President Donald Trump arrived in the United Kingdom (UK) on Tuesday for a three-day trip that included billions of dollars of investment pledges, royal pageantry, and protests.

Trump's second trip to the UK entailed a state banquet with King Charles III with around 150 guests. Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman attended the royal event. Trump made toast to “one of the highest honors of my life.”

The president's visit sparked protests, with people carrying placards and Palestinian flags as they marched through London. The Stop Trump Coalition organized the march against Trump’s state visit.

Trump's visit witnessed a bilateral tech deal and investment pledges from some of America's most prominent tech leaders. The UK secured £150 billion of inward investment from US companies, the British Department for Business and Trade said.

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR), Microsoft Corp., Google, Coreweave Inc., Salesforce Inc., and BlackRock Inc. announced UK investment plans. Blackstone Inc. plans a £100 billion investment over the next decade.

"These deals will create more than 7,600 high-quality jobs, revitalize communities, and accelerate growth in sectors of the future," the British Prime Minister's office said in a statement. "The companies will help boost the UK's AI infrastructure and cutting-edge tech, from data centers to computer chips, the processing power behind AI.

UK Market Is a Compelling Story for Foreign Capital

The UK market is a compelling story for foreign capital. It has the fifth-lowest price-to-earnings ratio of key markets and the fifth-lowest price-to-book ratio. It has the fourth-highest dividend yield, which is a lucrative opportunity in the rate-cutting environment.

Attracting interest may require policy adjustments. The latest report from the Council on Geostrategy tackles these problems.

Its author, senior research fellow, Mann Virdee, proposed a five-year reduced tax rate of 10% for greenfield investments in critical areas. He recommended 100% first-year capital allowances.

He called for reduced bureaucracy, new energy market solutions, and alignment with international benchmarks.

Trump, Starmer Sign ‘Landmark' Tech Prosperity Deal

Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed the Tech Prosperity Deal on Thursday. The agreement establishes joint initiatives across artificial intelligence, nuclear energy, and quantum computing.

The deal "is more than just a diplomatic nicety," British Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle said. "It is a signal that the special relationship between our two countries means business. It is about the new technology enhancing the lives and the life chances of both of our peoples."

The White House said the "landmark science and technology agreement that will propel the US-UK special relationship to new heights for the technological age, and deliver wins for the American people and American innovation globally."

Palantir Plans to Invest As Much As £1.5B

Palantir will invest as much as £1.5 billion "to help make the UK a defense innovation leader," the British defense ministry said. The company agreed to make the UK its European headquarters and create up to 350 new high-skilled jobs, it said.

The US company signed a deal with the British defense ministry to develop AI-powered capabilities already tested in Ukraine to speed up decision-making, military planning, and targeting.

Palantir will help the UK military develop the latest digital tools and harness AI technology to accelerate decision-making. Palantir will improve targeting, and keep the British people safe from evolving threats, the defense ministry said.

"This partnership reflects our deep commitment to the UK," Palantir CEO Alex Kapr said. " It will see up to £750 million invested in the most advanced AI-enabled defence technology. It will reinforce the UK's position as a major military force protecting the West from our adversaries."

US Tech Giants Plan Investments in the UK

Below is a summary of some of the announced US tech investments planned for the UK:

• Blackstone (NYSE:BX) pledged a £100 billion investment pledge over the next decade.
• Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced a £22 billion investment in AI infrastructure and ongoing operations across the UK, marking the most significant financial commitment it has ever made in the UK. Microsoft will expand the UK's cloud and AI infrastructure and build the country's largest supercomputer.
• Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) will open its UK data center as part of a two-year £5 billion investment. The investment includes Google's capital expenditure, research and development, and related engineering.
• CoreWeave (NASDAQ:CRWV) will invest £1.5 billion in AI data centre capacity and operations in the UK – bringing total investment in the UK to £2.5 billion over the past year.
• Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) announced plans to invest £4.4 billion in its UK business through 2030 to support UK and European companies' transformation into Agentic Enterprises, with humans and AI agents working together to drive customer success.
• Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) pledged £2 billion to boost UK artificial-intelligence startups and speed up the creation of new jobs and businesses.
• BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) has plans to invest £500 million into enterprise data centres across the country, which includes an initial investment of over £100 million in a data centre expansion west of London.

"We're committed to creating new opportunity for people and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic," Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO, said. "That is why we are doubling down on our investment in the UK, investing more than $30 billion over four years, including building the country's largest supercomputer."

Starmer Celebrates US Investment Wins

For Starmer, the US investment pledges represented a much-needed economic win.

The British economy has flatlined as industrial and manufacturing production contracts, marking increasing economic troubles for the ruling Labour government. His party has faced an increasingly hostile public in response to the government's economic, immigration, and policing policies.

Starmer, who has criticized Trump in the past, praised the outcome of the 47th president's visit. The investments will add jobs "in cutting-edge sectors" and will change "lives in communities up and down our country," he said.

The UK-US relationship "is delivering jobs, investment, and security for the British people," he posted on X. "I promised that my government would deliver jobs, growth and opportunity for working people."

Trump and Starmer discussed the war in Ukraine, NATO, and peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians. Starmer declared the US and the UK "first partners" in trade, defense, and technology.

Disclaimer:

Any opinions expressed in this article are not to be considered investment advice and are solely those of the authors. European Capital Insights is not responsible for any financial decisions made based on the contents of this article. Readers may use this article for information and educational purposes only. 

Benzinga Disclaimer: This article is from an unpaid external contributor. It does not represent Benzinga’s reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy

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