Ulster University's Magee campus is to become a 'hub' to help businesses make use of supercomputing, artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge digital technologies, it has been announced.
The Derry campus is to share in a £4.5million fund - alongside Cardiff and Newcastle University - for small and medium-sized enterprise 'engagement hubs'.
The funding comes from the Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation, a research organisation set up in 2012 by the government's UK Research and Innovation body.
Read more: Nearly 1,000 healthcare students make the switch to Magee campus in Derry
Ulster University say the the Magee campus will become a "regional hub" for the UK wide programme.
Professor Liam Maguire, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research at Ulster University, said: "Ulster University is delighted to have been selected to lead an SME engagement hub as part of the Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation (HNCDI) programme.
"The creation of this hub with its dedicated space and expert personnel will allow us to build upon this partnership to deliver upskilling and digital innovation to all sectors of the Northern Ireland economy. With its very high proportion of SMEs, Northern Ireland has a marked lower performance than the UK average in terms of digitalisation generally and AI adoption specifically so there is a clear and present need for this hub."
He continued: “We have previously partnered with Hartree through a series of workshops and seminars to support Northern Ireland companies with their digital technology adoption. Hartree and Ulster are currently working together with others on the Innovate UK funded Smart Manufacturing Data Hub project supporting manufacturing SMEs across the UK."
UK Minister of State at the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, George Freeman, said: “The UK has always been at the cutting edge of some of the most important technologies of tomorrow, but too often, we’ve failed to translate that unrivalled expertise into practical tools and resources which can benefit our wider business communities.
“That’s why, in 2021, we committed to bringing our brightest minds together in fields including AI and Quantum, through a £172 million investment to establish the Hartree National Centre for Digital Innovation.
“The funding announced today will go even further to turn great science and technology into great business, providing an unrivalled network of support for those SMEs who are adopting emerging technologies.
"These new hubs will allow us to target support at a local level, while laying the foundations for a larger support ecosystem connecting companies right across the UK.”
Professor Kate Royse,from the Hartree Centre, said: “It’s important to us that support for digital technology adoption reaches as many companies across the UK as possible, and the Hartree Centre SME hubs will enhance that regional access."
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