Artificial intelligence could put Milton Keynes on a par with San Francisco and Singapore

The report, launched by MK Council and NeuralPath.io, sets out how MK could capitalise on AI to drive business growth and maximise smart city opportunities presented by its rollout of lightning-fast 5G.

The city is in a unique position with popular AI technology such as delivery robots and traffic sensors already in use, a large skilled workforce, major employers already committed to AI projects, and close proximity to world-class research underway in Cambridge, Oxford and London.

The fastest growing city in the country, MK has also been repeatedly voted the UK’s most popular place to do business, states the report.

It’s already taking strides to be a world leader on future technologies and is home to over 6,000 software engineers and 4,000 data engineers.

MK has the world’s largest fleet of autonomous delivery robots and was the UK partner for a three-year trial of driverless autonomous vehicles. In the last year alone, Santander’s has begun its £150m investment into a new innovation centre in Central Milton Keynes and the city has been announced as a testbed for 5G.

The city's undergraduate university will open in 2023 with a focus on jobs in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) economy, including robotics and AI.

Leader of MK Council, Cllr Pete Marland said: “Milton Keynes is proud to be a world-leading hub of new innovative technologies, which already include driverless pods and autonomous robots. This report identifies further exciting opportunities for our city to become a real smart city of the future.”

As part of its multi-million pound Covid-19 Economic Recovery Plan, MK Council is investing £20,000 in an AI Development Programme. This connects business leaders, academics, and individuals to develop AI skills and strengthen networks within the sector.

More details about the programme can be found on the MKAI website here .

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