16 Jan 2026
Cambridge’s Futures Lab today announced that it is opening its doors to new partnership projects with international education innovators, technology organisations and universities around the world.
The Futures Lab sits within Cambridge’s Education Futures team and supports high-impact, collaborative research projects that are of an experimental nature and focused on improving the long-term future of international education. It draws together disciplines such as international education, psychology, computer science, engineering and digital humanities to identify emerging trends and test new ideas with the potential to be translated into approaches that benefit learners and education systems worldwide.
Building on its existing programme of work, the Futures Lab is now seeking new partnerships that explore early-stage ideas, emerging technologies, and innovative research approaches aligned with its core themes and strategic priorities.
Dr Martina Kuvalja, Senior Researcher at Cambridge who is leading the Futures Lab, said: 'A Cambridge education aims to ensure that learners are ready for the world. Through our Futures Lab, we work with global partners to look far beyond the present and address the forces reshaping how we live and learn. Our aim is not to predict the future, but to build the ideas, approaches, and solutions that will help education to shape it.'
Ongoing work within the Futures Lab is examining the future of assessment and the related, ethical use of AI; immersive digital technologies such as augmented and virtual reality; wellbeing; inclusion and equity; and international education’s potential impact on climate change. Projects are designed to be innovative, flexible, and collaborative, enabling partners to work alongside Cambridge education researchers in multidisciplinary teams.
The Futures Lab works alongside our existing Innovation Hubs, product and insights teams, but with a distinct purpose. Its role is to scan the horizon for emerging technologies and educational challenges, explore new research directions, and build partnerships that allow innovative ideas to be evaluated in safe educational research setting before they are ready for operational trials. Together, the Futures Lab, Innovation Hubs, product and insights teams form a connected innovation pipeline, from early exploration through to deployment.
Organisations that are interested in collaborating with the Futures Lab are invited to register their interest. To meet members of the team, Jane Mann and Amin Neghavati, at BETT, 21–23 January, in London, please email leadership team.