INVITATION ONLY
Join us at the Royal Academy of Engineering for a one-day showcase highlighting the research of current and former awardees of the UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Programme, alongside researchers from partner programmes in the United States and Australia.
This event brings together talented early-career researchers from the UK and allied nations who are advancing cutting-edge science and technology in areas aligned with government and national security priorities. From artificial intelligence and quantum sensing to biotechnology to advanced materials, hazardous material detection and forensic science, these researchers are tackling complex challenges.
Through poster presentations and exhibits, you will discover how academic research is being translated into practical applications that support government policy and operational needs. It is also a chance to engage directly with emerging research leaders and explore how science can inform and influence real-world outcomes.
The showcase will also provide an opportunity for government attendees to network with colleagues from other departments and partner organisations engaged in science, helping to strengthen collaboration on shared science and technology priorities.
Attendees will include government stakeholders, Academy Fellows, representatives from partner organisations (among them ONI and ODNI) and national bodies with an interest in research and innovation. Together, attendees will gain insight into the impact of this unique programme and the future scientists and engineers working at the intersection of science, security and society.
The event is organised in partnership with the Government Office for Science, which supports the scheme.
Programme*
Delegates are free to drop in any time between 2.15pm and 4.30pm.
| 10.30am |
Registration and Refreshments Arrival, registration, and informal networking |
| 11.00am |
Welcome and introductions Opening remarks and overview of the day Dr Andrew Clark, Executive Director, Product, Royal Academy of Engineering |
| 11.10am |
Keynote talk followed by Q&A Exploring the synergies between geosciences and national security and defence Professor Tamsin Mather OBE FRS, Professor of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford |
| 11.30am |
Lightning talks by current IC Postdoctoral Research Fellows
|
| 12.30pm |
Lunch break Buffet lunch and informal networking |
| 1.30pm |
Lightning talks by current IC Postdoctoral Research Fellows (second part)
Alumni Lightning Talks followed by Q&A Reflections on research and career pathways
|
| 2.15pm |
Exhibition opens Refreshments available throughout the exhibition. |
| 4.15pm |
Closing remarks Alex van Someren FREng, former Chief Scientific Adviser, National Security |
| 4.30pm |
Networking reception Canapés and drinks served |
| 6.30pm |
Event close |
*programme is subject to change.
Venue and accessibility
It is very important to the Royal Academy of Engineering that our events are accessible to all. If you have any accessibility requirements, please contact the Events team more than one week in advance of this event so that necessary arrangements can be made. Contact details: [email protected].
Further information about accessibility at Prince Philip House can be found at: https://raeng.org.uk/about-us/accessibility.
Diversity monitoring form
The Academy is committed to building an inclusive economy that works for everyone. To help us achieve this, we would like to collect some basic anonymous data about the event attendees. If you would like to help, please complete the diversity monitoring form by logging into your user account on our website and completing ‘Update my D&I data’
Dr Andrew Clark
Dr Andrew Clark is Executive Director, Product at the Royal Academy of Engineering, the UK’s national academy for engineering and technology. He is responsible for ensuring the Academy’s products meet user needs efficiently and effectively. He oversees the Academy’s Enterprise Hub, Research and Invention Fellowships, and Skills Centre, as well as related activities and the Academy’s funding relationship with government. Before starting at the Academy in 2016, he worked at UCL and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, primarily around multidisciplinary research funding programmes. He has a doctorate in philosophy of science from the University of Oxford and taught philosophy at Balliol College, Oxford and the Open University.
Professor Tamsin Alice Mather OBE FRS
Tamsin Mather OBE FRS is Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Oxford, specialising in volcanoes as hazards, resources and drivers of environmental change. Her research has revealed how chemistry near volcanic vents shapes the wider impacts of eruptions and has used modern emissions to uncover links between past large-scale volcanism and events such as mass extinctions. A recipient of the 2018 Royal Society Rosalind Franklin Award, she is a Fellow of the Royal Society, a member of Academia Europaea and a Geochemical Fellow. Passionate about science communication and inclusion, she advises government and industry, and authored Adventures in Volcanoland (2024).
Dr Mahmoud Wagih
Mahmoud received his BEng and PhD from the University of Southampton. Shortly afterwards, in 2021, he began his UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, later joining the University of Glasgow.
He is currently a Reader at the university, leading the Green Electronics Lab, part of over £15 million in investment, and Co-Directing the UKRI Centre on Responsible Electronics. He founded RX Watt Limited, a spin-out commercialising his battery-free, wireless powered sensing developed on the fellowship, supported by the DSIT-funded Silicon Catalyst Chipstart programme. Externally, he is an IEEE Distinguished Microwave Lecturer, and editor of multiple academic journals. He has received over 20 awards, including the Academy’s Sir George MacFarlane Medal.
Dr Sebastian Köhler
Sebastian is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Cyber Security in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Manchester. His research focuses on the physical-layer and wireless security of cyber-physical systems, ranging from space and satellite systems to electric vehicles and power grids. Before joining the University of Manchester, he was part of the Systems Security Lab at the University of Oxford, where he obtained his PhD in 2023, and held a Royal Academy of Engineering UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowship.
Alex van Someren
Alex van Someren was appointed Chief Scientific Adviser for National Security in July 2021. Alex was previously a venture capital investor and entrepreneur, focusing on investing in early stage ‘deep technology’ startups. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, an Honorary Professor of Computer Science at the University of Manchester, and a current member of the Royal Society’s Science, Industry and Translation Committee. During 2019 he was the Visiting Clore Innovation Professor at the Royal College of Art. Alex participated in the development of the BBC Microcomputer & Acorn Electron at Acorn Computer in the 1980s. He subsequently co-founded several technology companies, including ANT Software plc and nCipher plc which achieved listings on AIM and the London Stock Exchange, respectively. Alex’s scientific work is in the broad area of software engineering and computer science.
Awardees exhibiting
We are proud to feature awardees from our UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowships programme and our partner programmes in Australia and the United States. Together they are undertaking innovative, unclassified research that supports national security and intelligence priorities across a broad range of disciplines – including quantum sensing, advanced materials, hazardous material detection and forensic science.
Each presenter will exhibit their research and deliver a lightning talk. Their projects highlight the value of international collaboration and the impact of academic research in addressing real-world challenges. They also showcase the ongoing benefits of collaboration between academia and the intelligence community. Profiles and research highlights are available below.
Advanced Sensor Hardware & Edge Systems
Artificial Intelligence
Biotechnology