ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL EPSRC Strategy and Priorities for our next Delivery Plan CPHC Conference 27 April 2015 ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL

What I am going to talk about What we are facing EPSRC bid ICT Theme Looking ahead

What is about to happen? UK General Election on 7 May (Comprehensive) Spending Review Settlement for science Settlement for each Research Council Next EPSRC Delivery Plan

The next 12 months? Assuming a workable government… Nov 2014 Jan 2015 May 2015 Sep 2015 Dec 2015 Autumn Statement Election Spending review announced Budget SR results Science budget allocations Government EPSRC Strategic Plan published Stakeholder engagement on plans and priorities Spending review bidding process allocation Delivery Plan published March 2016 …and that it isn’t an accelerated timetable

Some context….

Performance of the UK research base UK punches above its weight 0.9% of global population 3.2% of R&D expenditure 4.1% of researchers 15.9% of most highly-cited articles Source: International Comparative Performance of the UK Research Base – 2013, Elsevier.

Research investment: 2000 - 2011 Source: DG Research and Innovation – Economic Analysis Unit

OFFICIAL - SENSITIVE

Government priorities for science and innovation Eight Great Technologies Advanced materials Agri-science Big data Energy storage Regenerative medicine Robotics and autonomous systems Satellites and space Synthetic biology Key industrial sectors Aerospace Automotive Construction Education Information Economy Life Sciences Nuclear Offshore Wind Oil and Gas Professional and Business Services

EPSRC strategy and priorities

About EPSRC

Extra Capital EPSRC has received Further capital investment under discussion

One vision…… Two goals….. Three strategies….. Our vision is for the UK to be the best place in the world to research, discover and innovate Two goals….. RESEARCH and DISCOVER RESEARCH and INNOVATE Three strategies….. Balancing capability Building leadership Accelerating impact

9,000 115 Building Leadership DOCTORAL STUDENTS SUPPORTED CENTRES FOR DOCTORAL TRAINING

Accelerating Impact

115 Research areas Balancing Capability For EPS subjects, the UK is 2nd in the world in terms of the proportion of the top highly cited publications www.epsrc.ac.uk/ourportfolio 115 Research areas Challenge Capability

Our single message Strong economies are science economies. They invest in research, discovery and innovation. Strong economies are built on the growth and productivity driven by the engineering and physical sciences EPSRC is the most effective means of delivering a world leading, innovative research base that can build a strong UK economy

EPS underpins growth and productivity Engineering is pervasive and highly dynamic, with engineering research underpinning almost every economic sector and contributing an estimated £280 billion in GVA to the UK economy in 2011 Physics-based businesses account for more than one million jobs in the UK and contribute £77 billion to the UK economy directly The UK’s ‘upstream’ chemicals industry and downstream’ chemistry-using sectors contributed a combined total of £258 billion in value-added in 2007, equivalent to 21% of UK GDP, and supported over 6 million UK jobs Maths research alone underpinned a contribution of over £200 billion to the UK economy in 2010 Sources: Assessing the economic returns of engineering research and postgraduate training in the UK (Technoloplis 2015) Importance of Physics to the UK economy (IoP, 2012) The economic benefits of chemistry research to the UK (EPSRC, RSC, with Oxford Econmics 2010) Mathematical sciences – leading the way to economic growth (EPSRC and CMS with Deloittes, 2014)

ICT Theme strategy and priorities

What we are and have been doing Our governing body, EPSRC Council, asked us to start doing some thinking in preparation for the spending review They gave us a framework to do our thinking against We were asked to engage with Strategic Advisory Teams initially Following this, we have been engaging more widely, through workshops, visits and other meetings So at this stage, we have our current thinking, which we are sharing, to discuss and get the research communities’ impressions of EPSRC Council set out several things we need to ensure we achieve. That it should fit with the Strategic Plan It should encourage multidisciplinary working Our working with InnovateUK (Technology Strategy Board) and the Catapults should be enhanced People should be protected An appropriate balance between different mechanisms should be (research training, fellowships, research grants) Ensuring long term capability for the Theme Arguments for getting more or preventing less funding and thinking on how to respond to changes in funding profile

Current thinking for next Delivery Plan Main priorities for the ICT Theme Ensuring the ICT academic research ecosystem in the UK is healthy, works effectively, and has impact Ensuring it is at the heart of UK efforts to contribute to a world leading capability in key strategic areas Ensuring the ICT academic research landscape adapts to scientific progress in fundamental areas and technological developments arising from other disciplines and in practice Ensuring the ICT Theme makes a positive contribution to the health of other disciplines and Themes This is where we have got to in our thinking, haven taken the advice of the ICT Strategic Advisory Team, on what the priorities should be for the ICT Theme in the next Delivery Plan. Ensuring the ICT academic research ecosystem in the UK is healthy, works effectively, and has impact. Which means making sure we have a portfolio which includes fundamental, basic, underpinning, and applied research, hardware and software research, and spans computer science, communications, electronics, to photonics… That there is communication and collaboration between researchers from different parts of this portfolio, and connection with users of research so that there is a satisfactory link to practice. Ensuring it is at the heart of UK efforts to contribute to a world leading capability in key strategic areas. These are give on the next slide. Ensuring the ICT academic research landscape adapts to scientific progress in fundamental areas and technological developments arising from other disciplines and in practice. For example, the development of areas of ICT research through the application of new mathematics, findings from the experiences of the Digital Economy Theme and thinking around responsible research and innovation. Ensuring the ICT Theme makes a positive contribution to the health of other disciplines and Themes. This would include the involvement of ICT researchers in the efforts of the Quantum Technologies Theme and Healthcare Themes, and the Advanced Materials initiative, as this is essential in order to achieve real progress in these areas.

Key strategic areas Ensuring the ICT Theme is at the heart of UK efforts to contribute to a world leading capability in key strategic areas Big Data Analytics - where the contribution of ICT researchers is integral to the development of capability and capacity Future Intelligent Technologies – including robotics and autonomous systems, where the smart element of these is critical to their effectiveness The Internet of Things - which builds on strength across a range of ICT research areas Human-like Computing - offering the prospect of computation which is akin to that of humans, where learning and making sense of information about the world around us can match our human performance Safe and Secure ICT – ensuring the reliable and responsible development of ICT, including cyber-security The focus on these five strategic areas, which have arisen from consideration of both how the landscape is developing, government priorities, and opportunities and challenges these areas present, is to ensure ICT research is at the heart of UK efforts to contribute to a world leading capability in these strategic areas (which are dependant on significant improvements in both hardware and software and draw on the whole ICT landscape, from computer science, communications, human interactions, electronics, to photonics), and will give the UK competitive advantage. Alongside ensuring a healthy and appropriately balanced portfolio which includes fundamental, basic, underpinning, and applied research, hardware and software research, and spans computer science, communications, electronics, to photonics, we think that it is important to ensure the ICT research in the UK makes a strong contribution to these areas.

How might we do this? Depends on what sort of settlement we get, but…

How might we do this? With more funding Collaborative research programmes involving researchers from across the ICT landscape Fellowships and strategic packages to increase capacity and capability Invest in infrastructure and translational activities Extend coverage of CDTs With less funding Develop and focus on priorities in strategic areas Keep space for research that will lead to new areas Protect support for people, for example student funding, fellowships, etc. Focused efforts on translation and encourage CASE conversion This slide notes some ideas for how we might address the suggested priorities and strategic areas given in the previous slides.

What next?

Engagement and more thinking Discussing this with the research and user communities ICT SAT Theme visits to universities ICT workshops Feedback from networks, societies etc. Regional workshops Autumn/Winter 2015 Preparing for various scenarios on 8 May Preparing for various funding scenarios Working out what this might mean in terms of funding priorities and shaping the portfolio – this work still has to be done Note, thinking we have done so far has been shared with EPSRC Council, and they are broadly supportive, but they stressed the need to consider interfaces and engage with the research and user communities on this. We have not finalised what the positions on the various research areas might be or successors to the current set of cross-ICT priorities.

Vision, Hearing & Other Senses Theory of Computation Maths of Computing Optical Devices and Subsystems Artificial Intelligence Microelectronics Design Optical Communications CMOS Device Technology Non-CMOS Device Technology Architectures and Operation Systems Information Systems ICT Networks and Distributed Systems Optoelectronic Devices and Circuits HCI Software Engineering Verification & Correctness Image and Vision Computing Natural Language Processing Speech Technology Music & Acoustic Technology Biological informatics Graphics & Visualisation Databases Programming Languages & Compilers Displays RF & Microwave Devices RF & Microwave Communications Digital Signal Processing Human Communication in ICT Vision, Hearing & Other Senses Theory of Computation Maths of Computing Optical Devices and Subsystems Artificial Intelligence Microelectronics Design Optical Communications CMOS Device Technology Non-CMOS Device Technology Architectures and Operating Systems Information Systems ICT Networks and Distributed Systems Optoelectronic Devices and Circuits HCI Software Engineering Verification & Correctness Image and Vision Computing Human Communication in ICT Natural Language Processing Speech Technology Music & Acoustic Technology Biological informatics Graphics & Visualisation Databases Programming Languages & Compilers Displays RF & Microwave Devices RF & Microwave Communications Digital Signal Processing So one might consider how this view of the portfolio should look given the four priorities and four strategic areas described earlier. Pervasive & Ubiquitous Computing

AND Getting the funding settlement we think we should get

Which means Demonstrating the benefit to the UK that: Has been delivered from research and research training that HAS been funded Will, and is being, delivered from research and research training being funded NOW Will arise from research and research training that we will fund in the FUTURE

Thank you for listening! Dr Liam Blackwell ICT Theme Leader Tel: 01793 444217 e-mail: liam.blackwell@epsrc.ac.uk