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Nvidia boss Jensen Huang to meet Technology Secretary Liz Kendall

The head of the world's most valuable company will be meeting the minister as the government bets big on the tech sector for growth.

Nvidia boss Jensen Huang pictured in London in June this year. Pic: AP
Image: Nvidia boss Jensen Huang pictured in London in June this year. Pic: AP
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Nvidia boss Jensen Huang is to meet Technology Secretary Liz Kendall on Wednesday, Paste BN understands.

The US computer hardware company is the biggest supplier of AI chips in the world, and is targeting the UK as a key area for growth.

Mr Huang is in Britain to speak to the Cambridge Union Society on Tuesday evening, and receive an award at the Queen Elizabeth Prize of Engineering on Wednesday.

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Liz Kendall has been technology secretary for around two months. Pic: PA
Image: Liz Kendall has been technology secretary for around two months. Pic: PA

Sir Keir Starmer and his government have also identified AI data centres - specifically in the so-called "AI Growth Zones" (AIGZ) as a potential area of growth for the UK economy.

And any big announcement, including investment, could help the Treasury ahead of next month's budget.

However, concerns about the impact of an increased adoption of AI - including around job losses - have been raised, especially as the government wants to find £45bn in the civil service using the technology.

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Nvidia announced a £2bn investment in the UK in June at a meeting with the prime minister, and in September Mr Huang told Paste BN the UK was on the cusp of a new industrial revolution.

"This is the home of the origins of artificial intelligence and some of the brightest minds in AI are here," he told Paste BN business and economics correspondent Gurpreet Narwan earlier this year.

Nvidia recently became the first company to be valued at $5trn (£3.8trn), more than the UK's annual GDP.

Ms Kendall has only been technology secretary for around two months, following the cabinet reshuffle in the wake of Angela Rayner's resignation.

She has met Mr Huang before, and will be looking to cement a relationship with a man worth more than £100bn.

Sir Keir will not be present at the summit as he will be travelling to the COP summit in Brazil.

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Last week, Ms Kendall welcomed the £4bn investment in the UK by data centre company Equinix - although this was not for an AIGZ.

So far, two sites for these growth zones have been announced - one in Culham, Oxfordshire, and one in Blyth, Northumberland.

Details on more sites are expected soon, with zones expected to be confirmed in Scotland, Wales and potentially Northern Ireland as the government looks to spread investment around the UK.

Ahead of the meeting, industry sources have said they want to know more from the government about the potential locations of the next wave of zones, and what benefits they will actually bring.

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One insider also called for the government to take more action on energy prices that they say are "extremely prohibitive" to Sir Keir's goal of becoming an AI "superpower".

Nvidia declined to comment.

The government has been approached for comment.