UK Government distribute nearly £4 million in funding for green AI innovations

The UK government increase their funding in AI, to help UK industries decrease carbon emissions in ambition to reach net zero

UK government release research showing artificial intelligence is set to transform the way industries cut their carbon emissions thanks to a multi-million-pound government investment.

Funding to Ttwelve green AI initiatives will be administered, they’ll receive a share of £1 million to decarbonise and boost generation of renewable energy, contributing to reaching the country’s ambitious net zero goal by 2050.

The schemes range from solar energy improvements, that use AI to improve the forecasting of when it will best produce energy for the grid, to the decarbonisation of dairy farming through the use of AI robots monitoring crop and soil health.

On top of this, government will provide a further £2.25 million to support further AI innovations, with the aim of cutting emissions specifically in energy sectors.

This forms part of the government’s £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio and cements the UK’s position firmly at the forefront of AI and decarbonisation.

CEO of Digital Catapult, Dr Jeremy Silver, said:

The ADViCE programme will drive forward AI’s integral role in solving critical decarbonisation challenges. The programme partners sit at the heart of the UK’s dynamic AI ecosystem and are perfectly placed to forge collaborations between the technology community and some of our most carbon intensive sectors.

The AI projects to receive a total of £1 million to develop new decarbonisation solutions include:

Secqai Ltd. in London will receive £100,000 to support the development of new ultra-low-power AI technology, which mirrors the neural structure of the human brain. This new system will consume a fraction of the power of traditional AI hardware, helping to cut its carbon footprint
£121,500 for London-based Open Climate Fix Ltd. to develop AI that will support the connection of solar electricity to the energy grid. The technology will use satellite and weather data to forecast the amount to solar energy being transferred to the grid, to reduce network congestion and maximise the amount of renewable energy transmitted
£133,932 will also support a solar energy project run by the University of Nottingham. In this project, AI will improve the forecasting of solar energy production, using sky images and weather data
£132,147 will help list.io Ltd. to create a new agriculture robotics that will provide an automated soil and crop health monitoring system, to support decarbonisation in crop management and dairy farms

The government has announced a further £2.25 million under its AI for Decarbonisation Programme, taking the total funding provided to £3.75 million. Energy firms, software developers and innovators have until 10 October 2023 to apply.

 

Find out more here.