The UK government increased the maximum value of an NHS AI and robotics framework agreement by £600 million, raising it to £750 million excluding tax. The procurement was launched by NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) under the Department for Health and Social Care. In January 2025, the same procurement was priced at a maximum of £150 million excluding tax during early market engagement. NHS SBS stated that an extensive intelligence gathering exercise led suppliers and customers to indicate a higher threshold was appropriate, with approval from NHS England, the Cabinet Office, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. The framework aims to attract suppliers offering AI and robotics systems, with pre-agreed prices and a levy on deals. The procurement notes emphasize AI’s transformative potential for diagnostics, clinical decision-making, and operational streamlining.
"As with all our framework agreements, we conducted an extensive intelligence gathering exercise whilst bringing this framework to market. During this, both suppliers and customers indicated that a higher threshold was appropriate, and this has been approved by NHS England, the Cabinet Office and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology."
"The competition seeks to attract suppliers offering a broad sweep of AI and robotics systems. A framework deal offers suppliers an indicative amount of spend in return for pre-agreed prices. NHS SBS can charge a levy on all deals agreed under the framework."
"The recent procurement note says the procurement recognizes "the transformative potential of AI in addressing current and emerging healthcare challenges, from improving diagnostic accuracy and clinical decision-making to streamlining operational processes.""
"The shopping list for AI tech is split into eight lots. They include Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging, where the authority calls for "AI-powered radiology tools, medical imaging diagnostic platforms, and integrated imaging software solutions designed to support clinical decision-making and image-based diagnostics.""
Read at theregister
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]