Partnership wins funding to enhance the use and application of AI for PGR ecosystem

A joint project by the University of Leeds and Aston University to set up an artificial intelligence (AI) tools research network has won £3.4m in funding by the Research England Development Fund.

The four-year UKRI funding will assess publicly available AI tools available for PhD research, and promote responsible AI uptake and innovation by researchers.

The Artificial Intelligence Researcher Development Network Plus (AI.RDN+) is being led by Dr Hosam Al-Samarraie, Associate Professor in Digital Innovation Design and Professor Arunangsu Chatterjee, Dean of Digital Transformation from the University of Leeds, along with Professor Phil Mizen, Professor of Sociology and Policy at Aston University.

The network will also include the eight Midlands Innovation research universities and the 12 universities that comprise the Yorkshire Universities consortium.

Together, through this network, we can build shared resources and approaches that ensure AI adoption in doctoral research is innovative, ethical and delivers real benefit for researchers and society.

Publicly available AI tools, like ChatGPT and Microsoft CoPilot, are being rapidly adopted in academia, but as well as the potential to reduce workloads, streamline processes and offer innovative ways to carry out research, the tools present challenges. This is especially true for PhD-level research, which occupies an important position when it comes to new findings and the translation of that knowledge.

Professor Chatterjee said: "This award reflects the importance of collaboration across universities to understand and shape the role of AI in research. By working alongside Aston and partners across the Midlands and Yorkshire, we can bring together complementary expertise and perspectives.

"At Leeds, through One Leeds, we have committed to embracing AI in a way that is responsible, inclusive and guided by our values. I am particularly pleased to see Dr Hosam Al-Samarraie leading this work for Leeds, bringing both expertise and vision to the partnership. Together, through this network, we can build shared resources and approaches that ensure AI adoption in doctoral research is innovative, ethical and delivers real benefit for researchers and society."

Identifying best practice

Very little work has been undertaken to understand the uses of publicly available AI tools used by doctoral researchers, their supervisors and examiners, in contrast to the attention directed towards usage by undergraduate students.

Doctoral researchers and their enablers feel ill-equipped in relation to the responsible and appropriate use of publicly available AI tools during the course of their doctoral research, and there is very little guidance from research and higher education institutions.

AI.RDN+ will respond to these challenges. It will carry out an extensive consultation process with PhD researchers, supervisors, examiners and research-enabling staff, such as professional services staff and technicians, to understand how publicly available AI tools are used to innovate and how its challenges are identified and negotiated.

Using this information, AI.RDN+ will create a resource base with guidance on what AI tools are available, how they can be used, and identify case studies of best practice. This information will be made available on a newly created AI.RDN+ portal.

Building skills

The network will also create training resources for all stakeholders, build skills and knowledge of publicly available AI tools and equip doctoral researchers and those that enable them with the knowledge they need for future research. As part of this, it will co-create and test guidance, training and professional and career development resources working with the 20 universities in the Midlands Innovation and Yorkshire Universities consortium. AI.RDN+ also has the potential to shape understanding and practice in the UK higher education sector and beyond.

As well as the universities, AI.RDN+ has the active support of a range of expert organisations, including Jisc, the UK digital, data and technology agency for tertiary education, research and innovation, the UK Council for Graduate Education (UKCGE), Vitae, a trusted voice on research culture and researcher development, and the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB).

It is also supported by two other Research England-funded projects - the Next Generation Research SuperVision Project (RSVP), on the future of doctoral supervision, and Prosper, researching the professional and career development of post-doctoral researchers.

Professor Phil Mizen, Professor of Sociology and Policy at Aston University, said: "The Artificial Intelligence Researcher Development Network Plus will provide detailed knowledge of the uptake and impact of publicly available AI tools across the doctoral ecosystem and use this to co-create much-needed information, resources and professional and skills training opportunities. Our project is a unique opportunity to build knowledge and capture innovation, and to use this to build the resources needed for the ethical and responsible use of AI in doctoral research."

Professor Aleks Subic, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive at Aston University, said: "I am delighted that Aston University has been awarded this important grant thanks to the exceptional work of Professor Phil Mizen and the AI.RDN+ project team. This new academic network aligns with Aston's strategy to be a transformational university, embracing digital innovation and equipping our students and researchers with emerging AI technologies, creating knowledge and skills to enhance their careers and create significant benefits across the research and innovation ecosystem."

Further information

For more information please contact Becky Pascoe in the University of Leeds press office on [email protected]

Picture credit: Adobe

The eight Midlands Innovation universities are: Aston University, Cranfield University, University of Birmingham, University of Keele, Loughborough University, University of Leicester, University of Nottingham, and University of Warwick.

The 12 Yorkshire Universities are: University of Bradford, University of Leeds, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds Trinity University, Leeds Conservatoire, Leeds Arts University, University of Hull, University of Huddersfield, University of Sheffield, University of York.

UKRI Research England shapes healthy, dynamic, diverse and inclusive research and knowledge exchange in English universities. It distributes over £2bn to universities in England every year; works to understand their strategies, capabilities and capacity; and supports and challenges universities to create new knowledge, strengthen the economy, and enrich society.