After 14 years, the UK has a Labour government. During that time, the UK’s tech sector has flourished. But how much of that was because of the Conservative government, and how much of it was in spite of it?
In an interview with UKTN, Improbable Worlds founder Herman Narula discusses how the Conservatives’ support of tech was helpful yet “superficial”, how Brexit reversed so much government progress and what Labour can do from its seat of power.
Improbable Worlds is a London-based tech firm founded in 2012. The company specialises in technology used in virtual environments and metaverse development. Improbable is now valued at $3.4bn, having raised $864m (£665m), according to startup tracker Dealroom.
Cameron’s Britain: Promising early signs
Narula co-founded Improbable two years into the premiership of David Cameron. It was an exciting time for young UK tech companies with the right “events, opportunities and relationships” being built, says Narula.
“There were positive movements made to encourage bringing tech money to the UK,” he explains.
Narula himself secured over $50m (£39m) during the Cameron years, something he admits “would not have been possible without the right conditions existing in the country” at the time.
He pointed to positive international business and tech progress from the Conservatives, such as the Northern Future Forum, an annual meeting of prime ministers from the UK and the Nordic and Baltic states established in 2012.
Enter Brexit
For Narula, any early signs that the Conservative government was supporting tech growth were thrown into serious question following the 2016 Brexit referendum.
“Pre-Brexit, there was a lot of positivity around attracting capital and talent from around the world,” Narula says.
“It all went downhill as they turned from a government to whatever you’d call what happened after Brexit.”
Narula feels the damage done to international relations and the complications that came from cutting off UK business policy from the rest of Europe seriously impacted those looking to scale companies internationally.
The Improbable CEO adds that there were real opportunities post-Brexit to make the most of Britain’s separation from the EU, none of which were capitalised on.
Fumbling tech legislation
A UK separated from EU legislation, though not ideal, did present an opportunity to craft specialised laws to responsibly take advantage of emerging tech areas, according to Narula.
The first of these was crypto and blockchain, an area in which Improbable is heavily involved.
Narula admitted not everyone is as bullish about web3 ventures as he is, however, he claims everyone would agree it would be better if “the companies that build in this space” were adding value to the UK under responsible regulation.
There has been some lip service to the topic from the Conservatives, with the most recent Tory prime minister claiming to be an avid believer in crypto’s potential.
For Narula, however, the fundamental questions of how to protect consumers, how to regulate a decentralised service and how crypto tokens could meaningfully fit into an established economy, were never answered.
“Everybody in this space including Improbable has had to look at offshore structures that are not positive for a nation that should be winning in fintech.”
The second tech space Narula feels the Conservatives “fumbled” is AI, something largely down to the “late-stage Tories”.
The Conservatives certainly can’t be said to have not shown an interest in building up the UK as an AI superpower. As prime minister, Rishi Sunak moved quickly to establish the UK’s leadership position as a voice for AI safety with his Bletchley Summit. And huge amounts of funding were made available for AI developers.
Narula, however, says the strategy largely amounted to “headline-grabbing” in the face of genuine scientific research.
To achieve the goal of encouraging AI developers to launch exciting companies in Britain, Narula said the government needed to deliver tangible regulation, giving them confidence in their understanding of the environment.
Instead, the government decided to hold off on regulation. It was in this “ambiguity” that the Conservatives missed their chance to build an AI superpower.
Looking to Labour
As a prominent figure in UK tech for over a decade now, Narula has seen prime ministers come and go, from the “privileged position of someone who has access to people in government”.
Narula has met with all six prime ministers who have served since the founding of Improbable. And while he has never been an avid supporter of the Labour Party, his meetings with Keir Starmer and his team have given him early signs of encouragement.
“I don’t want to be one of those people who cheers on a new government,” he says. “Now is not the moment to cheer. The moment to do that is once [the government] does something.”
However, his meetings with Labour’s top team have given him optimism that this can be a Labour that is both “pro-business” and builds an “economy that works for people”.
He praised in particular Chancellor Rachel Reeves, whom he feels has been a major factor in cultivating this new image. He also admires the work of Tech Secretary Peter Kyle who, according to Narula, has “been on the mark” with tech policy during the election campaign.
Listen: Improbable’s Herman Narula on why the metaverse is far from dead
The post Improbable CEO reflects on life as a tech boss under the Tories appeared first on UKTN.
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