Latest news

The MATRIX website is home to the latest Northern Ireland science & technology news, the most relevant reports and of course our own studies on Northern Ireland’s tech sectors and how best to grow them.

Matrix visits Artemis

April 11th, 2025|

Earlier this month some of our Matrix panel members had the fantastic opportunity to visit Artemis Technologies Ltd in Belfast. The visit included a tour of Artemis’ cutting-edge factory facilities, an immersive experience in the high-tech simulator, and the rare chance to get out on the water aboard one of their revolutionary eFoilers. With clear skies and sunshine overhead, it [...]

Exploring Northern Ireland’s Space Technology Potential: Insights from Robert Hill on the Foundation for Science and Technology Podcast

April 10th, 2025|

In a recent episode of the Foundation for Science and Technology's podcast, Robert Hill, Chair of Matrix and representative of the NI Space Special Interest Group, provided an in-depth analysis of Northern Ireland's burgeoning space technology sector. This discussion comes on the heels of the latest Matrix Space Scoping Report, which identifies seven key pillars of opportunity for the region. [...]

Matrix March Round-Up

April 8th, 2025|

Matrix has had a number of key engagements across the space and technology sectors with high-profile report launches to international showcases, here’s a look back at our activities over the past few weeks. Space Workshop Matrix participated in a UK Space Agency (UKSA) / European Space Agency (ESA) / Invest NI workshop, which brought together leading stakeholders to discuss Northern [...]

What is Matrix?

MATRIX, the Northern Ireland Science Industry Panel, is a business led expert panel, formed primarily to advise government, industry and academia on the commercial exploitation of R&D and science and technology in Northern Ireland.

We produce regular, in depth reports which outline the work, findings and recommendations of our specialist panels. These reports are an invaluable resource for anyone interested in how new technologies and market opportunities can be developed within the Northern Ireland economy and beyond.

The Matrix panel

We have a main panel of nineteen business and academic leaders, supported by a small secretariat team based in the Department for the Economy. The Chair of the panel is Robert Hill.

What Matrix does

The MATRIX panel commissions research, analysis and studies, to help DfE build the evidence base for future science and R&D policies within wider innovation policy.

The Matrix panel advises in three main areas:

  • Key R&D and science & technology issues affecting business innovation

  • The emerging strategic technology priorities impacting on Northern Ireland’s economy

  • The promotion of a culture of innovation and the importance of R&D and science & technology in the future, particularly with business and in regard to commercial exploitation activities.

The Matrix library

This library is a collection of Matrix reports as well as documents that the Matrix panel and secretariat have used in their research. The most recent additions to the library are here – if you want to see the full collection, arranged by topic, please visit the library section.

Latest science and technology events

Live SBRIs and other funding competitions

The Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) connects public sector challenges with innovative ideas from industry, supporting companies to generate economic growth and enabling improvement in achieving government objectives.

SBRI provides innovative solutions to challenges faced by the public sector and generates new business opportunities for companies, providing SMEs with a route to market for their ideas and bridging the seed funding gap experienced by many early stage companies. It supports economic growth and enables the development of innovative products and services through the public procurement of research and development (R&D).

There are currently no vacancies.