UK Robotics, after the Industrial Strategy

Guest blog by Rupen Kalsi, Policy Advisor, Policy Impact Unit at UCL Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP) #techUKSmarterState

Rupen Kalsi

Policy Advisor, Policy Impact Unit, UCL Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP)

Applications of robotics, that span everything from autonomous vehicles, drones, industrial robotics, and even architectural robotics, have the potential to transform almost every aspect of our lives.

The design, development and deployment of robotics technologies and systems continue to move at pace, accelerated by progress in Artificial Intelligence (AI), advanced materials, batteries, and 5G. This rapid pace of development is driving innovations like humanoid robots with robotic skin, which could have applications as varied as car manufacturing and even disaster relief.

Despite the UK’s strength in research and innovation, we lag behind other G7 nations in robotics adoption - ranking 24^th in the world for industrial robot density, behind Italy and France. So, what’s holding us back, and how we can we better drive adoption and systems integration?

We explored this question at a recent workshop jointly run by UCL’s Robotics Institute and techUK with participants from industry, academia, and policy. They concluded some of the key challenges are fragmentation of the innovation ecosystem, a complex regulation and compliance landscape, and risk aversion from investors that works to stifle innovation.

There are positive steps already underway, which may help tackle these challenges. These include Government commitment to £40million to fund a network of Robotics Adoption Hubs across the UK, which will be modelled on The National Robotarium (the UK’s Centre for AI and Robotics). Despite this, the Industrial Strategy’s Government’s Digital and Technologies Sector Plan did not list Robotics as a ‘frontier technology.’ Frontier technologies which were listed, such as AI, Advanced Connectivity Technologies and Semiconductors, will support in deploying and scaling robotics through convergence and the significant innovation this will unlock. For example, the combination of robotics and AI is producing AI systems that can perceive, reason and act in the physical world. But is this enough, or does greater adoption of robotics require further intervention?

Government could go further by -

Including robotics as a sixth critical technology within the Science & Technology Framework and a seventh frontier technology in the Digital and Technologies Sector Plan. Robotics is a significant driver of innovation and productivity in sectors like manufacturing and logistics. Robotics is also a key mechanism through which the UK will realise the potential of AI in adopting Embodied or ‘Physical’ AI systems. Robotics technologies should be explicitly recognised, championed and funded alongside other critical or frontier technologies in key Government strategies. This includes the Industrial Strategy’s Digital and Technologies Sector Plan.
Creating a cross-Government Robotics Council or a Robotics All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) to inform the development of the UK’s robotics policy and strategy. These forums could include cross-party politicians, policymakers, industry, academia, and trade unions to explore the development and application of robotics standards, principles and technologies. A Robotics Council could be led by a named Minister for Robotics – a world first – who would use their convening power to deliver a cohesive, collaborative vision for the sector.
Doubling-down on driving the adoption of robotics through education to provide a future-ready skills pipeline while changing attitudes to robotics adoption.

This could include -

Integrating robotics literacy into curricula from primary to tertiary education to create a future-ready skills pipeline. UCL’s Department of Computer Science already run a schools outreach programme - ‘Bio-Robotics: Crawl, Jump, and Slither!’ - bringing robotics and other new technologies to young people.
Facilitating industry-Government collaborations on skills. Schemes similar to the programme to boost British worker AI skills should be available to the public for robotics. These collaborations could be accompanied by targets for robotics upskilling, in line with targets set for AI skills.
Engagement with the public to change attitudes. The Turing Institute’s survey on public attitudes to AI suggests the public are more concerned about robotics than other technologies, and this concern has increased over time. Government, industry and academia must respond to the public’s growing concern with targeted engagement that aims to change public attitudes to robotics adoption.

These policy interventions would drive the adoption of robotics in the UK through political leadership, the consideration of robotics alongside other frontier or critical technologies, and industry-Government collaboration – unlocking potential and growth.

For industry contacts wanting to collaborate with world-class researchers at UCL’s Robotics Institute please contact Leah Frenette [email protected] and [email protected]. To discuss these policy recommendations please contact [email protected] at UCL’s Policy Impact Unit.

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