Scientists in Britain and France to work together on cures for infectious diseases and pioneering improvements in women\u2019s health
\n New funding for partnership which brings together two of Europe\u2019s leading supercomputers to accelerate AI adoption and scientific discovery
\n Technology Secretary heads for G7 talks in Paris on improving AI adoption and security and child safety online<\/p>\n
Millions of women suffering from complications arising from childbirth, or living with endometriosis,\u00a0will\u00a0benefit\u00a0from the shared research\u00a0expertise\u00a0and ambition\u00a0of the UK and France, under a new partnership inked today.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Working together, both countries will put AI and data at the heart of their work\u00a0on these historically under-researched, under-diagnosed conditions\u00a0which\u00a0have left patients waiting too long for the answers or care they need.<\/p>\n
Announced as the Technology Secretary arrives in Paris for talks with G7 Ministers, this partnership will unlock new treatments, enable earlier diagnoses\u00a0for\u00a0safer pregnancies and\u00a0more\u00a0personalised care. By closing long-standing gaps in women\u2019s health, it has the potential to transform\u00a0outcomes, and\u00a0improve the day-to-day lives of millions of women on both sides of the Channel.<\/p>\n
The partnership will also bring together global data on diseases like drug-resistant E. coli, enabling faster detection of microbes which can resist treatments, and speeding up how we can\u00a0identify\u00a0and tackle infectious outbreaks. Doctors will be better equipped to spot dangerous infections, helping patients get the right treatment sooner and reducing the risk of illness spreading.<\/p>\n
In particular,\u00a0researchers\u00a0based in the UK and France will use\u00a0cutting-edge\u00a0imaging and AI to study infections like tuberculosis,\u00a0malaria\u00a0and emerging viruses \u2013\u00a0ultimately saving\u00a0lives.<\/p>\n
At the heart of this new collaboration is an ambition to make it simpler and faster for British and French institutions to cooperate on biomedical research. Harnessing emerging tech like AI, this will involve everything from joint projects, sharing research\u00a0expertise\u00a0in both countries, and working together on joint funding bids \u2013 delivering the technologies and products that will\u00a0benefit\u00a0people all over the world.<\/p>\n
Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said:<\/p>\n
This ground-breaking partnership between the UK and France will tackle some of the biggest challenges in women\u2019s health, deliver safer and healthier pregnancies, and accelerate the fight against infectious diseases worldwide. That means new treatments, earlier diagnoses, and more personalised care.<\/p>\n
We are determined to build on that spirit of co-operation with our G7 partners this week, to drive forward work on some of the most important issues that affect us all, from AI adoption to keeping kids safe online.<\/p>\n
Philippe Baptiste, French minister for higher education, research and space, said:<\/p>\n
The renewed dialogue between France and the United Kingdom marks a decisive step in our scientific partnership. Together, we are building a dynamic and ambitious roadmap, transforming our shared vision into concrete actions, notably through enhanced collaboration in Horizon Europe projects. This cooperation, anchored in trust and excellence, will deliver tangible results in artificial intelligence, health, and beyond, for the benefit of both nations.<\/p>\n
At today\u2019s G7 talks (Friday 29 May), Ministers will focus their discussions on key issues to protect citizens and spark the growth which will unlock jobs and new opportunities.\u00a0AI adoption and security and\u00a0the\u00a0resilience and resource efficiency of the digital sector\u00a0will all be on the agenda, along with discussions on how to create a\u00a0safer online world for children and young people.<\/p>\n
As the Technology Secretary arrives in Paris,\u00a0nearly \u00a3900,000\u00a0of UK government\u00a0funding\u00a0has\u00a0also been committed to boosting the partnership between the Bristol Centre for Supercomputing\u00a0which hosts\u00a0Isambard\u2011AI\u00a0\u00a0and France\u2019s computing centre GENCI.<\/p>\n
This will allow researchers at both bases to access world class compute and deliver scientific breakthroughs. Isambard-AI is already supporting\u00a0cutting-edge\u00a0research in areas ranging from drug discovery to combat heart disease to climate scenario modelling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The UK government will also contribute \u00a3300,000, matched by \u20ac330,000 from the French government\u00a0enabling\u00a0early\u2011career researchers\u00a0to\u00a0be supported to live and work in both the UK and France, helping them\u00a0advance\u00a0their careers,\u00a0and unlock new collaboration opportunities\u00a0–\u00a0including on major Horizon Europe projects. This is through\u00a0UKRI\u2019s International Science Partnerships Fund, designed to support UK researchers and innovators collaborate with peers internationally.<\/p>\n
Taking the strength of UK-France collaboration even further, Imperial College London and the French National\u00a0Center\u00a0for Scientific Research will sign a separate landmark agreement today to collaborate on metabolism research – tackling major health challenges including heart disease,\u00a0cancer\u00a0and neurodegenerative disorders.<\/p>\n
Notes to Editors<\/p>\n
The G7 Digital and Technology Ministerial Summit takes place in Paris on 28\u201329 May 2025, under the French G7 presidency.
\n At the core of the research in women\u2019s health, infectious diseases, data science and advanced bioimaging is the UK\u2013France Strategic Biomedical Alliance in Health and AI, a partnership between the University of Oxford, Universit\u00e9 Paris Cit\u00e9,\u00a0Institut\u00a0Pasteur and the UK and French national advanced imaging facilities, the Diamond Light Source and Synchrotron SOLEIL. Together, these partners combine world\u2011leading science with national bioimaging infrastructure and technology development.
\n The Bristol Centre for Supercomputing hosts Isambard AI, one of the UK\u2019s most powerful AI supercomputers,\u00a0as part of the UK\u2019s AI Research Resource the UK\u2019s national programme providing leading, AI\u2011specialised computing capacity to researchers and innovators\u00a0
\n The new partnership will allow mutual access to infrastructure like the UK\u2019s Diamond Light Source and France\u2019s Synchrotron SOLEIL, using extremely bright light to reveal the structure of materials and biological systems down to the molecular level.
\n GENCI (Grand\u00a0\u00c9quipement\u00a0National de\u00a0Calcul\u00a0Intensif) is France\u2019s national high-performance computing body.
\n The \u00a31.2 million figure combines the \u00a3894,000 Isambard AI\/GENCI partnership funding and \u00a3300,000 per year student mobility funding.<\/p>\n
Professor Richard Cornall, Head of the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
At a time of growing global health threats and rapid technological change, the Alliance brings together leading\u00a0expertise\u00a0in AI, advanced imaging and biomedical science to better understand, predict and treat complex disease. Starting with accelerating progress in women\u2019s health, infectious\u00a0diseases\u00a0and antimicrobial resistance, we will create a powerful UK-France capability for biomedical innovation and the joint development of world-leading\u00a0new technology.<\/p>\n
Professor Philippe Gu\u00e9rin, Director of the Infectious Diseases Data Observatory (IDDO) at the University of Oxford, said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Through this Alliance we will be able to see disease in new ways – combining the technology of two of the world\u2019s most powerful synchrotrons, with the world\u2019s greatest research minds, to understand how infections develop, spread and respond to treatment at an unprecedented level of detail. That deeper understanding will drive innovation in diagnostics and therapies, helping improve outcomes for patients and at the same time strengthening preparedness for future health threats worldwide.<\/p>\n
Professor Hugh Brady, President of Imperial College London, said:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Understanding metabolism is crucial to addressing some of the biggest health challenges of our time – from obesity and diabetes to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases – and our new joint laboratory will put the UK and France at the forefront of this critical area of research. By bringing together world-leading\u00a0expertise\u00a0and\u00a0cutting-edge\u00a0technologies, including AI and machine learning, we will deepen our understanding of these complex conditions for the benefit of all. Our collaboration with France\u2019s CNRS will create new opportunities to share talent,\u00a0knowledge\u00a0and resources – accelerating discovery, driving health-tech\u00a0innovations\u00a0and delivering meaningful societal impact.<\/p>\n
Professor Gianluigi Botton, Chief Executive of Diamond Light Source, said:<\/p>\n
This collaboration\u00a0represents\u00a0an exciting step forward in harnessing the full potential of advanced synchrotron imaging,\u00a0data\u00a0and AI in healthcare. By strengthening links between UK and French research communities, we are creating new opportunities to better understand disease, accelerate\u00a0innovation\u00a0and improve patient care. Diamond is delighted to support this shared ambition to deliver scientific breakthroughs that will have a lasting global impact.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Scientists in Britain and France to work together on cures for infectious diseases and pioneering improvements in women\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294292,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[554,733,4308,86,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-613479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificialintelligence","tag-technology","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=613479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613479\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=613479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=613479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=613479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}