national AI Biosecurity Lab with £100m in funding, announced as part of Wednesday's Budget. The institute, described as a "world first," is designed to strengthen the country's defenses against emerging biological threats enabled by artificial intelligence.

The lab's creation will be supported by leading AI developers OpenAI and Anthropic, which are providing £200m worth of credits for the use of their models. The spending is part of a wider security package that also commits an extra £120m to the UK's AI Security Institute, £60m for a "National Cyber Shield," and £70m for a new vulnerability detection centre. The UK's AI Minister, Kanishka Narayan, described the lab as a "major new global institution" intended to safeguard citizens as AI technology evolves.

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• UK Announces £100M AI Biosecurity Lab to Monitor Emerging Threats
• UK pledges £600m to defend against AI health and security threats
• UK pledges to spend £600m to defend against AI health and security threats
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