The UK Government plans to use AI to fix potholes. Non-executive directors will have to plan for the potholes AI can cause.

AI is already back on the UK's news agenda. In a speech yesterday, Kier Starmer laid out his plans to "unleash" AI to encourage ecomonic growth and position Britain as an 'AI superpower' to rival the United States and China.

The "AI Opportunities Action Plan", as it is called, proposes multiple new uses for AI technology across the public sector - including analysing camera footage to find potholes - and is reportedly backed by £14bn of investment capital for new projects like building high-demand data centres. Later in the day, it was also announced that the UK has been exempted from new restrictions the US government has placed on American semiconductor exports, signalling the importance of US-UK collaboration in the race for AI development.

While some commentators have expressed doubts about the feasibility of the government's plans, the Prime Minister's announcement is a sure sign that AI will become ever more integrated into the fabric of the country. AI is already utilised in the public sector - 30,000 teachers have already used a government-developed "teaching assistant" - and it will increasingly be used in schools, hospitals, monitoring systems, and other infrastructure. AI programs will become commonplace, with all the risks and benefits they entail.

More than anything, this news is another reminder of the importance of training high-quality non-executive directors on AI and their responsibilities. As AI becomes part of everyday life, the demand for fully informed NEDs will grow exponentially. This is especially important for those in the public sector - as Dr Nishant Sood laid out in our video on the Nolan Principles, all public sector NEDs, as well as those in the private sector who work with the public sector, need to act in the best interests of the public at all times. They can only do this if they know what potholes to watch out for.