The UK wants to catch up in the global AI race – but is too wary to go all-in

UK fears a ‘triple whammy’: oversized investment in AI stocks, slower adoption of AI than predicted and the breakneck pace of AI’s development Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery, US tech editor at the Guardian. Today, we’re discussing the UK’s difficult position in the AI race, new doubts over OpenAI’s path toward a trillion-dollar stock market debut and the changes to IRL tech reporting in the age of AI. The UK wants a piece of the mammoth global investment in AI but fears it as well. In the coming weeks, the Bank of England is planning to ease capital rules to help encourage more lending. But the central bank simultaneously expressed concerns that there are too many loans going to investors like hedge funds, who are using that money to buy up AI stocks. The central bank’s moves reflect the country’s global position: hoping to catch up to the US and China in the AI race, struggling to mobilize its resources to do so, and too wary of the risks to go full bore. UK banking regulators have recently been under enormous pressure to do more to stimulate growth, my colleague Kalyeena Makortoff this week reports. The relaxed requirements are

Jul 14, 2026 → Jul 24, 2026