Plans for £39million Ulster University AI and Analytics expansion revealed

At a special Invest NI Council meeting on Wednesday, councillors received a report on the Cognitive Analytics Research Lab (CARL) and the Centre for Industrial Digitisation and Robotics Automation (CIDRA).

According to the report, CARL will ‘exploit advances in high performance computing by applying AI and machine learning techniques to sectors like advanced manufacturing, personalised medicine, and creative industries.’

CIDRA meanwhile has ‘a focus on manufacturing and the use of AI in smart robotic systems, recognising that core technologies have now reached sufficient maturity to provide huge opportunities for the manufacturing industry.’

Ulster University’s Professor Brian Meenan told councillors that the two projects had recently been combined and plans were in place to submit an Outline Business Case (OBC) for approval.

The OBC proposes that both CARL and CIDRA will be located on a Strand Road site, with a £39m total budget to allow for a 2,380 square metre building, construction equipment and staff costs.

Funding was being managed by Department for Economy, who have since deferred responsibility to Invest NI, and both projects are estimated to be completed by 2027.

“Unfortunately, these projects are a labour of love with a long gestation periods,” Professor Meenan said. “The focus is now on the OBC being finalised. After that there will be a process of planning, design, and getting funding and build time.”

Professor Meenan concluded by saying both CARL and CIDRA were an “integral part” of the Ulster University’s growth plans and commitments.

He added: “Our expectation is that the project will start to attract more academic staff and will introduce new courses in a planned way.”