The British and Japanese governments are prepping to establish a fund to support startups that develop dual-use technologies in fields like quantum technology, space, drones, and artificial intelligence. According to a report published by Nikkei, the governments are discussing the size of the fund, which could see contributions from both sides, which is going to be a total of one billion yen or 6.23 million dollars.
The fund will be mentioned in a joint declaration on economic security and a document on advanced technology cooperation at Sunday’s Japan-UK summit to be held in London. Along with the summit, Japan’s New energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation, the Japan External Trade Organisation, and the British government’s Innovate UK research funding agency will sign a memorandum of understanding regarding the fund’s establishment. JETRO will aid in matching Japanese and British startups with investors.
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Impact Of The Partnership Between UK And Japan
The impact of the same could be higher than just another startup fund making its way to the market. AI startups in the concerned regions will be getting more capital, especially those working on cybersecurity, logistics optimisation, robotics, and battlefield intelligence. Furthermore, the partnership between the nations will also push AI innovation and higher productivity in different AI related program.
The fund will also give birth to new entities that can give tough competition to China and the US who are the current frontrunners in the artificial intelligence domain. Japan has been focusing on building a dual-use startup ecosystem that can work as a connecting link between commercial firms and defense agencies. It can be said that both countries are going to benefit from this collaborative fund, primarily on the AI front and in the AI race. All in all, it will be interesting to see how the partnership pans out in the future.
