Bristol tech projects will receive up to £50,000 in government funding

The Bristol City Hall

Science Minister Chris Skidmore has revealed the government will contribute up to 50,000 to three R&D projects that aim to boost the country's cyber security, entertainment and environment efforts.

Two of the projects receiving funding from UKRI's Strength in Places Fund have been developed by the University of Bristol, while the third is led by the University of Exeter.

The Cyber Wales and West' project focuses on the development of a new cyber hotspot, bringing together academia and test-bed platforms to foster new skills in physical and virtual environments. The University of Bristol's second innovation is "My World", combining issues such as content creation, delivery and consumption in screen-based media.

The University of Exeter's "Environmental Intelligence Accelerator" pools data from sources such as the Met Office and Plymouth Marine Laboratory to help governments and businesses make better decisions around their operations. This could be reducing pollutants, for example, or encouraging businesses to consider how they can reduce the damage to property when a natural disaster strikes.

"From enhancing home screen entertainment to developing innovative solutions for fighting cyber-crime, Bristol has much to be proud of, and these shortlisted projects have the potential to revolutionise their respective industries," Science and Innovation Minister Chris Skidmore said.

To date, 24 projects around the UK have benefitted from cash injections of up to 50,000 from the government, while between four and eight will receive between 10 million and 50 million each to develop their tech.

"We are committed to building on our world-leading reputation in science, research and innovation, and that is why we announced the Strength in Places Fund in our modern Industrial Strategy to boost productivity and create the high-skilled jobs of the future all around the UK."

Clare Hopping
Freelance writer

Clare is the founder of Blue Cactus Digital, a digital marketing company that helps ethical and sustainability-focused businesses grow their customer base.

Prior to becoming a marketer, Clare was a journalist, working at a range of mobile device-focused outlets including Know Your Mobile before moving into freelance life.

As a freelance writer, she drew on her expertise in mobility to write features and guides for ITPro, as well as regularly writing news stories on a wide range of topics.