Data Science Institute

We aim to set the global standard for a truly interdisciplinary approach to contemporary data-driven research challenges. Established in 2015, the Data Science Institute (DSI) has over 300 members and has raised £50 million in research grants.

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10-year anniversary of DSI – “Decade of Data Science”

In 2025, the Data Science Institute (DSI) at Lancaster University proudly marks its 10th anniversary. Since its founding in 2015, the DSI has established itself as a leading hub for cutting-edge research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and real-world impact in data science and artificial intelligence. Over the past decade, our researchers and partners have tackled some of the most pressing challenges in society, science, and industry—advancing the foundations of data science, fostering ethical and trustworthy AI, driving innovation across sectors and training 100s of data science practitioners.

As we celebrate this milestone, we reflect on the achievements of our vibrant research community and the transformative projects that have shaped the field. Looking ahead, the DSI remains committed to pushing the boundaries of data science and AI research, strengthening global collaborations, and supporting the next generation of data scientists.

About us

We are working to create a world-class Data Science Institute at Lancaster (DSI@Lancaster) that sets the global standard for a truly interdisciplinary approach to contemporary data-driven research challenges. DSI@Lancaster aims to have an internationally recognised and distinctive strength in being able to provide an end-to-end interdisciplinary research capability - from infrastructure and fundamentals through to globally relevant problem domains and the social, legal and ethical issues raised by the use of Data Science.

The Institute is initially focusing on the fundamentals of Data Science including security and privacy together with cross-cutting theme areas consisting of environment, resilience and sustainability;health and ageing, data and society and creating a world-leading institute with over 300 affiliated academics, researchers, and students.

Our data science, health data science and business analytics programmes have launched the careers of hundreds of data professionals over the last 10 years. Students from our programmes have progressed to data science roles at Amazon, PWC, Ernst & Young, Hawaiian Airlines, eBay, Zurich Insurance, the Co-operative Group, N Brown, the NHS and many others - please look at our Education pages for further details of the courses on offer.

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New Workshop Page

We have a new current workshop page - please do take a look - full information on these workshops and sign up opportunities can be found.

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Data Dialogues - 12 -1pm in Sky Lounge, Infolab

Data Dialogues is an informal, discussion-driven event where members of the DSI and the broader university community share insights into their work, spark interdisciplinary conversations and explore potential collaborations. The focus is on interactive engagement rather than formal presentations—so no slides (or just a few, if needed)! Instead, the idea is to introduce your work in an accessible way, followed by an open discussion and Q&A with attendees.

Bring your lunch and come to the Sky Lounge to hear more about some of the exciting developments in Data Science and AI going on in the university. Get fresh perspectives and think about new ways of approaching your own research, meet new people and explore potential research collaborations. Come be part of the DSI community!

  • 9 April - Henry Moss (School of Mathematical Sciences) - Accelerating Scientific Discovery in the Age of AI
  • 23 April - Alex Bush, Cassio Nunes and Oliver Metcalf (LEC)
  • 30 April - Naveed Iqbal, MD – CEO at Triton Health - Supporting Intellectual Disability with AI
  • 7 May - Jun Liu (Digital Health, SCC)
  • 21 May - Luigi Sedda (CHICAS)
  • 4 June - Leonardo De Sousa Miranda (LEC)
  • 18 June - tbc

Do get in touch if you would like to present at these sessions.

Latest News

Call for Proposals: AI for Innovation Pilot Studies (Data Science Institute)

The Data Science Institute is pleased to announce a new funding call aimed at empowering academic staff members to explore, test, and demonstrate innovative ways in which artificial intelligence (AI) can be leveraged to enhance, extend, or improve the University’s activities in research, teaching and engagement. Projects selected under this call will receive up to £5,000 each in support and are expected to yield practical insights, prototypes, or demonstrable solutions that can be scaled across the University where applicable. Projects that deliver improvements to student experience or that speak to our international aspirations are also welcome. Note that for this call we are not seeking new research into developing new tools and techniques, but rather to explore the application and impact of such developments.

Please see the proposal in full document for details and eligibility requirements.

Submission Process

Deadline: Friday 4th April 2025

Submission Portal: dsi@lancaster.ac.uk

Katherine Richardson (University of Copenhagen) Planetary Boundaries: A tool to guide management of Human-Earth interactions - 2nd May

The climate and biodiversity witness that our societies cannot continue to flourish unless we actively manage our relationship with the Earth and its resources. Such management requires guardrails to identify how much perturbation of critical Earth system processes is “too much”. The planetary boundaries framework, first introduced in 2009, and since twice updated, identifies science-based limits for human perturbation of Earth system processes. The most recent update shows that 6 of 9 boundaries are transgressed and that transgression is increasing. It also shows, however, that human perturbation of the ozone layer – a boundary transgressed or nearly transgressed in the 1900s - is now in back within a “safe operating space”. The framework and how it can be used for management of the Human-Earth relationship are presented here.

2nd May at 1.30 in the Management School - LT3 - 1.30 - 3pm

Sign up via Eventbrite

Biography

Katherine Richardson is a professor in biological oceanography at the University of Copenhagen and, for more than 3 decades, has actively contributed to the development of Earth system science. She is one of the main architects behind the “planetary boundaries” and led the 2023 update that now has been downloaded over half a million times. She is extremely active at the science-policy and science-society interfaces and chaired the Commission that produced a plan for how Denmark can be independent of fossil fuels. She was a member of the Independent Group of Scientists that prepared the 2019 UN Global Sustainable Development Report and currently chairs the High-level EU Expert group on the economic and societal impact of research and innovation (ESIR).

Lecture: Distant Viewing and the Multimodal Turn - 21st May 3.15-5pm

Management School – Lecture Theatre 3

Lauren Tilton and Taylor Arnold, University of Richmond

How do computers view? How can we harness AI to view images at scale?

Distant viewing offers a theory and method for the large-scale analysis of images using computer vision. This talk will introduce the concept and then turn to specific AI methods for the analysis of images. We will then turn to how distant viewing can support multimodal analysis, specifically looking at multimodal large language models.

Sign up for the Distant Viewing and the Multimodal Turn via Eventbrite

Learn more about Tilton and Arnold’s work:

AI Discovery Workshop: Showcasing AI Across Campus

DSI held an AI Discovery Workshop in February. Over 100 people attended this event and the feedback has been very positive.

Please find the slides from the presentation that day on SharePoint- AI Discovery Workshop slides.

We would also like to ask you to give feedback about AI on the Padlet. You can do this in the Library touchscreen or via Padlet, AI at Lancaster or use the QR code to access this site.

Please post your thoughts on how Lancaster University can support AI adoption on campus.

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Research Themes

Data Science at Lancaster was founded in 2015 on Lancaster’s historic research strengths in Computer Science, Statistics and Operational Research. The environment is further enriched by a broad community of data-driven researchers in a variety of other disciplines including the environmental sciences, health and medicine, sociology and the creative arts.

  • Foundations

    Foundations research sits at the interface of methods and application: with an aim to develop novel methodology inspired by the real-world challenge. These could be studies about the transportation of people, goods & services, energy consumption and the impact of changes to global weather patterns.

  • Health

    The Health theme has a wide scope. Current areas of strength include spatial and spatiotemporal methods in global public health, design and analysis of clinical trials, epidemic forecasting and demographic modelling, health informatics and genetics.

  • Society

    Data Science has brought new approaches to understanding long-standing social problems concerning energy use, climate change, crime, migration, the knowledge economy, ecologies of media, design and communication in everyday life, or the distribution of wealth in financialised economies.

  • Environment

    The focus of the environment theme has been to seek methodological innovations that can transform our understanding and management of the natural environment. Data Science will help us understand how the environment has evolved to its current state and how it might change in the future.

  • Data Engineering

    The Data Engineering theme aims to explore how we can utilise digital technologies to accelerate and enhance our research processes across the University.

Research Software Engineering

Within the Data Science Institute, our aim is to improve the reproducibility and replicability of research by improving the reusability, sustainability and quality of research software developed across the University. We are currently funded by the N8CIR, and work closely with our partner institutions across N8 Research.

Research Software Engineering

Upcoming Events

15th Mar

Hackademia 2025

Saturday 15 March 2025, 9:00am to 5:00pm
19th Mar

Colloquium: Dan Fretwell

Wednesday 19 March 2025, 3:00pm to 4:00pm
31st Mar

Innovations in Social Data Science

Monday 31 March 2025, 9:00am to Tuesday 1 April 2025, 5:00pm
11th Apr

Cybernetic Culture Workshop: Consumption, Security & Society in the Digital Age

Friday 11 April 2025, 9:00am to 5:00pm
2nd May

Katherine Richardson, University of Copenhagen

Friday 2 May 2025, 1:30pm to 3:00pm

More Events

N8CIR

N8CIR is pleased to announce their annual intern programme

N8CIR is pleased to announce their annual intern programme, aimed at penultimate or final year undergraduates. The programme provides the opportunity for students to experience life as a research software engineer (RSE), enabling them to gain key skills and inspiration for a future career in academic programming. The programme runs for 8 weeks, beginning on 18th June.
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University project to showcase at national AI event

A Lancaster University project, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) in sustainable construction methods, has been selected as a showcase at a prestigious national AI event.
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Next generation computers modelled on the human brain

Lancaster University is leading a £2.1M project with Cambridge and Durham which aims to revolutionise the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and computing.

 
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Lancaster University launches new online degrees in partnership with 2U

Lancaster University and 2U, a global leader in education technology, today announced a new partnership that will deliver 15 new online postgraduate degrees over the next three years.
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Lancashire students get taste of high-tech careers at Lancashire Cyber Education Week

Lancaster University threw open its doors to local colleges to help young people explore job opportunities in the cyber sector.

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