Anthropic has been selected by the UK's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to build and pilot a dedicated AI-powered assistant for GOV.UK. The assistant, powered by Claude, will help people navigate government services and provide tailored advice, starting with employment support to help people find work, access training, and understand available resources.
Building on the UK Government MOU
This partnership builds on the Memorandum of Understanding Anthropic signed in February 2025 with the UK government to explore how advanced AI could transform public services for UK citizens. Since signing, Anthropic and DSIT have been collaborating on how to bring AI into government services safely and effectively.
Safety-First AI for Public Services
The GOV.UK AI assistant is designed as an agentic system that goes beyond answering questions—it actively guides people through government processes with individually-tailored support. "This partnership with the UK government is central to our mission," said Pip White, Head of UK, Ireland and Northern Europe. "It demonstrates how frontier AI can be deployed safely for the public benefit, setting the standard for how governments integrate AI into the services their citizens depend on."
A central goal of this partnership is building AI and AI safety expertise within the UK government. Anthropic engineers will work alongside civil servants and software developers at the Government Digital Service throughout the engagement, ensuring the UK government can independently maintain the system.
Initial Focus: Employment Support
The AI assistant will initially focus on supporting job seekers entering or re-entering the workforce. It will:
- Provide personalized career advice
- Help people access training programs
- Explain available supports and benefits
- Intelligently route people to the right services based on individual circumstances
- Maintain context across interactions so users don't start from scratch each time
Users will have full control over their data—including what's remembered and the ability to opt out at any time. All personal information will be handled in line with UK data protection law.
Scan, Pilot, Scale Framework
The project follows DSIT's "Scan, Pilot, Scale" framework, a deliberate, phased approach that allows government and Anthropic to test, learn, and iterate before wider rollout. This measured approach ensures safety and effectiveness at every stage.
Anthropic's Growing UK Commitment
This partnership reflects Anthropic's broader investment in the United Kingdom:
AI Security Institute Collaboration: Anthropic continues to work closely with the UK AI Security Institute to test and evaluate models, ensuring safeguards and evaluation frameworks inform how Claude is deployed in the public sector and beyond.
Expanding London Office: Anthropic's London office is home to a growing team of AI researchers and continues to expand with functions including go-to-market, applied AI, and policy.
Enterprise Partnerships: "Anthropic's UK team plays a key role in advancing our models at the frontier and transforming the public sector and broader British business landscape, from fast-growing startups like incident.io and Wordsmith to enterprises like WPP and London Stock Exchange Group," said Chris Ciauri, Managing Director International.
Global Public Service AI Initiatives
This UK initiative joins a growing portfolio of government partnerships:
- Iceland: National AI education pilot with the Ministry of Education, giving teachers access to Claude for lesson preparation
- Rwanda: AI education partnership bringing AI to hundreds of thousands of learners
- London School of Economics: Partnership providing students access to Claude
TL;DR
- UK government selects Anthropic to build AI assistant for GOV.UK services
- Initial focus: employment support for job seekers
- Safety-first approach with full user data control
- Anthropic engineers will work with civil servants to build internal AI expertise
- Part of Anthropic's growing commitment to UK AI leadership