This week, NCC welcomed Kanishka Narayan MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Minister for AI and Online Safety), for a tour of Isambard-AI.
The visit was was an opportunity to share how NCC is working to identify practical applications of AI in engineering and manufacturing, connecting cutting-edge capability with real-world challenges on the workshop floor.
This includes training machine learning models to control complex manufacturing processes, providing technical support to manufacturers taking on the Agentic AI Pioneers Prize, or helping businesses of all sizes adopt simpler digital tools to help cut costs and energy use at their facilities.
Isambard-AI, built by the University of Bristol, is the UK's fastest and most powerful supercomputer, purpose-built for AI research.
The minister learned more about this unique capability accompanied by Rich Oldfield, CEO at NCC, Prof. Ian Bond, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Science and Engineering at the University of Bristol, Prof. Simon McIntosh-Smith, Director of the Bristol Centre for Supercomputing, Dr Emma Rose, Centre Manager of Bristol Centre for Supercomputing, and Claire Hazelgrove, MP for Filton and Bradley Stoke.
Isambard-AI summit
Following the tour, the minister delivered a keynote at the Isambard Summit 2026 (IS26) in central Bristol.
Hosted by the Bristol Centre for Supercomputing (BriCS), part of the University of Bristol, the two-day Summit highlights how national investments in AI infrastructure, including the UK’s AI Research Resource (AIRR), are making it easier for businesses and researchers to innovate, scale up and turn ideas into real-world solutions.
AI Minister Kanishka Narayan said:
"The AI Research Resource is putting world-class compute power directly into the hands of Britain’s researchers and businesses - and it’s available to access now. This is the infrastructure that will help deliver the next wave of breakthroughs, from lifesaving medicines to clean energy, built and scaled here in the UK.
"But this is just the start. We want every community and every part of our economy to share in the opportunities AI will unlock. Isambard-AI here in Bristol forms part of that national effort, alongside the hundreds of millions we are investing through the Sovereign AI Unit, our commitment to equip 10 million people with AI skills, and the rollout of AI across the public sector.
"We are backing AI across the country, not just to adopt these technologies, but to shape them, build them, and ensure the benefits are felt across the country.”
Richard Oldfield, CEO at NCC said:
‘We're proud to host Isambard-AI on behalf of the University of Bristol as a world-leading research asset and a flagship for regional capability in AI for industrial adoption. I was delighted to meet with the Minister as part of this Summit and present NCC’s capabilities in digital engineering; deploying AI into manufacturing processes that deliver industrial impact, productivity, and ultimately growth for the frontier industries of the industrial strategy’.