South Yorkshire becomes ground zero for nationwide experiment with £500K seed funding

AI-pocalypse Barnsley, a town in South Yorkshire, England, best known for coal mining and glassmaking, is being thrust into the limelight as the country's first "Tech Town" – shoehorning AI into everything from local businesses to public services.

According to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT), Barnsley will blaze a trail for the rest of the UK to follow – all in the name of advancing the British government's reliance on AI to improve productivity and make the UK great again (MUKGA).

Local residents could see improved public services, better support in local schools, faster access to NHS care and new opportunities for jobs and skills, DSIT says. Needless to say, the word "could" is doing a lot of heavy lifting here.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said: "If we are going to get AI to work for Britain, we need Britons and British public services that can work ...