Rishi Sunak is planning to launch an AI chatbot to help the public pay taxes and access pensions in what would be the biggest use of advanced artificial intelligence by Whitehall to date.
OpenAI, the Microsoft-funded AI giant behind the ChatGPT chatbot, is providing the technology behind an experimental service called “Gov.uk Chat”.
Early tests of the chatbot are currently taking place with businesses. If they prove to be a success, the bot could be introduced to the public, allowing people to ask questions about government services and receive information on accessing student loans, benefits and legal questions.
The service could raise fears that taxpayers would be directed away from understaffed phone lines and to chatbots if it is seen as a way of alleviating pressure on call centres in departments such as HMRC, where taxpayers are dealing with lengthy phone waiting times.
Rishi Sunak has said AI has huge potential to improve public services, speeding up paperwork and clearing backlogs.
The chatbot, which will use large language model technology provided by OpenAI, will be trained on the gov.uk website, which contains millions of pages ranging from taxes, housing services, and immigration.
It would not be trained using citizens’ personal data and users will be encouraged not to enter private information.
However, if people enter personal information into the bot it will send user data to Open AI and be processed in the United States.
News of the chatbot comes days ahead of Mr Sunak hosting an AI safety summit where he is hoping to reach global agreements with countries on the safe development of the systems amid fears they could be used to create biological weapons or spread rampant disinformation.
This week, tech ministers and some world leaders will visit Bletchley Park, the World War II codebreaking hub, alongside companies and researchers for the two-day summit.
