AI, solar panels and male infertility among selected projects
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD, has today announced a €2.5 million investment to fund 28 fellowships through the Research Ireland Industry Research, Development, and Innovation Fellowship (IRDIF) Programme.
The funding will enable researchers to undertake placements in 22 companies, working on projects across diverse fields including AI for computational safety, sustainable materials for solar panels, cell-sorting system for addressing male infertility, and developing multi-modal drug compounds for ulcerative colitis.
Minister Lawless said: “Research Ireland’s Industry Research Development and Innovation Fellowship Programme is an excellent example of how the best of academic research and industry expertise can be brought together to tackle challenges and deliver impactful solutions. The initiative strengthens our national research ecosystem and highlights the importance of partnerships in fostering innovation that drives societal and economic growth. I look forward to the significant contributions these fellowships will bring.”
The industry partners collaborating on the programme will collectively contribute co-funding of over €1.7 million. Researchers will bring valuable academic insights and research experience to their respective industry partners, while developing their industry and business knowledge during their placement.
Celine Fitzgerald, Interim CEO of Research Ireland, added: “We are delighted to facilitate these new partnerships between academia and industry. The Research Ireland IRDIF Programme offers researchers unique opportunities to address industry-focused challenges, ensuring that the knowledge exchange drives research excellence and enhances the competitive advantage of the companies involved.”
Examples of the projects funded include:
- Developing smarter AI systems that can quickly and accurately detect harmful content, reducing the need for human involvement and making AI safer and more reliable, in collaboration with Workday;
- Cost-effective and eco-friendly coatings that make solar panels self-cleaning, reducing maintenance and improving energy efficiency, in collaboration with Kastus Technologies;
- Development of a cell-sorting system to efficiently sort human primary testicular cells for addressing male infertility, in collaboration with BD Research Centre Ireland;
- Climate risk intelligence tools for critical infrastructure assets, in collaboration with Climate Matters;
- Converting dairy processing side-streams (acid casein whey) into sustainable phosphate supplement using optimised novel phosphate removal approaches, in collaboration with Arrabawn Co-Operative Ltd.;
- Development of innovative nanofluids to advance thermal cooling technology, in collaboration with HT Materials Science;
- Investigating Multi-Modal Drug Compounds as Therapeutic Agents for Ulcerative Colitis, in collaboration with Noa Therapeutics.
The fellowships range in duration from 12 to 24 months. Awardees represent the following eight higher education institutions: University College Cork, University of Galway, Trinity College Dublin, University of Limerick, University College Dublin, Technological University Dublin, Dublin City University, and Tyndall National Institute.
The industry collaborators for the programme this year include 21 companies based in Ireland and one company from Toronto, Canada. Among the participating industries are:
- EIRNA Bio Ltd.
- TechWorks Marine Ltd.
- Kastus Technologies
- Branca Bunús Ltd.
- EnergyPro Asset Management Ltd.
- Versatile Packaging
- Bia Energy Limited
- iSentioLabs
- Noa Therapeutics
- Boston Scientific Cork
- HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES (IRELAND) CO., LIMITED
- Bláfar Ltd.
- Marama Labs Limited
- Workday
- Analog Devices Inc., (ADI)
- Climate Matters
- Alcon Laboratories Ireland Ltd
- Mirai Medical Limited
- BD Research Centre Ireland
- HT Materials Science
- Arrabawn Co-Operative Ltd.
Research Ireland is working towards opening funding opportunities in 2025 which enable post-doctoral researchers to collaborate with enterprise, which we anticipate will open in the first half of 2025. These will be developed in collaboration with the Research Ireland Industry RD&I Fellowship Programme and the Research Ireland Enterprise Partnership Scheme (Postdoctoral) teams.