UK and US line up string of deals to build modular nuclear reactors in Britain
Labour’s plans for a massive expansion of nuclear power have been given a boost with a string of transatlantic deals for new modular reactors announced before Donald Trump’s visit.The UK and US governments have promised to fast track safety checks, and announced several new private sector investment deals, with Labour emphasising the potential benefits for jobs and growth.In the biggest and most advanced commercial project, Britain’s largest energy supplier Centrica will pair with the US reactor firm X-energy to build up to 12 advanced modular reactors in Hartlepool, announcing an investment that could create up to 2,500 jobs in the north-east of England.The prime minister, Keir Starmer, said the US-UK agreement, expected to be signed off formally during the state visit, was a “landmark nuclear partnership” that would also power economic growth.He said: “These major commitments set us well on course to a golden age of nuclear that will drive down household bills in the long run, while delivering thousands of good jobs in the short term.
”Under the unprecedented agreement, Britain and the US will accept each other’s safety checks on reactor designs, almost halving the time for a nuclear project to be licensed to about two years.The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said the deal would clear the way for a big expansion of nuclear projects, in a sector that has already added 11,000 jobs this year, according to the Nuclear Industry Association.The X-Energy-Centrica deal confirms a nuclear future for Hartlepool, where the existing reactor is scheduled to be decommissioned by 2028, and paves the way for a potential further programme of 20 or more modular reactors around the country, providing as much power, 6GW, as Britain’s current total output.The 12 Hartlepool reactors are expected to generate enough power for up to 1.5m homes.
Other ventures announced include plans by the US nuclear firm Holtec, EDF Energy and the property developer Tritax, for advanced datacentres powered by small modular reactors at the former Cottam coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire, in an £11bn project,Another US reactor company, Last Energy, is partnering with the port and P&O Ferries owner DP World, to develop one of the world’s first micro modular nuclear power plants,It would supply the DP World’s London Gateway port and business park,The government said more nuclear facilities were needed for clean homegrown power to ensure energy security, with the commercial deals after Starmer’s announcement this year of the biggest expansion of nuclear power in generations, and the eventual go-ahead for the new Sizewell C station in Suffolk with billions in state funding,Ministers also hope to attract major US tech investment in AI datacentres with the promise of abundant electricity to meet their huge power requirements.
Sign up to Business TodayGet set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morningafter newsletter promotionThe US secretary of energy, Chris Wright, said the US was looking to commercial nuclear power to “fuel the AI revolution”,He said: “Meeting this demand will require strong partnerships with our allies around the world and robust collaboration with private sector innovators,”The deals, he added, would “unleash commercial access in both the US and UK, enhancing global energy security, strengthening US energy dominance, and securing nuclear supply chains across the Atlantic,”Tom Greatrex, the chief executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said the transatlantic deals would contribute to the sector’s “industrial revival, creating thousands of high-value jobs, and strengthening the UK’s energy security”,As well as attempting to reduce broader reliance on overseas energy, the UK-US agreement – known as the Atlantic Partnership for Advanced Nuclear Energy – will look to eliminate any remaining dependency on Russian nuclear material by the end of 2028.
The deal will mean both countries fast-track reactor design checks by collaborating and accepting regulatory assessments from the other, avoiding duplicating bureaucracy.The government said this streamlined approach would help British exports, with Rolls-Royce in the process of getting its small modular reactor design approved in the US.
UK workers wary of AI despite Starmer’s push to increase uptake, survey finds
It is the work shortcut that dare not speak its name. A third of people do not tell their bosses about their use of AI tools amid fears their ability will be questioned if they do.Research for the Guardian has revealed that only 13% of UK adults openly discuss their use of AI with senior staff at work and close to half think of it as a tool to help people who are not very good at their jobs to get by.Amid widespread predictions that many workers face a fight for their jobs with AI, polling by Ipsos found that among more than 1,500 British workers aged 16 to 75, 33% said they did not discuss their use of AI to help them at work with bosses or other more senior colleagues. They were less coy with people at the same level, but a quarter of people believe “co-workers will question my ability to perform my role if I share how I use AI”
AI content needs to be labelled to protect us | Letters
Marcus Beard’s article on artificial intelligence slopaganda (No, that wasn’t Angela Rayner dancing and rapping: you’ll need to understand AI slopaganda, 9 September) highlights a growing problem – what happens when we no longer know what is true? What will the erosion of trust do to our society?The rise of deepfakes is increasing at an ever faster rate due to the ease at which anyone can create realistic images, audio and even video. Generative AI models have now become so sophisticated that a recent survey showed that less than 1% of respondents could correctly identify the best deepfake images and videos.This content is being used to manipulate, defraud, abuse and mislead people. Fraud using AI cost the US $12.3bn in 2023 and Deloitte predicts that could reach $40bn by 2027
ChatGPT may start alerting authorities about youngsters considering suicide, says CEO
The company behind ChatGPT could start calling the authorities when young users talk seriously about suicide, its co-founder has said.Sam Altman raised fears that as many as 1,500 people a week could be discussing taking their own lives with the chatbot before doing so.The chief executive of San Francisco-based OpenAI, which operates the chatbot with an estimated 700 million global users, said the decision to train the system so the authorities were alerted in such emergencies was not yet final. But he said it was “very reasonable for us to say in cases of, young people talking about suicide, seriously, where we cannot get in touch with the parents, we do call authorities”.Altman highlighted the possible change in an interview with the podcaster Tucker Carlson on Wednesday, which came after OpenAI and Altman were sued by the family of Adam Raine, a 16-year-old from California who killed himself after what his family’s lawyer called “months of encouragement from ChatGPT”
Larry Ellison briefly overtakes Elon Musk as world’s richest person
US tech billionaire Larry Ellison is neck-and-neck with Elon Musk in the contest to be the world’s richest person after briefly overtaking the Tesla chief executive on WednesdayEllison’s wealth surged after Oracle, the business software company in which he owns a stake of 41%, reported better than expected financial results.Oracle shares rose by more than 40% in early trading, at one point valuing the business software company at approximately $960bn (£707bn) and Ellison’s stake at $393bn, just ahead of Musk’s fortune of $384bn, according to Bloomberg’s billionaires index. However, Ellison’s lead was short-lived as the stock closed at $328, a rise of 36% valuing Ellison’s shareholding at $378bn and putting Musk back ahead.The pair sit comfortably ahead of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos.Ellison, 81, also has other sources of wealth, including a stake in electric carmaker Tesla, where Musk is chief executive, a sailing team, the Indian Wells Open tennis tournament, and an island in Hawaii, according to Bloomberg
Snapchat allows drug dealers to operate openly on platform, finds Danish study
Snapchat has been accused by a Danish research organisation of leaving an “overwhelming number” of drug dealers to openly operate on Snapchat, making it easy for children to buy substances including cocaine, opioids and MDMA.The social media platform has said it proactively uses technology to filter out profiles selling drugs. However, research by Digitalt Ansvar (Digital Accountability), a Danish research organisation that promotes responsible digital development, has found evidence of a failure to moderate drug-related language in usernames. It also accused Snapchat of failing to respond adequately to reports of profiles openly selling drugs.Researchers used profiles of 13-year-olds and found a multitude of people selling drugs on Snapchat under usernames featuring keywords such as “coke”, “weed” and “molly”
Skip Apple’s new iPhone – five tips to make your old phone feel new again
On Tuesday, Apple announced the iPhone 17 series with the usual spate of new features, including a thinner design, improved displays and a camera with 4x optical zoom. If you’ve been getting frustrated with your old phone, or just tired of it, the lithe new model may look exactly like the device you need to launch your budding photographic career, reconnect with long-lost friends and maybe even save your life in an emergency.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more
The New York Giants are 0-2 again. But are they finally ... watchable?
Gout Gout says he is ‘ready to rumble’ ahead of World Athletics Championships debut
Mariners’ Cal Raleigh ties Mickey Mantle’s record with 54th home run of season
AFL confirms State of Origin football to return in 2026 after 27-year hiatus
The greatest game of all? Broncos v Raiders NRL classic might just be the best of all time
Vingegaard wins Vuelta after final stage cancelled amid pro-Palestinian protests in Madrid