Market Intelligence
Defense Equipment United Kingdom

United Kingdom Defense Seeks AI Innovations to Solve Challenges

The UK MOD is seeking effective application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to meet its defense challenges and to enhance its military capability, allowing the UK and its allies to maintain an advantage in defense and security.  The MOD also seeks to harness the efficiency benefits that AI is bringing to a wide range of other sectors.

The UK MOD’s Defence Artificial Intelligence Centre (DAIC) is seeking innovative proposals from industry and academia that will deliver significant benefits to defense, such as autonomous logistics, machine-speed decision making and human-machine teaming for military effects.  

Some of the desired outcomes the MOD is seeking from AI include:

  • Enhanced quality and timeliness of intelligence data available to military commanders.
  • Enhanced effectiveness in planning and conducting operations.
  • Reducing the risk to life of armed forces personnel using uncrewed, autonomous platforms.
  • Automating routine tasks to free defense personnel up to do higher value activities.
  • Achieving better value for the taxpayer by making the business of defense more efficient

DAIC is interested in funding proposals from industry and academia that will create AI technology that will deliver significant benefits to defense.

Some examples of proposals the MOD is seeking include:

  • Autonomous logistics and technology with the potential to significantly improve the efficiency of the logistics chain or increase availability.
  • Exploiting operational data, e.g. to support intelligence analysis, or to protect the force. This proposal could require using open-source data or classified data from any source.
  • Human-machine teaming for military effect (including the use of autonomous systems within the force, and the coordination of multiple crewed / autonomous systems).
  • Machine-speed decision making (e.g. to support operational planning and command and control).
  • Increasing efficiency, or how defense manages and supports its people and its systems.

All proposals need to specify the technology readiness level (TRL) for the innovation being used at the start of the project and the desired TRL level for the end of the project.  The MOD is aiming for innovations to reach in the region of TRL 4 to 6 at project completion.  All proposals will also need to specify the timescale for development and the intended defense application. 

If you would like to submit a novel idea or concept to the DAIC that will incorporate AI to help the MOD meet its defense challenges or for information on other opportunities in the UK defense and security market, please contact PJ Menner at the U.S. Embassy London via PJ.Menner@trade.gov.