From shared challenges to new ideas: CCAI researchers prepare for partner sandpit

CCAI doctoral researchers will work alongside three non-academic organisations on 4 November to explore real-world challenges and develop new ideas for citizen-centred AI research.

How can doctoral researchers and organisations work together to shape AI around people’s needs? Our upcoming Citizen-Centred AI Sandpit will create space to explore that question through a day of collaborative research development.

Taking place on 4 November 2026, the event will bring together approximately 15 doctoral researchers from different disciplines and three non-academic partner organisations. Partners will introduce challenges from their work and collaborate with researchers to explore possible responses.

Through presentations, discussions and facilitated group workshops, participants will examine each challenge, ask questions and consider the practical context. Together, they will map the problem, explore different research approaches and identify an idea to develop further.

By the end of the day, groups will present the beginnings of a short, focused research proposal and receive feedback from partners. They will then have two weeks to develop their ideas before presenting them back in a virtual session.

A two-day hackathon immediately following the sandpit will offer an opportunity to develop a demonstration or prototype, where appropriate. Other approaches and outputs may emerge depending on the challenge and the group’s ideas.

The programme gives researchers experience of developing ideas with organisations beyond the university, considering practical constraints and drawing on expertise across disciplines. For partners, it provides an opportunity to explore their challenges with researchers bringing different perspectives and methods.

We look forward to sharing the ideas and collaborations that develop through the programme.