Manchester Prize 2 (360G-cabinetoffice-G2-GA-2025081628418-24-25)

The Manchester Prize is a landmark challenge prize that aims to drive pioneering AI innovation by rewarding UK-led breakthroughs in AI for public good.The Round 2 focuses on using AI for Clean Energy Systems. The grants, managed via our delivery partner Nesta, will incentivise development of cutting-edge applications of AI to solve challenges across high-impact domains. The project aims to accelerate and showcase the potential of AI to be used in a way that benefits people, society and supports a community of leading AI for public good innovators in the UK. We anticipate that the project supports the UK governments wider objectives in the following ways:Positioning the UK as a Science and Tech Superpower: The Manchester Prize will accelerate innovation, stimulate investment and help to position the UK as a global leader in AI, supporting the AI Strategy ambition for the UK to cement its position as a science and technology superpower.Stimulating and demonstrating the use of AI for public good, in line with objective 5 of the AI Safety Summit. Solutions developed through the Manchester Prize will showcase socially beneficial UK AI innovation, as the focus of the prize challenge will be AI for Public Good and AI safety and ethics will remain a key judging criterion for the Manchester Prize. The solutions developed by finalist teams will serve as clear examples of the positive potential of AI.Supporting better outcomes for UK Citizens: By incentivising AI development in areas of public importance, like Climate Change, Energy and Environment, the prize aims to generate downstream benefits for UK society. The first round of the Prize has already accelerated the development of key AI solutions relating to areas relating topublic good areas such as energy efficiency, improving public infrastructure, reducing water loss and crop efficiency.Developing a highly skilled community of AI Innovators: The prize will contribute to nurturing the UKs world-leading AI research community, by incentivizing AI development in areas of public importance and bringing together developers, problem-holders, adopters and investors.The challenge is also closely aligned with the government's key missions, in particular, mission 1 (kickstart economic growth) through supporting investment and growth in UK technology startups and organisation and mission 2 (make Britain a clean energy superpower) through its focus on green growth and AI for clean energy systems.