Call will support UK collaboration on AI in healthcare

Image: Iron Horse 71/Pixabay

FAPESP and the Medical Research Council will support research into the use of AI in biomedical applications relevant to Brazil with a total of up to £6 million

FAPESP and the Medical Research Council (MRC) announce the launch of a call for proposals to support collaborative research on artificial intelligence (AI) in health. This is the fifth invitation issued in the history of the cooperation agreement between the two institutions. The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the UK research councils associated with UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the British science funding agency.

The call aims to support mobility and scientific exchange between the UK and the state of São Paulo and to develop new partnerships between British and São Paulo researchers in the fields of “digital health/artificial intelligence” and “social determinants of health”.

The call will fund high-quality collaborative research projects focused on addressing the use of AI for biomedical and health applications relevant to Brazil. Projects should aim to make a real-world impact by addressing urgent health needs and barriers to the use of AI in biomedical and health research.

Two types of proposals will be selected. In Aid for Building Partnerships, new or early-stage partnerships signed by researchers at the beginning of their career will be covered; These proposals will request support from FAPESP through a Research Grant – Regular Method and up to £100,000 from the MRC.

The second type, research grants, involves large-scale research proposals in Brazil and the UK led by more established groups, which will compete for funding from FAPESP through the Research Grant – Thematic Project Method and MRC contributions of up to £500,000.

The selected projects must last for three years, starting in February 2025 and ending by the end of January 2028. On the part of FAPESP, researchers are linked to public or private higher education or research institutions in the state of São Paulo who meet the criteria for each type of assistance despite the expected exceptions. In the call.

MRC and FAPESP will each provide up to £3 million towards the call. The MRC will support this activity under the umbrella of the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF), designed to support British researchers to work with international partners on key contemporary topics.

Proposals must be submitted in English by the responsible researcher of the State of São Paulo to FAPESP through the SAGe system by June 28.

The call for proposals has been published at: https://fapesp.br/16664.

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