Category: Press Releases

The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 3 February 2026.

Scotland will host a new AI Growth Zone in Lanarkshire, supporting more than 3,400 jobs and helping drive economic growth as part of the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy.

• Scotland to host new AI Growth Zone – a key pillar of the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy – creating 3,400 highvalue jobs and boosting wages across the region over the coming years
• Strong links with universities and businesses to open new collaborations, as the delivery of dozens of apprenticeships to support the next generation of Scottish AI talent. 
• £8.2 billion in private investment committed with an additional £540 million to support the local community, help tackle the cost of living, and boost jobs
• Demonstrates rapid progress on AI, with over 75% of the AI Opportunities Action Plan already delivered, laying the groundwork for growth and transformed public services. 

Hardworking people in Lanarkshire will have access to the skills and opportunities they need to chase the jobs of the future, as AI is put to work to transform communities and livelihoods.  

Delivered by home-grown data centre company DataVita around their data centre site in Airdrie – and in partnership with AI cloud firm CoreWeave – the Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone announced by the Technology Secretary today (29 January) will bring more than 3,400 jobs over the course of the coming years (note), including delivering 50 apprenticeships to nurture the next generation of Scottish AI expertise.  

Of these jobs, around 800 are expected to focus on the high-paying AI jobs of the future, including everything from AI researchers and coders through to permanent staff who will run and maintain data centres. The rest will be made up of immediate construction jobs, as attention turns to building out the entire site, including data centres, supportive infrastructure, and a renewables park. 

Alongside £8.2 billion in private investment that will drive economic renewal in the local area, a new community fund will inject up to £543 million into support for a range of local programmes over the next 15 years (note). The money will come as a direct result of the work carried out at the site, being raised as data centre capacity comes online.  

From skills and training packages which will give people the tools they need for jobs in and working with AI, through to after-school coding clubs, and support for local charities and foodbanks – this is how the government is ensuring AI is delivering frontline support and opportunity for communities and playing an active role to bring down the cost of living. 

AI Growth Zones are just one of the many commitments the government has delivered one year on from the publication of the AI Opportunities Action Plan. In total the government has met 38 of its 50 commitments (note) with the public able to track progress in detail at a newly published interactive dashboard. 

In the past 12 months, the government has laid the foundations for long-term success, increased its AI computing power tenfold and launched a major skills drive which has already seen over one million free AI courses delivered.   

It is already delivering practical benefits – a third of chest x-rays in the NHS are AI-enabled, while AI is also helping the government function more efficiently by reducing the time taken to identify fraud by 80%. Meanwhile, Extract, the government-backed tool to digitise planning, is expected to be made available to all councils by Spring 2026, with a target to digitise all planning documents by the end of 2026. AI tutoring tools to narrow the attainment gap will also be co-developed this Summer and begin trials at the start of the next academic year. 

The UK AI sector is already the largest in Europe, raising £6 billion in 2025, which is an 80% increase from 2024. 

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:  

Getting on in life should not mean travelling miles from your community for work while struggling to pay the bills at home. 

By bringing billions of pounds of investment into Lanarkshire, we are creating good, wellpaid jobs and funding support that directly helps families with the cost of living.

With strong progress made on our AI Opportunities Action Plan over the past year, now is the time to put our foot on the accelerator and ensure working people feel the benefits in every corner of the UK.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said:   

Today’s announcement is about creating good jobs, backing innovation and making sure the benefits AI will bring can be felt across the community – that’s how the UK government is delivering real change for the people of Scotland. 

From thousands of new jobs and billions in investment through to support for local people and their families, AI Growth Zones are bringing generation-defining opportunity to all corners of the country.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said: 

Seizing the opportunities of AI is vital for getting jobs and growth in every part of the country. 

Our AI growth zones are doing just that – creating new opportunities for local communities and unlocking investment so businesses can grow and scale up, building an economy that works for working people.

Scotland Office Minister Kirsty McNeill said: 

North Lanarkshire’s proud industrial heritage helped power Britain through the last century – from coal and steel to manufacturing. Today, we’re writing the next chapter, as this community becomes home to an advanced AI site. The area will once again be at the very heart of Scotland’s and Britain’s industrial story. 

This is the UK government’s economic growth in action. Scotland’s AI Growth Zone, backed by £5 million of UK government investment will create more than 3,400 jobs and attract billions in investment. With 5 AI Growth Zones now across the UK, we are cementing our position as Europe’s leading tech sector. 

The UK government’s AI Growth Zone will bring new industries, good jobs and fresh opportunities to North Lanarkshire, but also boost the economy of the whole of central Scotland.

Danny Quinn, Managing Director of DataVita, said: 

Scotland has everything AI needs, the talent, the green energy, and now the infrastructure. But this goes beyond the physical buildings

We’re creating innovation parks, new energy infrastructure, and attracting inward investment from some of the world’s leading technology companies. This is a massive opportunity for North Lanarkshire & Scotland, and we want to make sure local people share in it.

The £543 million community fund means the benefits stay here, good jobs, new skills, and investment that actually reaches the people who live and work in this area.

Ben Richardson, Managing Director of CoreWeave International, said: 

The Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone marks a meaningful step in moving the UK from AI ambition into AI in production.

We’re proud to make this £1.5 billion investment with DataVita, delivering a production-grade AI cloud designed to run, scale, and evolve as AI becomes embedded across the economy.

That long-term approach is what supports economic growth and strengthens the UK’s position in AI.

Bolstering the benefits for local communities even further, DataVita’s parent company HFD Group will also contribute a separate £1 million per year towards local charities and community groups.  

When completed, Lanarkshire will be one of the most advanced AI sites anywhere in the world, with DataVita planning to include the generation of more than 500MW of on-site power to drive AI breakthroughs in the next 4 years.  

It will also explore cutting-edge solutions to one of the most pressing challenges facing AI – energy consumption. The energy powering this new Growth Zone will be drawn from on-site renewables, while excess heat – produced by cooling systems as they keep cutting-edge computers and tech in top working order – will also be put to good use. Once the site is fully up and running, plans will be explored to see this excess heat re-directed to power the nearby University Hospital Monklands – Scotland’s first fully digital and Net Zero hospital.   

Being in striking distance of land ripe for development for solar and wind power source will help to ensure the UK can realise its AI ambitions without compromising on its clean energy superpower mission. This is a pioneering new approach to AI development – harnessing renewable energy to power advances in the technology while ensuring those benefits always filter down to benefit local communities.  

CoreWeave will be one of the key backers of the site, rolling out cutting edge NVIDIA GPU chips so researchers and innovators can power their work. This deployment will be part of the £2.5 billion investment the company has made to AI projects in the UK.   

It joins a stable of 5 AI Growth Zones announced in the 12 months since the launch of the AI Opportunities Action Plan, joining Oxfordshire, North and South Wales, and the North East of England as jewels in the UK’s AI Crown. All told, AI Growth Zone announcements over the last 12 months have been bolstered by commitments to add up to 15,000 jobs for local communities, and at least £28.2 billion in private investment (note).     

The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 3 February 2026.

Barnsley named UK’s first Tech Town – with local schools and college, businesses, NHS and more getting bespoke government support to unleash opportunities of AI.

• Barnsley named UK’s first Tech Town – with local schools and college, businesses, NHS and more getting bespoke government support to unleash opportunities of AI 
• Delivers on town’s ambitions to put AI to work in overhauling public services and business, blazing a trail for the rest of the UK to follow
• Leading firms including Microsoft, Cisco, Adobe and Google back the plans and pledge to support local people’s access to jobs of the future
• Follows launch of free AI training for all as part of commitment to upskill 10 million UK workers, naming of Lanarkshire as latest AI Growth Zone, and £36 million investment into AI Research Resource supercomputer

People across Barnsley could see improved public services, better support in local schools, quicker NHS care and new opportunities for jobs and skills as it becomes the UK’s first government backed Tech Town.   

Announced today (Tuesday 3 February), Technology Secretary Liz Kendall has set out plans to put the full heft of government behind the town’s rollout of AI across everything from education to health and more.   

Tech Town status will position Barnsley as the UK’s trailblazer, acting as a national blueprint for how AI can improve everyday life. From AI tools that help GPs triage patients quicker, to new digital training for adults – today marks the start of a transformation designed to make like easier, fairer and more prosperous in Barnsley.    

Over the next 18 months, government will work closely with local business leaders, educators, NHS workers and more to build local talent who can access the jobs of the future, and make local services fit for the AI era. Unleashing AI’s potential to turbo-charge how we learn and upskill is a central part of Barnsley’s regeneration plans, and the government’s ambitions for the UK overall too. Barnsley is set to forge a path the rest of the country, could follow – one that makes sure communities left behind by the economic changes of the 20th century, can seize the benefits of the 21st.  

This will include:   

• free AI and digital training – working with Barnsley College and the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology, residents will be able to take part in free courses to boost their career, retrain or simply learn something new
• help to increase AI adoption – expanding the Seam Digital Campus to give small and growing businesses hands‑on support to use new technology, scale up and create good local jobs. The Seam is already home to 33 digital businesses, with plans for it to become an AI Campus based around a new National Centre for Digital Technologies
• innovating in healthcare – partnering with Barnsley Hospital to test AI tools that offer quicker check-ins, faster triage and smoother outpatient care – providing a better service and freeing up NHS workers to focus on what they do best
• tools to support teaching and learning –testing AI and edtech tools in schools and Barnsley College, to improve evidence of the impact of technology on pupil outcomes, inclusion and reducing teacher workload
• building the right infrastructure – planning how the town will use technology better like public buildings and Wi‑Fi, as well as adding strong cybersecurity so people can use digital services with confidence and boosting connectivity

Government will use its convening power to get leading tech companies involved in this work in Barnsley, with Microsoft and Cisco’s UK CEOs joining Kendall on a visit to Barnsley, to see the town’s digital and AI ambitions first-hand. Leading tech firms including Cisco, Microsoft, Adobe and Google are backing the plans – with all 3 pledging a package of initiatives to boost Barnsley’s AI and digital talent, so that people of all ages can build the skills that will help them access the jobs of the future in growing tech industries. Key local organisations like Barnsley and Rotherham Chamber of Commerce and Barnsley CVS are also set to partner the Tech Town initiative. 

This follows a raft of government action last week to unleash AI’s potential as a force for national renewal: from the launch of free AI training for all as part of commitment to upskill 10 million UK workers, to the naming of Lanarkshire as the latest AI Growth Zone, as well as a £36 million investment to upgrade the AI Research Resource supercomputer in Cambridge. 

Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said:  

I am delighted to have been invited by Barnsley, to work with them to achieve their ambition to become the UK’s leading tech town.

If we are going to get AI to work for Britain, we need Britons and British public services that can work with AI. That is why Barnsley’s ambitions are crucial, because if we can show that AI helps young people learn, supports local businesses to be more productive, and improves public services, then we can show what’s possible for the whole country.  

What we learn here will shape how we roll out AI across the UK – making sure every community sees the benefits.

Barnsley Council Leader Sir Stephen Houghton CBE said:  

One of the key missions in our Inclusive Economic Growth Strategy is for Barnsley to become the UK’s leading digital town. Welcoming the Secretary of State to Barnsley to announce that we are the UK’s first Tech Town underlines our ambition and commitment to innovation which will benefit our residents, businesses and partners. This is one of the most important investments in Barnsley in our history and will help secure our long-term economic future. 

The Tech Town programme is where cutting-edge technology meets everyday usefulness. It will complement our existing plans at The Seam Digital Campus, including the National Centre for Digital Technologies, and the Health on the High Street programme, which is revolutionising how residents can access health and wellbeing services in Barnsley. 

We’re looking forward to working with colleagues from DSIT, our residents and our partners to shape the programme to create safer, smarter public services and new opportunities for everyone to thrive in the emerging and fast-paced AI landscape, blazing a trail for the rest of the country to follow. 

South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard, said: 

Thanks in no small part to work being led by Steve Houghton and Barnsley Council, we’re building a bigger, better economy in South Yorkshire, creating jobs and opportunities in the industries that will define the next generation and beyond. 

That’s why the government have recognised Barnsley as the UK’s first Tech Town. Because we have already built a thriving digital ecosystem, from The Seam Digital Campus and the growing cluster of digital and creative businesses, to the cutting edge training at Barnsley College and the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology. Barnsley has all the foundations of a modern, thriving tech economy. 

This is a place that is driving real change across our region. Being recognised as the first Tech Town in the UK both reflects and reinforces that momentum, strengthening South Yorkshire’s position as one of the most exciting tech communities in the country.

UK government AI Ambassador, and 2024 Nobel Prize Winner for Economics, Simon Johnson said:  

AI is changing everything, and the opportunities are massive. We have to make sure that everyone, wherever they live and whatever their background, gets to feel the benefits.  

But that will only happen with ordinary people in the driving seat. That’s why what’s happening in Barnsley is going to be critical, to the whole country’s AI aspirations. By putting this technology into the hands of local people, working to improve their town, Barnsley can guide us to an AI-powered future that puts people and their families first, and that builds stronger communities. 

Naming Barnsley as the UK’s first Tech Town is about putting local residents in the driving seat. Over the coming months, they will be invited to a series of “Tech Town Halls” – giving local people a real say in how AI is used across the community and an opportunity to feedback their experience of using the technology.   

Barnsley is already embracing AI and other technologies to improve people’s lives. Delivery company EVRi recently trialled robot delivery dogs in the town, it is one of the first UK councils to roll out Copilot at scale and it is being used to support overstretched social care teams from paperwork.   

Becoming a Tech Town will help take these bold ambitions to the next level. Just last month the government announced plans to make safe AI-powered tutoring tools available to up to 450,000 children in a bid to level the playing field for disadvantaged pupils. Trials will start in summer this year with a number of schools in Barnsley being considered.  

While Barnsley’s Seam Digital Campus is set to be expanded into an AI campus; to help local firms make use of AI, to link them with universities and investors, and to help build a pipeline of local skilled tech talent.  

Becoming a Tech Town will help take these bold ambitions to the next level. Just last month the government announced plans to co-design and trial safe AI-powered tutoring tools in schools. These tools could support up to 450,000 disadvantaged children; levelling the playing field for those who cannot afford private tutors. The co-design will start in the summer term this year with schools in Barnsley being considered.   

Support for Barnsley Tech Town

Nathan Hancock, Vice President and MD, Adobe UK, Ireland and Middle East, said: 

AI is reshaping businesses, industries and the economy at a rapid pace, but it will only reach its full potential if skills and training programmes are accessible and delivered in partnership with industry to meet the real-world needs of businesses today.  

By partnering with the government on the Tech Town initiative, we will bring the best of Adobe’s AI-driven tools, skilling and education programmes to the community, accelerating innovation and creativity, transforming careers and creating a talent hub in Barnsley that supports the UK’s ambition of becoming a leading AI economy.

Sarah Walker, Chief Executive, Cisco UK and Ireland, said: 

AI is set to be more transformative than the advent of the Internet. But to really matter to our citizens today, it must translate locally. That’s exactly what this first government-backed Tech Town is designed to deliver. How AI can be applied in real places, for real people, to make everyday life and work better. Whether that’s a parent being able to book childcare more easily, or a small business finding the confidence to hire and grow. 

 >Together with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and local leaders, we are excited to support Barnsley showcasing how towns across the UK can turn AI innovation into visible improvements in people’s lives, prospects and public services.

Barnsley College CEO and Principal, David Akeroyd, said: 

Being named the UK’s first government‑backed Tech Town is a significant moment for Barnsley, and Barnsley College is proud to be at the heart of this ambition. 

This work reflects the long-standing commitment, vision, expertise and dedication of the College and our partners, who continue to push boundaries and provide a sector-leading digital curriculum to ensure our community can build the skills needed for an AI‑enabled future. 

Together, we are creating new opportunities for people across Barnsley, opportunities that will shape lives, strengthen our economy, and open the door to a more innovative and prosperous future.

Notes to editors

Barnsley Tech Town supports Barnsley 2030: Barnsley Council’s long-term plan to build a prosperous, better, fairer and more inclusive town.  

As part of Barnsley’s ambition to become the UK’s leading digital town, work is already well underway delivering the Seam Digital Campus, part of the South Yorkshire Investment Zone, which is home to DMC: an innovation space for digital and creative scale-ups. This is where the forthcoming National Centre for Digital Technologies will be based.  

The £15 million Barnsley campus of the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology is also already up and running, offering a state-of-the-art learning environment that replicates industry conditions and uses the latest equipment