The Manchester Prize is back for its second edition, with the UK government aiming to boost innovation in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) within the clean technology sector, offering £2 million in total prizes.
Initially introduced by former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt during the 2023 Spring Budget speech, this annual competition is organized by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) alongside Challenge Works, a part of the charity Nesta.
The UK government has allocated a £2 million prize pool for up to ten projects that utilize AI to make the electricity grid more environmentally friendly. The country’s goal is to achieve fully green power by 2030, along with net-zero emissions by 2050.
Minister for AI, Feryal Clark, commented, “AI is already making a positive difference in numerous areas of our lives, but there is still much more potential to explore.” She added, “This second round of the Manchester Prize will harness the incredible British innovation to help create a cleaner and more secure energy future for the UK. We are supporting AI advancements across various fields, from energy to healthcare, to achieve real and substantial change across the nation.”
Participants in the competition are expected to show how AI can enable cost-effective operation of clean energy technologies on a large scale or help reduce energy demands by optimizing usage.
Prof. Paul Monks, chief scientific adviser at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, highlighted, “The biggest long-term challenge we face is the climate and nature crisis, which is why we have ambitious targets for decarbonizing the electricity grid by 2030 and reaching net-zero by 2050.” He expressed satisfaction that the Manchester Prize is stepping up to address this crucial need for innovation in decarbonization through AI.
This competition is open to teams based in the UK, although individual projects may collaborate with international partners. Interested entrants must submit their applications by midday on January 17, 2025.
The finalists from the inaugural Manchester Prize, named after the home of the pioneering supercomputer Atlas, included innovative projects such as Aiolus, an AI digital twin initiative, AssetScan, a system for managing infrastructure defects, and Greyparrot Insight, a tool for detecting waste.
