22nd November 2024
iSH has welcomed a successful funding bid to create a new consortium that links Cumbria and Oxfordshire-based entities in their goal to grow Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (RAI) early-stage technology development across the regions.
UK Atomic Energy Authority and the Universities of Cumbria, Manchester and Oxford have secured £4.9m for a Place Based Impact Acceleration Account (PBIAA), from UKRI, to unearth the latest innovative nuclear RAI concepts being developed across academia and in collaboration with the supply chain.
The work will support the future of the nuclear industry, and adjacent sectors, through cross-regional collaboration.
Opportunities will be created for spin-outs, attracting private finance and the development of a skills and talent pipeline.
iSH has been a key partner offering support and in-kind resources to the project along with other members of the Cumbria Robotics Cluster and Oxfordshire-based organisations.
Darren Crossley, Chair of iSH, who led the application on behalf of Cumberland Council as a key civic body within the PBIAA, said: “This is a significant opportunity to enhance cutting edge technology development in the nuclear sector, where Cumbria is leading on decommissioning, in partnership with leaders in sub-sectors of the nuclear industry such as nuclear fusion in Oxfordshire.”
Gary McKeating, Managing Director of iSH, welcomed the win.
“We very much look forward to co-developing the roadmap that takes these early-stage academic concepts through to commercialisation in collaboration with the cross-regional working consortium,” he said.
“This development is a very positive outcome for us, as it will help amplify everything that the Cumbria Robotics Cluster is doing, in terms of academic and skills development in robotics in the region, but also importantly the cultural element of the project, which brings skills to under-represented groups in Cumbria, enabling inclusive growth – a key tenet of what iSH is here to achieve.”