By Saskia Koopman

 

LONDON, 18 May. - (ANA) - Britain’s AI sector pulled in a record £8.3bn of investment last year, as global investors raced to back the country’s next generation of AI firms, with London tightening its grip as Europe’s leading tech hub.

 

New research from Barclays Eagle Labs found funding into UK AI companies surged in 2025 after a sluggish period for venture capital markets, driven by growing demand for businesses building everything from AI infrastructure to legal software.

 

The figures shows just how quickly AI has become one of Britain’s hottest investment stories, as investors scramble to avoid missing the next Deepmind-style breakout success.

 

London remains firmly at the centre of the rush, with nearly three quarters of Britain’s AI fintech companies based in the capital, according to the report.

 

The boom has been fuelled by a flood of global capital chasing AI growth stories, particularly businesses seen as capable of supplying the infrastructure behind the technology rather than simply consumer-facing apps.

 

This includes companies building the computing power, software systems and data architecture needed to support the rapid expansion of generative AI.

 

For investors, Britain increasingly looks like one of the few places outside Silicon Valley producing AI firms with genuine global scale ambitions.

 

The report found nearly half of all UK AI funding rounds last year came from first-time raises, suggesting a fresh wave of startups is entering the market even as competition for talent and capital intensifies.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/18 May 2026 - - -