Upside #50 - Can Stablecoins Save The Dollar? UK vs US AI Strategies & The Red or Blue Pill?

Upside - for the real stories behind the headlines affecting European Venture.

In this week's episode:

• AI in Public Services - OpenAI and the UK govt sign deal
• The US vs UK AI plans - how do they compare?
• Stablecoins - what are they really and why are they not in the UK?
• Deepmind wins the IMO maths competition - so what?
• Deal of the Week

01:50 – AI in UK Government and Public Services
UK government signs an MOU with OpenAI to explore AI in public services.
Introduction of “Humphrey,” a ChatGPT-powered assistant for civil servants.

03:21 – Will AI in Public Services Work?
NHS could be a testbed for AI adoption, potentially with citizen opt-ins for faster treatments using AI technologies.

05:26 – UK AI Plan and Public Sector Productivity
UK’s AI Opportunities Plan.
Potential AI use cases: fraud prevention and efficiency in administrative tasks.

08:24 – Challenges in Government AI Implementation

09:27 – AI in NHS & Healthcare
Debate on AI’s role in healthcare

11:46 – UK Sovereignty & AI Partnerships
Concerns about reliance on US AI companies (OpenAI, Anthropic).

13:03 – Is Reliance on US AI a Problem?
Discussion on whether the UK should build its own foundational AI models.

16:31 – National AI Strategies
Debate on the UK government’s responsibility to invest heavily in domestic AI.
Comparison to the UK aerospace industry and state-backed R&D.

19:26 – Comparing US and UK AI Plans
Overview of both strategies:
US: Innovation, leadership, and global dominance.
UK: Sovereignty, public sector benefits, and homegrown champions.

22:24 – Key Differences Between US and UK AI Approaches

27:47 – What Should the UK Do Differently?
Invest in national AI infrastructure. Mandate “buy UK first” for AI solutions.

33:31 – AI in Large Organizations
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund sees 20% efficiency gains using AI (Claude).

36:01 – Transition to Stablecoins
What they are and why they matter.

41:02 – Dollar Dominance via Stablecoins
Stablecoins as a strategic tool to extend USD dominance.

48:25 – Future of Stablecoins
How stablecoins will reshape DeFi, cross-border transactions, and payments.

52:27 – AI Excels at Mathematics
Google DeepMind and OpenAI achieve gold-level performance at the IMO (International Mathematical Olympiad). Significance: AI is moving from computation to creative problem-solving and advanced reasoning.

55:47 – Implications of AI in Math & Science
AI’s ability to solve complex math problems signals breakthroughs in R&D and engineering.

58:14 – Philosophical Questions on AI Reasoning
Debate on whether AI’s reasoning is “synthetic” or genuinely creative.
AI’s utility matters more than its internal mechanics.

59:33 – Deal of the Week

Keywords: AI, public services, OpenAI, UK government, healthcare, stablecoins, financial system, mathematics, funding, trade deals.