Readying for an AI lift-off moment?

This development could be very timely. I get to talk with tech leaders across the UK, and many are still wrestling with the question of how to truly integrate AI into a tech stack that genuinely changes their business. In the Nash Squared/Harvey Nash Digital Leadership Report (DLR) the majority of digital leaders in the UK say their business is still in the piloting or small-scale implementation phase of AI, and two-thirds say they are yet to see demonstrable ROI from their investments.

My sense is that most businesses are still feeling their way – but a breakthrough moment can’t be far away. When one or a few organisations begin to truly rewire their operating models through AI, others will move fast to follow. At that point, access to the right talent will become the defining factor — and our DLR data already shows that AI sits at the very top of the skills shortage list.

UK’s strong tech talent positioning

The UK will be well-placed to attract top talent. We already have a leading position on the global stage, having designed and hosted the inaugural AI Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in 2023 which set the template for subsequent summits in Seoul and Paris. According to the City of London Corporation, the UK is the third largest AI market globally after the U.S. and China, and we lead in Europe with over 55% of all AI-related private investments from VC, PE and angel investors. The government has published its comprehensive AI Opportunities Action Plan to ramp up AI  adoption across the UK, while investment into AI has already hit £44 billion since the government took office. The Tech Prosperity Deal signed recently between the UK and US on the occasion of president Trump’s state visit saw some £31 billion committed by US tech giants including Microsoft, Google and Nvidia to investment to boost the UK’s AI infrastructure.

We also have a strong track record in providing a supportive environment for tech gurus and talented entrepreneurs from around the world to pursue their visions – according to the Entrepreneurs Network, 39% of the UK’s 100 fastest-growing companies have foreign-born founders or co-founders.

We saw in the last decade (2010s) that the UK has the ability to create an innovation-friendly ecosystem when we created the conditions to support fintech businesses and succeeded in attracting significant numbers of highly skilled people to come and work here. London became a breeding ground for a new wave of fintech players.

Another key strength of the UK is our substantial and long-established contracting model which enables talent, skills and learning to be quickly and flexibly deployed across the market. This can help us spread AI and digital expertise as well as enabling an upskilling culture through knowledge transmission.

Opportunity for competing economies

I’ve always seen that opening the door to broader ideas and talent delivers results — it drives innovation, fuels growth, and raises the game for everyone. That’s why I’d strongly encourage the UK government to consider reducing visa fees for highly skilled workers to make it easier to attract top global digital and STEM talent. At the same time, I am very supportive of the government significantly increasing the number of high-skilled foreign worker visas. You can guarantee that other countries are contemplating similar moves – and indeed I’d encourage them to do so as it’s surely a no-brainer for any economy to try to attract the best.

Those that succeed in doing so will feel the benefits ripple across their economies. Opening the door to top global talent doesn’t just fill skills gaps – it creates momentum. High-calibre people attract others like them, help retain existing expertise, and build clusters of innovation and growth. That’s where the magic happens.

Developing and enabling our own talent

We should not only look overseas for talent; we must continue to build and strengthen our own. A balance is required – it’s a case of ‘both/and’, not ‘either/or’. That means evolving our education system to inspire the next generation of technologists, while also investing in the upskilling and reskilling of existing workforces so that people already in industry can adapt and thrive in an AI-driven economy.

History tells us that when a block is removed, the labour market can suddenly flip and a war for talent becomes very real. My feeling is that this could happen in the wake of the H-1B decision – it’s an inflection point that the UK and other economies need to be ready to take advantage of in a fiercely competitive global marketplace.