The government is deploying AI-generated code in software, as it maintains it can save £45bn in the Civil Service by using the technology.
The policy to save the vast sum of money was championed by former technology secretary Peter Kyle, who was promoted to business secretary in the reshuffle last weekend.
The baton has now been passed to Liz Kendall, who was the work and pensions secretary who oversaw Labour’s failed attempts to save money through reforming welfare.
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With all government departments being told to find savings ahead of the budget, saving cash by deploying artificial intelligence will be music to the ears of the Treasury.
Technology minister Kanishka Narayan – also a new appointee – said: “With a £45 billion jackpot at stake, it’s not an opportunity we can pass up, as it can help cut backlogs and save money.”
Using AI assistants to help with programming is now extremely common in the private sector, and is a marketed use of the likes of Google’s Gemini and GitHub Copilot – both of which the government has deployed as part of its trial.
A spokesperson from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) said 1,000 “tech experts” had been using the approved AI assistants, across 50 government departments.
They claim the development is saving workers an hour a day of work – the equivalent to 28 working days a year.
This included working on healthcare technology, as well as the development of ‘Humphrey’ – the government’s own AI helper for civil servants.
A phone screen showing the Gemini AI app from Google. Pic: AP
The spokesperson said: “The time savings from the AI assistants mostly came from using them to write first drafts of code that experts then edit, or using them to review existing code.
“Only 15% of code generated by the AI coding assistants was used without any edits – showing that engineers were taking care to check and correct AI-generated code where needed.”
One of the challenges with using AI to assist with programming is that the time saved by getting AI to write code can sometimes end up being spent, as this process still requires expertise to plan, verify, edit and debug.
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According to the government, 72% of people who used the tools said they were good value for money, and 58% said they would like to keep using them. Some 65% said they were completing tasks faster and 56% said they were solving problems more efficiently.
Technology minister Mr Narayan said: “For too long, essential public services have been slow to use new technology – we have a lot of catching up to do. These results show that our engineers are hungry to use AI to get that work done more quickly, and know how to use it safely.
“This is exactly how I want us to use AI and other technology to make sure we are delivering the standard of public services people expect – both in terms of accuracy and efficiency.”
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Tara Brady, the president of Google Cloud in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, said the company is “thrilled” with impact of Gemini’s Code Assist.
She added that the trial “underscores the transformative potential of AI in enhancing productivity and problem-solving for coding professionals, and highlights the successful collaboration stemming from Google Cloud’s strategic partnership agreement with the UK government.”
