October 6, 2025

Expert Encounter with Professor Sir Ian Chapman

Professor Sir Ian Chapman is the new chief executive of UK Research & Innovation (UKRI). As is our way with newly appointed movers and shakers of science, the SMC invited Sir Ian to meet with the science and health journalists likely to be reporting on UKRI’s work and his leadership in coming years.

UKRI is the UK’s largest investor of taxpayers’ money into research and innovation (R&I), with an annual budget of more than £8Bn invested in a broad range of research and innovation activities across all fields from the arts and humanities to quantum physics.

Sir Ian spoke to journalists more about his scientific and leadership career, and his ambitions for UKRI.

With a new Industrial Strategy launched you can expect UKRI to respond with focus in the key areas identified as having the highest potential, while protecting discovery-led research. Ian firmly believes that research and innovation must be central to meeting the challenge of growing our economy, and that UKRI has a crucial role to play.

Speakers included:

Professor Sir Ian Chapman, Chief Executive of UK Research & Innovation