In the past year we started using AI tools to assist and inform some of our research governance activities. This has included due diligence checks, policy review for clarity, and pulling together content to provide guidance for our researchers. Some of this just informs our thinking while other queries provide a short cut to publicly available information which is much quicker than using web searches.

We have also used our experiences of testing this out to inform our ethical use of AI in research guidance as we have direct experience of using some of the tools, their limitations and ethical concerns. While tools like ChatGPT can search vast amounts of data and provide comprehensive results, some activities require more caution. Therefore, we have used Microsoft Copilot (university approved tool) for some activities. For less sensitive topics it has been interesting to compare the results from both these and other tools.

As the use of AI tools becomes standard it is important that RMA professionals working in research governance understand the tools and their limitations from a governance and integrity perspective but also make use of these where they add value and/or provide efficiencies.

We live in a rapidly accelerating society, fuelled by technological change and developments such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as the aftermath of Covid-19. Whilst technology is directly impacting people’s daily lives, generally non-experts have minimal input or control over the technological advancements which are occurring. The public engagement team at Heriot-Watt University set out to explore public perceptions of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics within the West Lothian region as part of a deliberative engagement programme in October 2023.

As part of their place-based engagement initiatives, HW Engage collaborated with local libraries to transform library venues into points of exchange between university research and community voices. West Lothian Libraries have been a vital entry point into local communities and since 2018 we have built an ongoing partnership with them. Within these AI/Robotics themed focus groups, we explored themes around trust in AI, aging populations, digitised healthcare and the future of medical technology.

In this talk, I will share call to actions for universities and wider institutions to consider when tackling emerging technology themes, and reflect on the outcomes from the focus groups which showcase parallel themes of concern for local communities and the evolution of technology.

The rise of Generative AI has been heralded as everything from the harbinger of doom for jobs to the dawn of a new era for productivity. AI tools are already being used in a dizzying array of tasks.
It’s less a case of the train has left the station and more a case of the lid on Pandora’s box has exploded off.

In this presentation I will consider what happens next for research development and funding, post-Gen AI revolution.
AI tools are capable of generating polished drafts, refining prose, and formatting with ease… and everyone has access to some version of them. So how is anyone going to secure their research grant?

Sometimes the most interesting outcome of AI adoption is not what it can do, but how it challenges us to reassess the value of what we were already doing.