20 November 2025 · Campus · Professor Lin Zhang, School of Computing
The School of Computing at Luma University has opened a dedicated artificial intelligence and machine learning laboratory within the Digital Learning Hub on the Edgewater campus. The facility, funded through a £1.4 million investment from the university and a equipment grant from a leading technology vendor, provides 60 high-specification workstations and access to a GPU cluster for training neural networks.
Professor Lin Zhang, Head of the School of Computing, said the laboratory addresses rapid growth in student demand for AI-related modules. "Enrolment on our machine learning and data science programmes has doubled in three years. Employers across the West Midlands—from logistics firms to NHS analytics teams—need graduates who can apply AI responsibly and effectively," she explained.
The laboratory supports undergraduate projects, MSc dissertations and faculty research in areas including computer vision, natural language processing and predictive maintenance for manufacturing. Industry partners will guest lecture in the space and propose real-world datasets for student projects.
Access is managed through a booking system prioritising scheduled teaching sessions and research activity. Students on computing programmes receive induction training covering ethical use of AI tools, data privacy and academic integrity. The school has published guidance on appropriate use of generative AI in assessed work, aligned with university-wide academic regulations.
An open afternoon on 4 December 2025 allowed prospective applicants attending autumn open days to observe demonstrations including a autonomous robot navigation project developed by third-year students.