Real progress through forward thinking

Ian Ritchie / The Herald Business HQ / August 2025

WHEN THE NEW Labour government was elected a year ago, it declared that its top priority was growth but it’s not going well. In the last two months GDP has fallen by 0.4 per cent.

The UK economy has suffered from low growth for the last 20 years and it is only through significantly increasing our private and public economic performance that we will be able to afford our public services

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So it was somewhat disappointing that initial government policies increased the cost and complexity of employing people: enhanced workers’ rights from day one and increased employers’ national insurance costs - actions almost designed to suppress growth.

When you declare a priority, it really should be followed by specific actions which make it more likely to be achieved.

Governments have searched for years to find a “magic bullet” which will fix our poor productivity. 

Well, today, there really is a magic bullet in the emergence of powerful artificial intelligence (AI) technology and the related physical field of robotics, both of which have demonstrated breakthroughs in their ability to deliver gains in efficiency.

As it happens, 60 years ago, the University of Edinburgh pioneered the development of AI and robotics, creating FREDDY, a robot with imaging and assembly skills, at the Department of Machine Intelligence and Perception, one of the first centres anywhere in the world for AI research.

Now, 60 years later, we are host to the UK’s first National Robotarium, established in 2022 in a new building at Heriot-Watt University, in partnership with the University of Edinburgh.

This is an initiative that is both timely and sorely needed; the UK currently ranks a poor 24th in the world in the application of robots to make our activities more efficient.

In June this year Stewart Miller, the chief executive of the National Robotarium, published an ambitious position paper called “Making Scotland a world leader in robotics”, designed to advise politicians developing their manifestos for next year's election.

He proposes that the UK can change from being primarily a robotics buyer to becoming a robotics producer.

The Robotarium is the centre of the application of robotics to many real-world applications. In less than three years, it has hosted 14 innovative robotics companies and is planned to be the first of ten further such centres across the UK, each of which is to provide a home for groups of dynamic young businesses, a crucible for turning scientific research into real-world applications, and a test centre for new robotic and autonomous technologies.

Scotland has particular expertise in offshore oil and gas exploration and wind-power operations, and many tasks in monitoring, maintenance, and repair of offshore installations are inherently dangerous and highly suitable for the application of robotics, a market that is estimated to grow to £341 million by 2030.

Another key area is security and surveillance, monitoring and reporting suspicious activity, along with a related field of defence support.

Not surprisingly under its challenging circumstances, Ukraine is leading the world in developing robots in the battlefield.

Drones, of course, are just flying robots and can spot and destroy enemy positions even when well camouflaged.

However, it is in land-based robots that they are pioneering. Robots can be used instead of soldiers in laying or clearing minefields, transporting much of the supplies and equipment formerly carried by soldiers and assist in returning wounded soldiers to their base under enemy fire.

This year Ukraine will deploy 15,000 ground robots to continue defending their territory which protecting their soldiers from enemy fire.

With the planned expansion of our defence capability these development could be crucial.

And given that our forces in the UK are at the lowest level since the Napoleonic wars we can learn so much from these developments to improve our fighting power while minimising expensive and reducing risk of harm.

 In the farming sector, robots can sew crops, irrigate while minimising water usage, pick or destroy weeds with much more precision, feed and milk livestock and even pick soft fruit.

And, of course, in the field of healthcare, robots can assist surgery, provide effective rehabilitation support, and enable elderly care in monitoring, medication reminders, and mobility assistance.

The National Robotarium has recommended four strategic priorities for the next Scottish Government - actions which would put robotics at the heart of Scotland’s economic development going forward.

And it is to be hoped that the other planned robotariums will be established across the UK. After all, we should aspire to be higher that 24th in the world in the application of robots.

It’s one way of increasing growth in our economy.