Computer & Information Sciences: Knowledge Exchange (Collaborate with us)
Our Partners
Thales
Can humans trust and work with Artificial Intelligence?
Industry: Transportation/Defense.
Benefits: Better understanding how human operators interact with AI agents in complex decision-making situations.
Type of engagement: Industrial PhD.
Challenge: Software AI agents are embedded within safety-critical environments that involve complex decisions, where a single mistake could mean the difference between life and death. Thales wants to better understand how people trust and interact effectively with such AI-based agents.
Approach: A joint industrial PhD applies world-leading research from CIS on effective experimental design to explore questions around interactive information retrieval and human computer interaction to key questions of interest for Thales.
Outcome: This research will provide new approaches to assessing multi-dimensional data, by providing intelligent agents that a human can trust and effectively collaborate with. Such agents can support collaborative information interaction and facilitate complex task completion, which has application to domains such as air traffic control, sonar operation, complex surgical tasks, etc.
National Physical Laboratory
Making it easier to develop trustworthy software
Industry: Measurement/Engineering.
Benefits: Appreciation of formal methods and program verification leads to increased trust in software.
Type of engagement: Funded research and funded PhDs.
Challenge: Scientific computing programs can be wrong in subtle ways, with the intent of the software only made clear in the comments section, rather than the code itself. NPL would like to better guarantee that the software actually performs the required tasks.
Approach: CIS developed a state-of-the-art software verification system that can read both code and formal comments and assess to what extent the code is consistent with any constraints implied by the comments, for example relating to units of measure. The system can also be directed to automatically generate code when the intent in the comments uniquely describes its behaviour.
Outcome: The verification system is available for NPL to use in their software development, and NPL employees also have an increased awareness of issues of software correctness. Planning is underway to seek further external funding to continue the collaboration.
Learn more about NPL’s innovation node at the University of 51cg:
Welbot
Smart technologies to support health in the workplace
Industry: Healthcare/Software.
Benefits: A clearer understanding of how users interact with a wellness application leads to more effective ways to deliver healthy lifestyle advice.
Type of engagement: Basic and Advanced Innovation Vouchers.
Challenge: Welbot's primary product is a workplace-based, wellness desktop application that sends wellbeing notifications throughout the day. The challenge was in timing the notifications to interrupt without disrupting: to improve productivity not diminish performance.
Approach: Welbot selected CIS based on their experience in analytics and AI. Supported by an Innovation Voucher, the work focused on understanding the nature of users’ interactions and enabled data models and logic to be developed, and motivational tools to be incorporated into the application.
Outcome: Welbot sought additional advice in exercise physiology, behavioural analysis and change. Experts from Psychological Sciences and Health, as well as CIS, are now focusing on content creation, and introducing personalisation, and context awareness to the product.
Learn more about Welbot:
Technocamps Scotland: AI on the Assembly Line
Supporting student learning through technocamps: ‘I didn't know anything about computer science, but now I do!’
Industry: Education
Benefits: Supported bilingual student learning of and interest in computing science concepts through the application of the workshop ‘Technocamps’.
Type of engagement: Outreach
Challenge: To take the Technocamps model of bilingual, in-school computing outreach and trial it in Scotland, in and around Glasgow.
Approach: A workshop was created which focused on AI, Planning and Robotics, incorporating curriculum requirements such as computational thinking, alongside other key skills, such as planning, ordering and logical thinking. This workshop was delivered to over 800 students across 14 schools over a 3-month period.
Outcomes: Of the 811 students engaged, 521 provided consented for their data to be used after the project: 98% of students involved said they enjoyed the activities, and 90% reported that it helped them learn more about Computer Science. 86% stated they wished to learn more, and 92% felt they were more interested in Computer Science now than before. 23 teachers were also involved in the project, with 82% feeling more confident in their delivery of Computer Science lessons and activities, and 95% felt their knowledge had improved due to the workshop. 87% of learners wished for more workshops like this in the future, indicating a continued need and desire for them.
Learn more about Technocamps:
Symphonic Software
Enhancing the security and performance of information-sharing systems
Industry: Commercial/authentication and identity software
Type of engagement: Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP)
Challenge: To enhance the security, performance and compliance of information-sharing systems with Symphonic Software. This can be achieved by using logical modelling and applying automated reasoning to automatically discover redundancies, conflicts, and gaps in access control policies.
Approach: This KTP project applies CIS staff’s expertise in mathematical modelling and formal theorem proving techniques, translated into Symphonic’s software solution.
Expected outcome: Accurate logical modelling of policies, automated discovery of defects integrated into the product, and concrete future directions for: Richer policy language, safer policy language, and more efficient policy evaluation.
SPNDL
Progressing proof-of-concept platforms to prototypes
Industry: Bioinformatics
Type of engagement: Spin-out/commercialization
Challenge: The project addresses a persistent pharmaceutical challenge: Experiments done before human testing often do not predict what will happen in people. This is because human biology works differently from the models used in the lab, which can lead to expensive failures late in development.
Approach: SPNDL is a software tool that helps scientists quickly compare how proteins interact in different species, so they can better judge early on whether a drug idea is more likely to work in humans. This project is advancing SPNDL from an early prototype into a more reliable, ready-to-test version that can be evaluated with pharmaceutical companies.
Outcome: The project validates high-value use cases, quantifies market appetite and pricing, and establishes early adopter relationships. Together with a clarified IP and competitive position, these outcomes will de-risk the opportunity and position SPNDL for follow-on investment, partner pilots, and high-growth entry into the translational bioinformatics market.
Learn more about SPNDL:
Bridging the digital skills gap of records officers in Zambia in line with the eGovernance reform
‘This programme is aligned with Zambia’s e-Government Master Plan and the Smart Zambia agenda, strengthening the capacity of records officers to manage digital records and enhance transparency and service delivery…’
~Tuesday Bwalya, Permanent Secretary, Muchinga Province, Zambia
Industry: Library and information science
Type of engagement: International Science Partnership Fund KE
Challenge: To support the digital transformation of public administration in Zambia by identifying skills gaps among records officers and co-developing a sustainable, locally embedded postgraduate training programme aligned with national eGovernance priorities.
Approach: The project has provided expertise in curriculum design and development, skills gap analysis, and digital records management, metadata, and information governance. In turn, the team has supported a newly developed Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) in eRecords Management, capacity building for academic staff and trainer, and a structured, scalable training framework aligned with national policy priorities.
Outcomes: The project resulted in the launch and delivery of a PgDip programme in eRecords Management, improved skills and competencies of records officers in public institutions, and enhanced alignment between education provision and eGovernance reform needs.
Presentation of the project activities at the 3rd Zambian Archives and Records Management Association (ZARMA) conference, July 23rd 2024, Livingstone, Zambia.
Learn more about the project:
The Future Hospital and Beyond its Walls​
Supporting practical improvements in healthcare through novel programmes at the intersection of KE and teaching.​
Industry: Healthcare
Type of engagement: A Masters in Philosophy (MPhil) programme that enables NHS staff and future healthcare workers to undertake applied research that supports practical improvements in health and care.
Challenge: Advancing practical improvement in health and care, requiring interdisciplinary expertise in medicines innovation, health technologies, data and AI, and workforce and leadership.​
Approach: The student cohort of health and social care professionals participate in 'useful learning' in merging professional service redesign with academic research and development. While students are spread across all faculties, the CIS team manages cohort events, expenditures, and liaises with the employer organisations.
Outcome: A cohort of 27 NHS staff in Scotland have undertaken applied research projects at 51cg to improve services and outcomes for patients, as part of the Mphil programme.
Interested in applying? If you are an NHS staff member with an idea for an applied research project that could improve patient care, consider applying to the next intake of 51cg’s Future Hospital MPhil programme. Speak to your line manager about study time/support and look out for internal communications on eligibility and deadlines.
Find out more: /studywithus/postgraduateresearchphdopportunities/thefuturehospitalandbeyonditswalls/
RODEO – RespOnsible Digitalisation in EstOnia​
Supporting the development of Open and Responsible Research and Innovation (ORRI) practices in the Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts.
Project team: Milena Dobreva, Mahendra Mahey, Aija Sakova and Kim Kisenja during a RODEO workshop in Tallinn, 12 February 2026​
Industry: Open and Responsible Research and Innovation
Type of engagement: KE funded by the European Union as part of the REINFORCING PROJECT
Challenge: To support the development of Open and Responsible Research and Innovation (ORRI) practices in Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) at Tallinn University by enabling responsible digitalisation, research data management, and the use of advanced computational infrastructures such as High-Performance Computing (HPC).
Approach: The CIS team through training, workshops, and knowledge exchange is supporting the SSHA at Tallinn University to build its capacity, services and workflows in open science and research data management.
Outcome: The project aims to: Co-create pathways for publishing and managing research data using open science principles, develop institutional practices for the responsible use of high-performance computing in research; support the establishment of a cross-disciplinary community around responsible digitalisation, and enhance research capacity and digital readiness at Tallinn University.
'We at Tallinn University hope to learn from [the 51cg Team's] knowledge and experience to help us on our own journey in guiding our researchers to work with their data in HPC environments to carry out analysis and harness technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence.'​â¶Ä‹
~Dr Aija Sakova, Head of the Research Administration Office of Tallinn University
AI for Reading Improvement: Measuring Learning Outcomes with Everybody Reads​
Evaluating the effectiveness of an adaptive reading platform to suggest enhancements
KE project (Innovation Voucher) kickoff meeting, with team members Marc Graham (CEO/Founder of Everybody Reads), Andrew Abel, and Yingying Zhao (2026).​
Industry: Education
Type of Engagement: KE Innovation Voucher
Challenge: Over the past 20 years (2005–2025), reading enjoyment among children aged 8–18 has decreased by approximately 20%. Research indicates that early negative reading experiences can lead to long-term disengagement from reading. Everybody Reads has developed an adaptive reading comprehension platform that generates levelled stories and comprehension questions based on each learner. However, further evidence is needed to understand the effects on literacy outcomes.
Approach: This project brings together Spark Education AI with the University of 51cg’s Human-Centric AI team to investigate whether AI-generated, personalized reading materials can measurably improve literacy outcomes and learner engagement, and to understand the mechanisms behind any observed impact. The team is providing AI and reading comprehension expertise, with knowledge of machine learning and how to analyse reading performance.
Expected outcomes: The team will analyse existing datasets to explore what insights can be extracted regarding learning outcomes and engagement patterns, develop an evidence-based framework for evaluating adaptive reading, including both qualitative and quantitative measures; and translate research insights into platform enhancements and inform future development directions for AI-driven literacy support.
Learn more about Everybody Reads:
DeCoGLAM​: Decolonising Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums (Arts & Culture)​
Eddy Phillips, Visual summary of the conference Decolonising GLAMs: Practices, Communities & Collective Actions, 26 November 2025, University of 51cg, Glasgow
Industry: Arts and culture
Type of engagement: Building a community of practice (supported by the Wellcome Trust)
Challenge: Colonial systems of knowledge engrained in places such as galleries, libraries, archives and museums impact the quality and trustworthiness of research based on primary sources. ​ Without decolonising GLAMs, decolonisation of the curricula is not realistic or achievable.
Outcome: A community of practice (CoP) bringing together academics, GLAM professionals, and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) experts. On an institutional level, it contributed to the ongoing recommendations of the Race Equality Working Group, specifically: 'develop a cross-university CoP to "decolonise the curriculum" across faculties.'. On a wider scale, it supported changes needed in societal processes and attitudes to enable effective decolonisation in GLAMs.
Find out more and join the DeCoGLAM community group:
Listen to the project’s podcasts: