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Barnsley named UK’s first tech town as US firms join AI push
Summary
The technology secretary anointed Barnsley as the UK's first 'tech town', and the article reports Microsoft, Google, Cisco and Adobe will help apply AI across schools, health services and local businesses in the area.
Content
Barnsley has been announced as the UK’s first "tech town" in a government initiative to explore how AI can be used in everyday public services and local business. The technology secretary, Liz Kendall, presented the town as a testbed for applying AI in schools, hospitals, GP services and workplaces. The article reports that Microsoft, Google, Cisco and Adobe have agreed to help with those efforts, and Barnsley council and local organisations have already trialled some AI tools. Local leaders and residents have welcomed investment while expressing concerns about practical priorities and the effects of AI.
Key facts:
- The technology secretary described Barnsley as a trailblazer for demonstrating how AI can improve everyday life.
- The article reports Microsoft, Google, Cisco and Adobe will support applying AI in schools, health services, GPs and local businesses.
- Barnsley council has used AI assistants in adult social care and children’s services and fitted bin lorries with tech to scan for potholes.
- Trials in the area include hospital check-in and triage testing, AI in colleges and a parcel firm piloting delivery robots.
- Local leaders said the council will not pay the companies, and wider funding arrangements were described as not yet confirmed.
- Critics have pointed to local anxieties about AI and to recent controversy over the national AI training programme’s links with major tech providers.
Summary:
The initiative aims to test AI tools and training in a post-industrial town with existing local trials and to use lessons from Barnsley to inform any wider rollout across the UK. Local officials and opposition figures agree the programme is significant for the town but say questions remain about funding, oversight and community concerns. Undetermined at this time.
