2023 will see the MyWorld project really gather some profile and momentum.
A £46M R&D programme exploring the future of content production, distribution and experience, MyWorld will generate a hub of creative technology innovation in the West of England. Work to date has been primarily foundational but investments, particularly in prototyping and facilities, will make the research and development activity much more visible over the coming year, for example:
- A new call for innovation in creative technology tools, supported by Nvidia
- Collaborative R&D projects delivering new insight from academic / commercial partnerships, including Air Giants, All Seeing Eye, Awarri, Celestial, Condense, Marshmallow Laser Feast
- Six Playable City commissions, exploring creative technology interventions in public space
- Experimental research linked to major production, beginning with Complicite’s new show
In parallel the continuing facilities builds in Bristol and Bath plus work on future facing skills and training (demonstrated in the recent Lux Machina / Epic Games ICVFX pilot) emphasises the vision of MyWorld as an intervention which is designed to positively reinforce and sustain impact across the whole West of England ecosystem.
The scale and scope of MyWorld is particularly exciting and within the project I’ve been leading on the establishment of an Observatory function, placing the intervention within the context of global trends and technology foresight in order to inform strategic future development. MyWorld was referenced in Gordon Brown’s recent “A New Britain” policy paper for Labour, with the Observatory seeking to provide exactly the type of evidence which would reinforce its recommendation of effective “place-based innovation-led R&D programmes”.
In partnership with the Creative Industries Policy & Evidence Centre, the MyWorld Observatory has commissioned Careful Industries to deliver insight on possible creative technology futures to help inform the direction of a next wave of MyWorld R&D investments and the commercialisation of results.
I first mentioned MyWorld here at the beginning of 2021 post-funding award but ahead of the programme start, two years later the project will begin to deliver significant visible impacts.
mark leaver 