German IT company invests 350 million pounds in AI development in the UK

26 October, 2024 A British soldier with the RAS system. Photo credits: MoD UK A German IT company is investing 350 million pounds in the UK Ministry of Defence to develop Artificial Intelligence for military use.

This was reported by Hartpunkt. The investment in the development of British military Artificial Intelligence was announced after the signing of the Trinity House agreement on expanding defense and arms cooperation between the UK and Germany. The funding will be provided by the German company Helsing, which also has a branch in the United Kingdom called Helsing UK which creates software for the development of Artificial Intelligence.

Gundbert Scherf, co-founder and co-executive director of Helsing, and Amelia Gould, managing director of Helsing UK, met with John Healey MP. Photo credits: Helsing.

This private funding will provide the UK Ministry of Defence with a more stable foundation to continue the development of military Artificial Intelligence, which, according to Helsing's CEO, has now reached a new level. The funds invested will be used to expand software and hardware infrastructure to ensure that the British and German Armed Forces are quickly armed and prepared for further scaling of development.

"This shows how our historic Anglo-German defence deal can help develop our defence industry, create high competency jobs and boost economic growth," said John Healey, UK Secretary of State for Defence. In addition, the investment should ensure the creation of appropriate software that can be used by the Ukrainian Defense Forces for more effective troop management, early warning systems, etc.

"I know about the work of Helsing from my visits to Ukraine, and I am very pleased that they are investing in the latest technologies to modernize the Armed Forces of our two countries," said Boris Pistorius, German Minister of Defense. In addition, Artificial Intelligence should improve the capabilities of anti-submarine systems of European countries and ensure the improvement of detection and identification systems, which today in most cases involves decryption specialists. As part of the recently signed Trinity House agreement, the UK and Germany plan to cooperate in the development of advanced unmanned aerial systems (UAVs).

The agreement is aimed at ensuring interoperability between the future combat air systems and strengthening military cooperation.