UKRI and AI

Anna Angus-Smyth EPSRC Head of AI

Artificial Intelligence @ EPSRC

17/05/2019

Anna Angus-Smyth, Head of AI, EPSRC

Contents

EPSRC & UKRI UpdateUKRI-Led FundsAI @ EPSRC and UKRI

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UKRI/EPSRC Update

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UK Research and Innovation, launched in April 2018

Drivers for creation:Greater strategic vision for UK science

Providing a stronger voice into Government in support of UK science

Creating greater space for individual Research Councils to put more effort into science (and less into back-office)

Enabling greater co-ordination including for interdisciplinary research

Improved policy for science and improved science for policy

Transition to UKRI:UKRI organisation

The UKRI Family

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EPSRC is well placed, through its core investment in fundamental EPS research and skills, to provide the strong

foundation for UKRI

To be an outstanding organisation

that ensures the UK maintains its world leading position in research and innovation

Transition to UKRI:EPSRC’s role in the changing landscape

EPSRC’s Strategic Delivery Plan

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Delivering a Prosperous Nation

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PRODUCTIVITY

we invest in the emergent science fields that have the potential to develop into tomorrow’s innovative products, processes, services and technologies

CONNECTIVITY

we invest in the fundamental and application driven research that is key to social and economic transformation around data analytics, AI and cybersecurity

HEALTH

we promote collaborative, interdisciplinary working with researchers and end users to generate solutions for current, emerging and future health and social care issues

RESILIENCE

we invest in the unified, whole-systems approach needed to solve the environmental and social problems of a sustainable and resilient future

Transition to UKRI:£4.7 billion more for R&D

This increase in funding, if baselined at an additional £2bn per annum, is likely to halt the decline in R&D investment as a percentage of GDP (currently around 1.7%).

In the 2016 Autumn Statement £4.7bn of additional funding for R&D was announced, with a rising profile, over the period 2017/18 to 2020/21.

Transition to UKRI:working towards 2.4%

In 2015 UK’s expenditure on R&D represented 1.7% of GDP –below the OECD average R&D intensity of 2.4%.

The Government has committed to reaching 2.4% of GDP investment in R&D by 2027, and to reaching 3% in the longer term. As a first step it will invest an additional £2.3bn over what was previously planned in 2021/22. UKRI will work with the Government to develop a roadmap for meeting this target to be published in 2018.

UKRI opportunities

78

Industrial Strategy

Challenge FundStrategic

Priorities FundFund for

International Collaborations

Strength in Places Fund

Talent and Skills Funds

Global Challenges

Research Fund

EPSRC’s Big Ideas Initiative

Opportunity for you to help us develop a portfolio of big ideas that can feed into future planning.

https://epsrc.ukri.org/research/ourportfolio/epsrcbigideas/

Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund

Challenge Fund aims:

• To build on the UK’s world-class research base to deliver the science that business needs to transform existing industries and create new ones

• To accelerate commercial exploitation of the most exciting technologies the UK has to offer the world, ensuring that scientific investment truly delivers economic impact, jobs and growth right across the country

• To support industry-led programmes powered by multi-disciplinary research and business-academic collaboration

Accelerating detection of

disease

Smart sustainable packaging

https://innovateuk.blog.gov.uk/2019/02/05/industrial-strategy-challenge-fund-wave-3-shortlist/

Commercialising quantum

technologies

Digital security by design

Driving the electric

revolution

Future flight

Industrial decarbonisation

Manufacturing made smarter

Transforming foundation industries

ISCF Wave 3 Challenges are subject to business case. More info here:

Wav

e 3

Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund

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Title Total investment

Other partners

Faraday Battery Challenge £246M IUK

Robots for a Safer World £93M IUK

Medicines Manufacturing £188M IUK, MRC, BBSRC?

Transforming Construction / Active Building Centre

£170M IUK< ESRC

Prospering from the Energy Revolutions (PFER)

£108M IUK, ESRC, NERC, STFC

Audience of the Future £33M IUK, AHRC

Next Generation Services £20M IUK, ESRC

Quantum Technology £20M IUK

Wave 1 and 2 Wave 3

Title Total investment Other partners

Future Flight £125m IUK, ESRC

Industrial Decarbonisation Challenge

£170m IUK, ESRC, NERC, BBSRC

Digital Security by Design £70m IUK

Transforming Foundation Industries

£66m IUK, ESRC, NERC

Manufacturing Made Smarter £147m IUK, ESRC, NERC, AHRC, STFC

Commercialising Quantum Technologies

£70m IUK

Driving the Electric Revolution £80m IUK, NERC

Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging

£60m IUK, NERC, BBSRC, ESRC, AHRC, STFC

From data to early diagnostics and precision medicine

£210m IUK, MRC, BBSRC

Strategic Priorities Fund

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Title Total investment

Other partners

AI and data science for science engineering and gov't

£39.3M BBSRC, STFC, MRC, NERC

Physics for life £31.2M MRC, BBSRC

Ensuring the security of digital technologies at the periphery

£30.6M IUK, AHRC, ESRC

Climate resilience £18.7M NERC, Met Office, ESRC, AHRC

Clean air: analysis and solutions

£19.6M NERC, Met Office, MRC, ESRC, IUK, NPL

Landscape decisions £10.5M NERC, ESRC, BBSRC, AHRC

Constructing a digital environment

££10.4M NERC

Title Total investment Other partners

National interdisciplinary circular economy research centre

NERC, ESRC

Protecting citizens online ESRC, AHRC

Trustworthy autonomous systems

AHRC, STFC, UKSA, IUK, ESRC

Excalibur Met Office, STFC, NERC, MRC

Clean air: future challenges

NERC, MRC, ESRC, IUK, NPL

Greenhouse gas removal NERC, ESRC, IUK, BBSRC, AHRC

Quantum sensors for fundamental physics

STFC

Wave 1 Wave 2

UKRI opportunities

82

Industrial Strategy

Challenge FundStrategic

Priorities FundFund for

International Collaborations

Strength in Places Fund

Talent and Skills Funds

Global Challenges

Research Fund

EPSRC’s Big Ideas Initiative

Opportunity for you to help us develop a portfolio of big ideas that can feed into future planning.

https://epsrc.ukri.org/research/ourportfolio/epsrcbigideas/

What is ‘Big Ideas?’

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Developing ideas with the community

Big ideasubmitted

Business ready Ideas assessed and taken forward

Big Ideas is a project that is developing a framework to identify and prioritise new “Big Ideas” from the research community. The framework will support the development of these ideas from conception to business case.

A Big Idea is an adventurous and exciting idea from the research community that will have the ability to enthuse the public and Government, and that will be transformative or enabling if successful.

Big ideas are those that are hard to achieve, require significant support (financial, people, skills) to make them possible and have ground-breaking impacts (in all forms), attract public and government enthusiasm and excitement.

Why are we doing it?

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Responding to a changing environment.

Allowing ideas to be generated, assessed

and developed.

Ensuring our community are ready to articulate their ideas in a manner

that appeals to government audiences.

AI @ EPSRC

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The high political profile of AI

Industrial Strategy White Paper – AI and Data Economy are one of four Grand ChallengesHall and Presenti Review ‘Growing the Artificial Intelligence Industry in the UK’APPG & Lords Select Committee ReportAI Sector DealOffice for AI & AI Council

Is this an opportunity or a threat?

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Realising the Opportunity of AI: EPSRC’s Aims

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Build mutually beneficial

relationships with

stakeholders

Put the UK in a world leading

position in AI research and

innovation

Understand the

landscape, and the

opportunities and gaps

Academic Community

IndustryOAI & AI Council

Colleagues across UKRI

CDEIODI Lloyds Register

Foundation

Government Departments

Research StrengthsOpportunities

Gaps/NeedsAreas of Potential

International Funding Landscape UK USPs

Areas of international leadership/competitiveness

Leading the realisation of opportunities

Realising the Opportunity of AI: UKRI AI Review

The review aims to understand current support for AI research and innovation, identify opportunities and assess gaps in provision, and recommend future support strategies that will enable AI to realise its full potential to the UK.

The review will:Map current support for AI related research and innovationEngage key stakeholders in exploring the UK’s ambitions and desired outcomes for AI related research and innovation, and considering the role of public investment in delivering these Set out a strategy for appropriately supporting AI research and innovation in the UK, including specific recommendations for UKRI activities

The UKRI AI Review – Where are we trying to get to?

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Healthcare

ICT

Core‐ApplicationsLinked AI 

Applications and Societal,Ethical, Economic Impacts 

of AI

Understanding &Developing 

fundamental AI

Maths

RRI &ethics

Creative Industries

EnvironmentEnergy

Financial Services

Transport Systems

Robotics

Pharmaceuticals &Biotech

Manufacturing

Smart Infrastructure& IoT

Cybersecurity

Strategic Needs

People Pipeline – Skills and leadership

Innovation & Translation

InfrastructurePublic Engagement

Collaboration with Business

Data Access

Outputs

Landscape Understanding

Recommendations for supporting AI

research and innovation

Future looking strategy

Remit & Scope of the Review

Current & Future AI Activities

EPSRC Led Activities

• Trustworthy Autonomous Systems• Protecting Citizens Online• Revised AI Technologies RA

Rationale• Call in Natural Language

Processing (~£4M) – Summer 2019• Next Stage Digital Economy

Centres (£20M) – May 2019• Potential call around AI & Security• CHISTERA – Explainable AI

UKRI Led Activities

• Turing AI Fellowships • AI CDTs – management across

investment • UKRI AI Review• Upcoming FIC Activity with

Canada (ESRC Led)

Questions?