The NHS will have over £150m to spend on AI tools and solutions courtesy of a new tender set to go live early next year.
A Prior Information Notice (PIN) for the ‘Healthcare IT Solutions’ tender was issued on 17 January.
It covers six Lots, ranging from Pathological Diagnosis and early detection to Predictive Analtyics and Operational Efficiency.
“Improving services without spending more money”
The agency that issued the PIN, NHS Shared Business Services, said it intends to hold market engagement sessions with industry experts and potential bidders during March and April 2025.
A contract notice is set to be published on 22 August 2025, with the framework slated to go live from 6 February 2026.
AI software specialists IT Channel Oxygen spoke to immediately welcomed the move, with Andre Azevedo, CEO of Google partner Ancoris, seeing it as a way for the NHS to “improve services without spending more money”.
“They will surely be able to re-deploy clinicians who perform these tasks manually to seeing more patients and bring the backlog down.”
Jodie Rodgers, Chief AI Officer at Microsoft partner Transparity, said the tender “will make the route-to-market much slicker and reduce some of the barriers to entry for innovators like us when working with the NHS”, meanwhile.
£150m spending pot
News of the tender comes after the government last week pledged to “mainline AI into the veins” of the UK.
The tender will include a Lot for AI consultancy, implementation and training services to support the NHS and wider public sector organisations in their attempt to adopt smart technology.
Its estimated contract value is £150m, excluding VAT.
“My nervousness when you see a £150m initiative is whether you can build a programme that big without huge inefficiencies,” Azevedo said.
“Hopefully they will work in a more agile manner and focus on delivering value quickly and work on continuous improvement.”
Rodgers added: “This funding has the opportunity to revolutionise all aspects of the NHS from front lines to back office. While very much needed, when you look at the significant challenges that threaten the NHS’s ability to deliver high-quality care, my nervousness comes when you look at their starting point,” she added.
“They are still notably struggling with basic digital requirements, hopefully GenAI will help them be able to leapfrog, but it will be dependent on the wider Digital Transformation strategy and data foundations. £150m may not go as far as expected when considering the six Lots and the number of trusts/ICBs vying for this. I would expect a much better outcome if the £150m is given to those who can first prove the value quickly and then iterate and scale.”
