Why I founded The Morning Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is shaping the future of our country and our individual lives, but keeping up with the pace and complexity of it is hard and time-consuming. 

That’s why I created The Morning Intelligence: a daily briefing covering the UK's AI story. It focuses on the people, policies and politics shaping Britain's AI future.

My goal is simple - set you up for the day (and save you hours) by delivering reliable and relevant intel, insight and analysis to help you stay ahead. I believe journalism should respect your time, meaning the daily newsletter (launching Monday March 2nd) will be snappy, taking no more than five minutes to read or listen to.

AI is long on commentary, but short on clarity. The main policy and political debates pit two sides against one another, especially in the areas I'm covering (link in here). Despite plenty of overlap, my last three years of reporting on AI for POLITICO has shown me that industry and policymakers do not understand each other well enough.

As the technology becomes embedded across the economy and public services, this disconnect worries me. I believe an independent UK media startup, funded by readers and partnerships, can help fill some of that gap. To do that it needs to take the best bits of British journalism - sharp writing, reliable sourcing and being in nobody's pocket - while also reaching a wider audience than existing expensive policy products can.    

To make this happen I've set subscriptions low (link), starting at 70p-a-day (take that finance department) and until April 13th, all content is free.   

This project grows out of my experiences, interests and assumptions and they'll be reflected in it. I'll be upfront with my opinions but I will stay non-partisan. I’m not here to cheerlead or trash.

I’m optimistic about the UK's future and AI's role in it. Success should be celebrated, but I also believe promises made by those in power need more scrutiny.

Journalism is all I’ve ever known (career-wise) and I’ve spent the last 16 years telling stories for outlets from Liverpool to Berlin. My job as POLITICO's tech reporter has given me a ringside seat over the last three years as AI has gone from geeky policy circles to the mainstream.

Giving up that relatively comfortable journalism job when I have two young children and a mortgage, may seem ridiculous, and yes, I’ve gone over it hundreds of times in my head, but I’m convinced of the following, which is why I'm making this bet: 

-UK media coverage of AI veers between doom and euphoria. It is treated as a business or finance story rather than a political, economic or societal one. There is plenty of space here to be useful, reasonable and cheerful. 

-AI has already eaten the digital business model of much legacy media, but journalists can’t just give up. We should use AI to help build something new and better, while remembering that trust can’t be automated.

-For the UK to make a success of AI, it needs more constructive journalism about AI. This is my way of helping with that, but I can’t do it alone. If you’re thinking/working on these things too then please get in touch.

Still reading? Then this is for you, join for free here. 

Tom Bristow 

Founder & Editor

February 2026  

editor@themorningintelligence.uk