That was the message from techUK CEO Julian David OBE, who cautioned that the government’s latest announcements, while directionally positive, do not “go far enough” to resolve the systemic barriers holding back large-scale digital infrastructure deployment.

With the UK still facing the highest industrial energy prices in Europe and enduring multi-year waits for grid connections, David argued that genuine progress will depend on unlocking capacity, not just capital.

His warning formed a stark counterpoint to the Government’s announcement that North Wales will host one of the country’s flagship AI Growth Zones, projected to deliver more than 3,400 jobs and anchor up to £100 billion in potential investment as part of the UK’s broader AI Opportunities Action Plan. Together with the newly confirmed small modular reactor (SMR) site at Wylfa, total job creation in the region could reach nearly 6,500.

The Growth Zone will span Prosperity Parc on Anglesey and Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd, forming a hub designed to co-locate compute capacity, data centre development, research expertise and advanced manufacturing. Ministers cast the project as proof that the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy is beginning to translate into real delivery on the ground.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the zones as “delivery, not dithering”, emphasising that £5 million per site for skills and business adoption would ensure local workers directly benefit from the rise in AI-driven industries. But the industry’s central question remains: can the UK deliver the power, land, and speed of approvals needed to turn AI ambition into practical capability?

New measures were announced to accelerate progress, including slashing approval times from years to months, giving AI Growth Zones priority access to scarce grid capacity, and enabling developers to build their own high-voltage lines and substations. Data centres located in network-friendly areas will also receive significant electricity bill discounts.

For North Wales, the opportunity is substantial. Bangor University researchers foresee new partnerships in AI-enabled healthcare and environmental modelling, while regional authorities expect the Growth Zone to catalyse wider regeneration across Anglesey and Gwynedd. With SMRs expected to supply power to the grid from the mid-2030s, the region could become one of the UK’s most strategically important technology corridors.

Yet even with these reforms, industry voices maintain that deeper structural issues persist. Without sustained government action to rebalance energy costs, accelerate grid upgrades and provide long-term certainty for digital infrastructure investment, many fear that the UK risks falling behind in the global race for AI capacity.

The North Wales announcement marks a bold commitment, but as techUK’s David makes clear, ambition alone is not enough.

RELATED STORIES

UK fast-tracks AI infrastructure with new Growth Zones

Equinix invests £3.9bn into UK critical national infrastructure