Cranfield University has announced plans for a world-leading Professorship in Autonomous Systems and Artificial Intelligence at the University, sponsored by BAE Systems, a technology leader in this field. The Professorship will be a research leadership role at the University, bringing together research in UAV's, Space and artificial intelligence (AI) adding to Cranfield's leading reputation in the fields of autonomous systems and AI. Advances in machine learning, high-performance computing, data science, multimodal sensing, and control are merging together to create enormous opportunities for intelligent, autonomous, or semi-autonomous systems. Such artificial intelligence systems are starting to achieve cognitive abilities such as language, attention, and creativity, promising to improve the safety and efficiency of systems for space technology and increasingly autonomous systems in aerospace and aviation. Julia Sutcliffe, Chief Technology Officer, BAE Systems Air, said: "Autonomous systems and artificial intelligence have the potential to provide a substantial positive impact upon product, service, and industrial capabilities.