UK Government Says AI Tool Helped to Recover $670M

The UK government has recovered nearly $670 million (£500 million) in the past year with the help of a new AI system designed to detect and prevent fraud. 

Data released by the Cabinet Office shows that between April 2024 and April 2025, approximately $670 million was recovered, marking the largest single-year return by anti-fraud operations in British history. A significant portion of the recovered funds was linked to fraudulent claims made during the COVID-19 crisis. The rest was reclaimed from cases of illegal subletting in social housing and fraudulent council tax relief. 

The savings came from combining information across departments and applying the new fraud-detection tool. 

Out of the total reclaimed, $250 million related directly to pandemic-related fraud. The government had long pledged to recover funds lost through COVID-19 support programs, but the amount retrieved so far represents only a small portion of the estimated $9 billion that it claimed had disappeared. 

Part of the money reclaimed came from preventing thousands of businesses with suspicious Bounce Back Loans from dissolving. The loan scheme, introduced during the pandemic, allowed companies to borrow up to $67,000 to survive lockdowns. However, it was criticized for poor oversight, which made it easy for fraudsters to take advantage. Some firms dissolved before paying back their debts, effectively escaping repayment. 

In one example uncovered by investigators, a woman created a fake company and transferred the loan money abroad. 

Josh Simons, the Cabinet Office minister, is expected to reveal the savings at an anti-fraud conference being hosted this week by the UK alongside Australia, the U.S., and Canada. He stated that advanced data systems and AI tools would help safeguard taxpayers’ money and stop fraudsters from benefiting. 

The new system, named the Fraud Risk Assessment Accelerator, was designed by government researchers and is now being expanded across departments. Its purpose is to review new policies and detect weaknesses before they can be abused, with officials claiming it could make government programs resistant to fraud from the start. 

The project was developed following worries in Whitehall about the scale of financial abuse experienced during the pandemic. The UK also intends to share the tool internationally, with Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the U.S. expected to adopt it in some form. 

Despite the financial success, the program has sparked criticism from civil liberties advocates who remain wary of expanding AI surveillance in public administration. Last year, a separate system used to monitor welfare investigations was shown to produce biased results depending on factors like nationality, age, marital status, and disability. 

Documents later released through Freedom of Information requests revealed that the Work and Pensions Department admitted the software showed “significant disparities” in outcomes during a fairness review. Earlier in 2025, Amnesty International also criticized the government for excessive reliance on digital systems without enough oversight. 

As more governments take up AI help in running public affairs, for-profit companies like Thumzup Media Corp. (NASDAQ: TZUP) are also leveraging AI tools to enrich their suite of services to their clients. 

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