The UK’s Prosperity Partnerships initiative is set to address key industry challenges through 23 newly funded collaborative research projects, covering fields such as drug manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and battery technology. Backed by £41 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and an additional £56 million from business and academic partners, the partnerships aim to develop transformative technologies that improve lives and drive economic growth.
These projects will deliver innovations in several high-impact areas. Notable develovelopment pments include streamlining drug deand manufacturing to speed up the delivery of life-saving medicines, deploying AI to assist in grading GCSE and A-level exams, strengthening cybersecurity across critical national infrastructure, and creating durable batteries that can significantly advance the electrification of vehicles, aircraft, and ships.
All Prosperity Partnerships are co-designed and co-executed with UK-based industry partners to ensure real-world application and industry alignment. Participating companies range from major corporations to innovative SMEs, including AstraZeneca, GSK, Bupa, Rolls-Royce, Tata Steel, Synthomer, Pulpex Ltd, and Quantum Motion Technologies.
Several initiatives specifically target improvements in pharmaceutical manufacturing. One project at the University of Bristol, in partnership with AstraZeneca, is working to replace palladium with more sustainable, earth-abundant metals like iron and nickel in drug production. Another AstraZeneca-supported project at University College London (UCL) leverages AI to enhance the development of next-generation biological therapies for cancer, obesity, and autoimmune diseases. Additionally, UCL is partnering with Lonza to make advanced protein-based medicines more accessible, while the University of Strathclyde is working with GSK to develop novel molecules capable of reprogramming biological systems.
Beyond pharmaceuticals, the partnerships are also addressing diverse challenges. King’s College London, together with AQA, is developing an AI-powered virtual assistant to support examiners in grading, aiming to ensure fairer outcomes for students. Swansea University is advancing cybersecurity to protect vital national infrastructure, while the University of Nottingham is developing long-life lithium-sulfur batteries that can endure repeated charging cycles—key to accelerating the shift to electric transportation and meeting net-zero goals.
Since the Prosperity Partnerships program launched in 2017, it has supported over 100 projects, contributing more than £600 million through joint funding from EPSRC, industry, and academic institutions. These collaborations have resulted in major technological advancements, including the deployment of a fleet of zero-emissions buses via a partnership between Wrightbus and Queen’s University Belfast.
The program continues to strengthen ties between academia and industry. A new project between the University of Edinburgh and Rolls-Royce will advance clean aviation technologies, building on the previous ASiMoV partnership. This new phase focuses on enhancing gas turbine simulation using both computational and physical modelling to support the development of sustainable aerospace solutions.
