UK government sets out $800 million of AI security funding

LONDON, Oct 24 (Reuters) Britain s government set out around £600 million ($800 million)of funding on Saturday largely geared towards defending against health and security threats from artificial ​intelligence. The biggest chunk of funding will go to ‌a new biosecurity initiative, including £100 million for a laboratory using AI to detect biological threats and £65 million to develop countermeasures against pathogens. AI minister Kanishka Narayan said the aim was for the AI Biosecurity ‌Lab ​to become a major global institution bringing ⁠together world-leading scientific expertise to ⁠protect people from emerging biological threats . • Tech companies OpenAI and Anthropic will offer up to £200 million of model credits to the biosecurity initiative • Google Deepmind and London-based ​AI life sciences startup Basecamp Research will offer other assistance • Britain s government will give its existing AI Security ⁠Institute an extra £120 million • £130 million ⁠will go towards new projec