Google DeepMind and UK government co-develop AI prototype to halve planning application processing time

Google DeepMind and the UK government are co-developing an AI-powered prototype designed to reduce the time local planning authorities spend processing householder planning applications. The tool aims to cut decision times by 50%, according to the partners. The prototype is being tested in Barnet, Camden, and Dorset, with a planned national rollout to all councils in England by 2027.

The AI assistant streamlines routine tasks for planning officers by consolidating data from backlogs, highlighting gaps, and extracting key site information for review on a single screen. It also identifies relevant national and local policies, pre-assesses compliance, and provides exact citations for verification. Additionally, the tool summarizes consultation feedback, identifies objections or precedents, and drafts a first version of the final report, including rationale and proposed conditions.

Crucially, the planning officer remains the final decision-maker, reviewing and editing all AI-generated content before approving or rejecting an application. The prototype maintains a full audit trail of its work, recording each step to ensure accountability and transparency in the decision-making process.

The AI planning tool builds on Extract, an existing AI system developed by the UK government’s Incubator for AI (i.AI) and powered by Google DeepMind’s Gemini. Extract was made available to every council in England earlier in 2025 and is designed to convert legacy planning documents into digital, searchable data. The new prototype extends this capability by assisting with active application processing, policy checks, and report drafting.