Research-industry challenge!

We are looking forward to welcoming the team from Babcock, along with postgraduate students and academic researchers from across the country, at our industry challenge event in Exeter on the 2nd of March. Attendees will exchange research and innovation perspectives and spark ideas in a collaborative environment designed around four industry challenges. Registration has now closed, but stay tuned for posts on our social platforms and our events page for future opportunities.

KEUK Webinar

Don't miss our upcoming webinar with Knowledge Exchange UK - The academic perspective: Insights and opportunities of transforming research into action.

The session will highlight how the DBAA project is empowering researchers to build confidence, competence, and connections beyond academia. We’ll explore practical training, experiential learning initiatives, and new data on what’s working to support effective collaboration and impact.

Case studies

Dr Sam van Beurden: Digital health collaborations to solve impulsive eating and support heart failure patients

While researching impulsive eating for her PhD, behavioural scientist Dr Sam van Beurden took the initiative to seek out non-academic partnerships that could transform her findings into digital tools for patients. Sam’s research has since shifted to heart failure, but her projects have kept the enduring thread of non-academic collaboration. “Every project I work on has at least one non-academic partner. For me, that’s not an optional extra. It’s part of how I try to ensure that the research is more likely to be meaningful.”

Dr Anna Price: The AI chatbot that could improve access to health services for young people with ADHD

Dr Anna Price is collaborating with the NHS’s Digital Futures Lab to co-develop an AI chatbot designed to help young people with ADHD access health services and advice. Anna talks about the practicalities, challenges and benefits of research-industry collaborations, as well as offering her top-tips for early-career researchers seeking partnerships. “I’m motivated to use my research to impact people’s lives. Working with others who have a shared vision and values helps to make that happen.”

Bridging academic and industry cultures at Amazon HQ

Earlier this month, we had an amazing opportunity to visit Amazon’s UK Headquarters with a group of postgraduate and early-career researchers. It was an inspiring day packed with insightful conversations, fresh perspectives, and a shared commitment to stronger collaboration between higher education and the business world.
Here’s a short video capturing some of the energy from the day:

What we're reading

There's so much amazing work being done across the sector around supporting PGRs and ECRs and encouraging industry engagement. Here are some of our favourite articles from the last month:

• Deepening university-investor links: a review by Tony Hickson for UKRI: we were pleased to be included in this report for Research England exploring the links between universities and industry. The report’s findings about the importance of tailored, experiential learning for researchers resonated strongly with our experiences running our networking initiatives over the last six months.
• Open letter from Ian Chapman to research and innovation community: like much of the sector, we’re watching the recent policy changes to UKRI funding with interest. This open letter from UKRI CEO Sir Ian Chapman (and a follow-up two weeks later) gave some more insight into what information we can expect when regarding these changes.
• New collaborative models of knowledge exchange are needed: we were interested to read this piece over on Wonkhe from Kim Stuart and Audrey Cumberford about a new collaborative model of knowledge exchange in Scotland’s smaller universities.
• UKRI artificial intelligence research and innovation strategic framework: another recent policy and strategy update from UKRI came in the form of their new AI strategic framework this month. We were especially pleased to see their commitment to producing researchers skilled in AI literacy; our survey of UK businesses last year found that AI and big data was the area where they were most likely to turn to academia, so ensuring ECRs and PGRs have those skills and expertise is vital.
• Postgraduate research experience up to highest level of satisfaction in more than 10 years: the results of the Postgraduate Research Experience Survey were released this month, with some really key insights for the DBAA project. The survey found that 38% of PGRs communicated their research to a non-academic audience in 2025; 30% engaged with non-academic partners; and 13% had a placement or internship. As industry engagement becomes ever more vital for accessing funding, we hope those numbers will increase in the coming years!