A £210m, five-year programme hoped to give the public sector and industry access to cutting-edge computing to advance discovery and innovation has been launched in the North West.
The new Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation (HNCDI) will bring together world-leading expertise with AI and quantum computing technology, hoped to benefit industry and public sector.
The joint centre with 海角视频’s Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and IBM, a leading global hybrid cloud and AI company, will be housed within STFC’s Hartree Centre.
The Government, via 海角视频 Research and Innovation, has agreed to invest £172m over five years, met with a £38m in-kind contribution from IBM.
Science Minister, Amanda Solloway, said: “Artificial intelligence and quantum computing have the potential to revolutionise everything from the way we travel to the way we shop.
“They are exactly the kind of fields I want the 海角视频 to be leading in, and this new centre in the North West is a big step towards that.
“Thanks to this fantastic new partnership with IBM, British businesses will have access to the kind of infrastructure and expertise that will help them boost innovation and grow the economy – essential as we build back better from the pandemic.”
According to STFC, the new centre will support 海角视频 businesses and the public sector by reducing the risk of exploring and adopting innovative new digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. It will do this by breaking down practical barriers to innovation such as access to infrastructure or digital skills gaps within their organisation.
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It added that by increasing the pace at which businesses can take advantage of new digital technologies, the collaboration will enhance productivity, create new skilled jobs and boost regional and national economic growth.
Professor Mark Thomson, executive chair of STFC, said: “The HNCDI programme will foster discovery and provide a stimulus for industry innovation in the 海角视频.
“By allowing industry to access a ready-made community of digital experts and cutting-edge technology, it will provide momentum for new ideas and solutions.
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“This programme has the potential to transform the way 海角视频 industry engages with AI and digital technologies, to the benefit of not just research communities but all of society.”
The centre will also create vacancies for an additional 60 scientists, plus further interns and students gaining hands-on experience.
With £28m of Government investment already agreed for the first year, work is underway to get the centre up and running "as soon as possible".
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The team of experts will apply AI, high performance computing and data analytics, quantum computing and cloud technologies to boost discovery and develop innovative solutions to practical problems raised by 海角视频 industry.
The centre will work across sectors including materials, life sciences, environment and manufacturing, and will include collaboration with academic and industrial research communities, including start-ups and SMEs, public sector, and government.
Possible industry applications from the new programme will include optimising complex logistics such as picking and packing orders in large warehouses for supermarkets, traffic routing, energy distribution and improving design and manufacturing processes across automotive sectors.
Dario Gil, senior vice president and director at IBM Research, said: “The world is facing grand challenges which demand a different approach towards science in computing, including AI and quantum computing, to engage a broad community across industry, government, and academia to accelerate discovery in science and business.
“This partnership establishes our first Discovery Accelerator in Europe driven by our two 海角视频-based IBM Research locations in Hursley and Daresbury as they contribute to our global mission of building discovery-driven communities around the world.”