The UK government is hiring a head of ventures to run its new sovereign AI program.

In January, the Labour government unveiled the AI Opportunities Action Plan, with £14 billion ($19bn) in data center announcements (and re-announcements).

As part of the plan, the government says it will set up what it calls AI Growth Zones, areas across the country that will “speed up planning approvals for the rapid build-out of data centers, give them better access to the energy grid, and draw in investment from around the world.”

The government will also spend £1bn ($1.36bn) to expand the UK research community’s compute capacity twenty-fold in the next five years.

A further £500m ($679.6m) will go to a new Sovereign AI Unit, which is involved in both the AI Growth Zones, and in increasing the number of AI researchers in the country.

The “head of ventures in the Sovereign AI Unit will be responsible for the delivery of strategic initiatives to secure UK sovereign advantage,” a job listing states.

“You will be responsible for identifying opportunities across critical domains, building a compelling case for government interaction, and executing deals that position the UK as a global leader in frontier AI.”

The role pays £67,250-79,440 ($91,421-108,000) plus a 28.97 percent pension contribution.

The new hire will work directly with Matt Clifford, the Prime Minister’s adviser on AI.

“The Government’s Sovereign AI unit is looking for someone to come and lead a team focused on special projects for UK sovereign advantage,” Clifford said on LinkedIn.

“Ideal for someone early-ish career looking to do a tour of duty to help ensure the UK is an AI maker, not an AI taker.”

Applicants have until 11:55pm on Sunday, 20th July 2025.

The UK is also looking for a new CEO for its relatively new research agency ARIA (styled after DARPA), which recently brought on Microsoft’s Ant Rowstron as CTO.