A new AI Growth Zone in the North East of England is set to transform the region into a global hub for artificial intelligence, unlocking £30 billion in investment and creating over 5,000 high-skilled jobs.
The initiative will build on the region’s strengths in low-carbon energy, advanced manufacturing, and world-class universities, positioning Blyth and Cobalt Park near Newcastle as one of the largest data centre clusters in Europe.
Key Benefits of the AI Growth Zone:
- Thousands of jobs across construction, data engineering, AI research, and AI safety
- Direct links to top universities including Newcastle, Durham, Sunderland, and Northumbria
- Boosts productivity in manufacturing, healthcare, energy, and finance
- Supports breakthroughs in drug discovery, climate science, and safe AI development
The zone will also host Stargate UK, a new AI infrastructure platform developed by Nscale, OpenAI, and NVIDIA, designed to deploy OpenAI’s technology on sovereign UK infrastructure. The first phase will see up to 8,000 GPUs installed, with potential expansion to 31,000 GPUs, powering AI adoption across the UK.
Kim McGuinness, Mayor of the North East, commented:
“Today’s announcement of an AI Growth Zone places the North East at the forefront of the next technology revolution and will lead to billions of pounds of new investment in our region, thousands of better jobs and new opportunities for local people.
“I want kids in school here today to see their place in an AI-driven future. We know AI will be transformative for our economy, but this is how we make sure it also provides a new future for our young people, by working with business to create training and apprenticeship routes into this fast growing sector on a whole new scale.
“Our region boasts computing power that are among the best in Europe with Cobalt Park Data Centres already established in Wallsend and the QTS Cambois Data Centre Campus in Blyth due to open in 2028. We have the skills and brainpower in our tech sector and universities, and now we can match that with the new investment this Growth Zone will bring to the North East from around the world.”
Major Investments:
- £10 billion already committed by Blackstone to the Blyth site
- Potential for an additional £20 billion from future partners
- Energy capacity at Blyth to reach 1.1GW within six years
The AI Growth Zone will also support the government’s Plan for Change, helping transform public services and grow the economy through cutting-edge technology.
With its unique combination of renewable energy, academic excellence, and emerging tech ecosystems, the North East is poised to become a leader in AI innovation, job creation, and global competitiveness.
Image credit: iStock
