tech
January 20, 2026
The UK government is backing AI that can run its own lab experiments
A competition calling for research projects involving so-called AI scientists shows just how fast this technology is moving.
TL;DR
- ARIA, a UK government agency, is funding startups and universities to develop AI scientists for lab experiments.
- AI scientists are defined as systems that can run entire scientific workflows, including hypothesis generation, experiment design, execution, and analysis.
- ARIA received 245 proposals, indicating rapid progress in lab automation technology.
- Twelve projects were chosen for funding, with teams from the UK, US, and Europe.
- Each funded project will receive approximately £500,000 for nine months of work.
- Examples of funded projects include an AI NanoScientist for quantum dots, a robot chemist, and an AI scientist for battery research.
- ARIA uses these smaller, shorter-term projects to gauge the cutting edge of AI in science.
- The agency acknowledges hype surrounding AI in science but aims to identify the true frontier.
- Current AI scientists utilize existing tools like large language models, with future potential for creating new tools.
- Challenges remain with agentic systems, including errors and failures in executing scientific workflows.