The UK’s mathematical sciences community is building a national hub to connect its researchers directly with businesses, industry, and government, turning abstract equations into practical solutions. This matters because mathematical sciences underpin much of the UK economy—from logistics algorithms to financial risk models—but the link between academic mathematicians and the organisations that could use their work has been fragmented. A 2018 review recommended a national centre to drive commercialisation, and the new Knowledge Exchange Hub is the coordinated academic response. If successful, the Hub will make it routine for mathematicians across all UK regions to work with partners of any size or sector. That could improve systems people rarely think about: more efficient supply chains, smarter energy grids, better medical diagnostics, or more resilient communications networks. The Hub also aims to coordinate existing national infrastructure, so that even activities it does not directly organise benefit from stronger connections. The project is fundamentally about building infrastructure for knowledge exchange rather than conducting new fundamental science. But by exposing mathematicians to real-world challenges, it should stimulate fresh mathematical questions—much as past collaborations between mathematicians and industry led to breakthroughs in everything from weather forecasting to internet security.
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It is widely recognised that the mathematical sciences (MS) make a crucial contribution to the UK economy and global society. The KE Hub has been established to capitalise on this and drive a step change in the scale, connectivity, and coordination of MS KE infrastructure in the UK. We are motivated by the principles that MS academics are innovative problem solvers, all areas of MS can realise impact, and that working with Business, Industry, and Government (BIG) leads to great new MS. The KE Hub is a coordinated academic response to (i) the 2018 Bond Review (The Era of Mathematics), which recommended that “A national centre in impactful mathematics for the UK should be created to work with industry and government to drive mathematical research through to commercialisation [… and] act as a national KE hub”, and (ii) the subsequent support for the 2021 community consultation document entitled A Knowledge Exchange Connected Centres Network for Mathematical Sciences (CCN). Our vision: To be an outward-facing, inclusive organisation bringing the most appropriate UK-wide well-trained mathematical sciences talent to bear on challenges arising in business, industry, and government for the mutual benefit of all parties. Our mission: The KE Hub (1) facilitates connections between MS academics and BIG, enabling our BIG partners to harness the power of cutting-edge MS, thus benefitting the UK economy, while stimulating MS academics through exposure to new and interesting challenges; (2) enhances MS KE through national coordination of activities, drawing together the diverse and geographically distributed MS academic community, accessing untapped potential, and bringing MS KE opportunities to all UK regions; (3) delivers a broad BIG partnership, enabling partner-to-partner networking and MS advocacy. We encourage engagement by all MS academics, irrespective of disciplinary area, location, or KE experience, and welcome BIG partners of all sizes, in all sectors and with all levels of MS expertise. We aspire to make KE routine for MS academics, and support them and BIG partners to make this a reality. We work in close partnership with the existing national MS infrastructure, and aspire to influence, nurture, and support all UK MS KE activity, not just those parts we organise.
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