Sometimes in our professional lives, something triggers us to reflect on past events. Some of my colleagues may already know that from my PhD research, I invented the first commercially available intelligent ship autopilot.

Back in the early 1990’s, this was an early application of using artificial intelligence in a commercial product. This October, it is an amazing 25 years since my research was featured on the BBC TV Science Programme Tomorrow’s World. Where did that time go?

How things have changed… but also in other ways, things haven’t changed as much as you might think.

If anyone wants to see me racing around Poole harbour in a Sunseeker (which they kindly lent us for the BBC filming), then please click here. Obviously being 25 years ago I had hair…  and a pretty snazzy wardrobe!

Martyn Polkinghorne