More than 1 in 3 'sovereign' AI firms US-owned, FOIs reveal
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
Freedom of Information responses from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) reveal four of the nine companies backed by the government's £500m Sovereign AI Fund are ultimately controlled by US parent companies
One recipient, Odyssey, is headquartered in the United States, with only an R&D hub in London
DSIT confirms no binding conditions were attached to the Fund's equity investments — no requirements on UK jobs, tax residency or the location of intellectual property, and no clawback if a firm relocates or is bought out by Big Tech
Findings come as reports of Burnham plan for "reset" of the UK's AI strategy
More than one in three of the companies backed through the government's flagship £500m Sovereign AI Fund are US-owned, Freedom of Information responses obtained by The New Contract reveal today.
The disclosures, made by DSIT in response to a request from The New Contract and published in full below, name the nine recipients supported so far: three direct equity investments (Ineffable Intelligence, Isomorphic Labs and Callosum) and six compute awards (Twig Bio, Doubleword, Cursive, Cosine, Prima Mente and Odyssey). Four of the nine — Isomorphic Labs, Cosine, Prima Mente and Odyssey — are ultimately controlled by American parent companies.
DSIT also confirmed that it attaches no binding conditions to the Fund's equity investments as a matter of policy, arguing that conditions would put it at a disadvantage as a minority co-investor. This means there are no requirements on UK jobs, tax residency or the location of intellectual property, and nothing to prevent a recipient relocating overseas or being acquired by a Big Tech giant.
DSIT stated that conditions and compliance data for the Fund's compute awards are held by UKRI. The New Contract has filed a follow-up Freedom of Information request with UKRI and will publish the response.
The findings, first reported in the Guardian and the New Statesman on Monday, come amid reports that the incoming Burnham administration is preparing a reset of the UK's AI strategy.
Tom Darling, Founder and Executive Director of The New Contract, said:
"Our FOIs reveal that more than one in three companies backed by the Sovereign AI Fund are US-owned — a measure of the confusion that has clouded this government's approach to AI sovereignty. No conditions were attached to its equity investments, leaving nothing to stop the remaining firms being bought out by Big Tech.
“"A Burnham government must reset AI policy, working with fellow middle powers to build genuine independence from Silicon Valley."
Notes to editors
The The disclosures were made by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under reference FOI2026/01952, in response to a request from The New Contract. The full response can be found above.
Recipients by ownership: Direct equity investments — Ineffable Intelligence (UK-owned), Isomorphic Labs (US-owned), Callosum (UK-owned). Compute awards — Twig Bio, Doubleword and Cursive (UK-owned); Cosine and Prima Mente (US-owned); Odyssey (US-owned and US-headquartered, with an R&D hub in London).
The findings were reported by the Guardian on 7 July 2026: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/jul/07/scotland-could-freeze-datacentre-projects-in-challenge-to-uks-ai-strategy
The New Contract has filed a follow-up Freedom of Information request with UKRI, which holds the conditions and compliance data for the Fund's compute awards, and will publish the response.
About The New Contract:
The New Contract is a progressive advocacy organisation focused on the political economy of AI, campaigning for AI a fair AI transition in the UK.
Media contact:
Tom Darling
07949208626
