06 October 2021

University of Birmingham has opened an institute for the use of big data and artificial intelligence (AI) in a bid to address major global challenges.

The Institute for Interdisciplinary Data Science and Artificial Intelligence will put research on data and AI into practice through work with businesses and industry, charities and the public sector, it said.

Existing university partner the Alan Turing Institute, will work with the new institute on collaborative research in areas such as behavioural data science, healthcare, imaging and linguistics.

The institute will also work across the university and use data science to help with scientific research, medical diagnostics and robotics, as well as developing and training students in AI and data science.

Furthermore, the university’s computing facilities, which are run by the Birmingham Environment for Academic Research, will also be used by the new institute, including the supercomputer BlueBEAR.

“Data science and AI have made spectacular advances in recent years to become vital tools in scientific research,” said professor Iain Styles, director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Data Science and Artificial Intelligence. “We’re able to build on extensive expertise in modelling, statistics, machine learning, linguistics and optimisation – as well as the social, ethical and legal implications of data science technologies – to ensure these tools can deliver the information that we need to drive change.”

Birmingham is a world top 100 university and part of the prestigious Russell Group.