The leader of the organization behind ChatGpt and the UK’s tech secretary recently engaged in discussions about a multi-billion-pound initiative to offer premium AI tool access across the nation, as reported by The Guardian.

Sam Altman, OpenAI’s co-founder, had conversations with Peter Kyle regarding a potential arrangement that would enable UK residents to utilize its sophisticated products.

Informed sources indicate that this concept emerged during a broader dialogue about the collaborative opportunities between OpenAI and the UK while in San Francisco.

Individuals familiar with the talks noted that Kyle was somewhat skeptical about the proposal, largely due to the estimated £2 billion cost. Nonetheless, the exchange reflects the Technology Secretary’s willingness to engage with the AI sector, despite prevailing concerns regarding the accuracy of various chatbots and issues surrounding privacy and copyright.

OpenAI provides both free and subscription versions of ChatGPT, with the paid ChatGPT Plus version costing $20 per month. This subscription offers quicker response times and priority access to new features for its users.

According to transparency data from the UK government, Kyle dined with Altman in March and April. In July, he formalized an agreement with OpenAI to incorporate AI into public services throughout the UK. These non-binding agreements could grant OpenAI access to government data and potential applications in education, defense, security, and justice sectors.

Kyle is a prominent advocate for AI within the government and incorporates its use into his role. In March, it was revealed he consulted ChatGPT for insights on job-related inquiries, including barriers to AI adoption among British companies and his podcast appearances.

The minister expressed in January to Politicshome:

The UK stands among OpenAI’s top five markets for paid ChatGPT subscriptions. An OpenAI spokesperson mentioned: [a memorandum of understanding] aims to assess how the government can facilitate AI growth in the UK.

“In line with the government’s vision of leveraging this technology to create economic opportunities for everyday individuals, our shared objective is to democratize AI access. The wider the reach, the greater the benefits for everyone.”

Recently, the company has been in talks with several governments, securing a contract with the UAE for using technology in public sectors like transportation, healthcare, and education to enable nationwide ChatGPT adoption.

The UK government is eager to draw AI investment from the USA, having established a deal with OpenAI’s competitor Google earlier this year.

Kyle stated that in the next ten years, the establishment of a new UN Security Council will be significantly influenced by technology, especially AI, which he believes will play a fundamental role in determining global power dynamics.

Similar to other generative AI tools, ChatGPT is capable of generating text, images, videos, and music upon receiving user prompts. This functionality raises concerns about potential copyright violations, and the technology has faced criticism for disseminating false information and offering poor advice.

The minister has expressed support for planned amendments to copyright law that would permit AI companies to utilize copyrighted materials for model training, unless the copyright holder explicitly opts out.

The consultations and reviews by the government have sparked claims from creative sectors that the current administration is too aligned with major tech companies.

Ukai, the UK’s foremost trade organization for the AI industry, has repeatedly contended that the government’s strategy is overly concentrated on large tech players, neglecting smaller entities.

A government representative stated, “We are not aware of these allegations. We are collaborating with OpenAI and other leading AI firms to explore investment in UK infrastructure, enhancing public services, and rigorously testing the security of emerging technologies before their introduction.”

The Science and Technology Division clarified that discussions regarding the accessibility of ChatGPT Plus to UK residents have not advanced, nor have they conferred with other departments on the matter.