UK Science chief compares AI to using a calculator

Peter Kyle, the UK’s Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, has said in an interview that fears around children using generative artificial intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT for their homework are similar to fears that arose after the invention of the calculator.

Kyle was asked during an interview with the BBC on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg whether he thought it was okay for a child to use generative AI like ChatGPT to do their homework. “Actually with supervision and used in the right way, then yes, because ChatGPT and the AI technology that is using language is already being used across the economy,” said Kyle.

Government is determined that the UK isn't left behind in the global race for AI.

The AI Opportunities Action Plan we commit to today will ensure the benefits are spread throughout the UK so all citizens reap the rewards.

This is how we’re putting our Plan for Change in motion. https://t.co/M5dQ49Ukju

— Peter Kyle (@peterkyle) January 13, 2025

He likened this to pocket calculators, which people were concerned would erode maths skills and enable students to cheat. Calculators were gradually accepted and integrated into education when they became a staple of everyday life, and Kyle believes this sets a precedent for AI.

Kyle emphasized instead the necessity to teach students to effectively use AI technology. “We need to make sure that kids and young people are learning how to use this technology,” he said.

Many universities and schools prohibit the use of AI tools in the completion of assignment work, but Kyle has urged institutions to see AI as a useful tool, particularly for students who struggle with traditional teaching. “There are kids with real talents in outlier talents and using ChatGPT and other AI assistance could really turbo charge and give them a challenge they’re not getting in other places,” he said.

Kyle’s stance echoes that of the Labor government at large. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced plans to embrace AI across the country, alongside its intention to adopt fifty recommendations from a review last year.

Addressing a Google Keynote speech at their London campus, Starmer stated that he believes embracing AI will lead to a doubling of productivity across the country, in a short timeframe. “I don’t think it’s going to take five or ten years to double productivity, not for a moment,” he said. “I’ve spent many many hours pushing this around with AI experts to test those propositions, and I’m absolutely confident that the timeframes that we are talking about are much, much shorter than that and that productivity is not sort of ten per cent increase in productivity, we are talking about many who say productivity will double in a very short period of time.”

Featured image credit: Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology via Flickr

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