Staff fear the UK's Turing AI Institute at risk of collapse

Staff at the UK National Institute of Artificial Intelligence (AI) have warned that the charity is at risk of collapse after technology secretary Peter Kyle threatened to withdraw funds.

Workers at the Alan Turing Institute raised a series of “serious and escalating concerns” in whistleblower complaints filed with the Charity Committee.

The complaint seen by the BBC denies the Institute's leadership for overseeing the Institute's “toxic internal culture” and failing to fulfill its charity mission.

A government spokesman said Kyle “said it was clear what he wanted.” [the Turing Institute] Bringing the real value of money for taxpayers.”

The Ministry of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) spokesman said the institute is “an independent organisation and is consulting on changes to refocus the work under the Turing 2.0 strategy.”

“The changes mentioned in his letter do exactly that, giving the Institute a vital role in protecting national security and placing it where British citizens expect it,” they said.

Kyle urges the Turing Institute to focus on defense research and comes after suggesting that funds will be withdrawn unless that is changed.

Kyle also wants a leadership overhaul. The shift to focusing on defense is a key component for public funding organisations that were granted £100 million grants by the conservative government before last year.

Founded in 2015 as the UK's AI research center, the Turing Institute has been shaken by internal dissatisfaction and criticism of its research activities.

In the complaint, staff said Kyle's letter caused a “governance crisis.”

The government's £100 million grant “is currently at risk of withdrawal and could lead to the collapse of the lab,” the complaint said.

The Turing Institute told the BBC it is “substantial organizational change to ensure that the UK's National Institute of Data Science and AI is steering its commitment and unique role.”

“As we move forward, we focus on providing real-world impact across society's biggest challenges, including addressing the need for a nation to double its capabilities of defense, national security and sovereignty,” the spokesman said.

The BBC is said to have not received a notice of complaints and have never seen a letter sent by staff.

A spokesperson for the Charity Committee said, “We are currently evaluating the concerns raised about the Alan Turing Institute to determine our regulatory role.”

They said it was in the early stages of this assessment and had not decided whether to start a formal legal investigation.

Staff said they filed the complaint anonymously “due to grounded fear of retaliation.”

The BBC sent a copy of the complaint via email approved by “Related Staff of the Alan Turing Institute.”

The complaint outlines eight issues.

The risk warning of funding was that the Turing Institute's “continuous failure to deliveries, instability in governance and lack of transparency have sparked serious concerns among public and private funders,” the complaint said.

The charity accused them of creating “a set of spending decisions that lack transparency, measurable results, and evidence of trustee surveillance.”

Other allegations also accused the complaint of presiding “an internal culture defined by fear and defense.”

The complaint said concerns were raised, including the Turing Institute's leadership team (Doug Gurr), claiming that “no meaningful action has been taken.”

The Alan Turing Institute describes itself as the UK national institution of data science and AI. It was founded in 2015 by former Prime Minister David Cameron.

The Institute has been confused for months to cut dozens of jobs and scrap research projects.

At the end of 2024, 93 staff members signed a letter expressing their lack of confidence in their leadership team.

In March, Jean Innes, who was appointed chief executive in July 2023, told the Financial Times, the Turing Institute needed to modernize and concentrate on AI projects.

Until recently, the work has focused on researching AI and data science in three key areas: environmental sustainability, health and national security.

Recent research projects listed on the website include research suggesting that one in four children are currently using the technology for study and play.

Others who worked with the Turing Institute told the BBC they were concerned about the direction within the wider research community.

In July, Professor Helen Margiz and Professor Kosmina Dorovant, a longtime co-director of a successful program that helped the public sector use AI, left their positions in charity.

Former Chief Technology Officer Jonathan Stark left the organization in May eight months later.

And some of the remaining staff explain the toxic internal culture.

The AI sector is an important part of the government's strategy to grow the UK economy, investment in data centres and supercomputer development, encouraging large tech companies to invest.

Research and development of this rapidly evolving technology is also important.

In a letter to Turing last month, Kyle said that increasing the UK's AI capabilities is “important” to national security and should be at the heart of the institute's work.

The Secretary of State for Science and Technology said there could be a review of ATI's “long-term funding agreement” next year.