Rethink

Is the UK destined to be an economy that only provides services and no longer makes things? Whether you agree with that statement or not, it's a narrative that's stuck with the UK for decades. There are now far fewer large homegrown manufacturing firms than there were 60 years ago, which contribute far less as a percentage of national income. In the 1960s, a third of the UK workforce was employed in manufacturing, but now that's down to less than 10 percent. But not all of those workers in the 1960s were on the production line; many were in-house cleaners, cooks, drivers and even barbers. Those roles were contracted out decades ago, and are now counted as service jobs. So there's always been a blurring between these two parts of the economy, and now, increasingly, companies are finding ways to hold on to customers by adding value, such as car mechanics offering a free courtesy vehicle, or a laser printer company telling you when the ink is running low in your machine. This called servitization, and because of advanced data analysis, manufacturers are now even able to provide an outcome, rather than just a product. It's the difference between selling jet engines and instead providing guaranteed thrust for airliners. Or the difference between selling a gas boiler and instead guaranteeing a warm home when a customer needs it.It's a business strategy that has risks, but it can make a customer's life easier. It can lead to higher profits, less waste and greater productivity. But despite its benefits, the value of servitization to the UK economy isn't being measured. So is it time to rethink the relationship between manufacturing and services? Presenter: Ben Ansell Producers: Ravi Naik and Tom Gillett Editor: Damon RoseContributors: Tim Minshall, the Dr. John C. Taylor Professor of Innovation and Head of the Institute for Manufacturing at the University of Cambridge. Diane Coyle, Professor of Public Policy at the Bennett School of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. Tim Baines, Professor of operations strategy at the Aston Business School in Birmingham, and head of the Advanced Services Group. Matt Skipworth, Vice President of Services Globally and Digital Solutions at Genie. Andy Neely, Professor of Manufacturing at the University of Cambridge.

Elon Musk’s Space X is planning for a satellite constellation 1 million strong. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is planning for two constellations of tens of thousands of satellites; and Chinese companies are thought to be planning to launch thousands more. Other commercial companies are beginning to think about the advantages of working in space - manufacturers, energy companies- all are planning to put more objects and more metal into space.So is low Earth orbit - at around 2000 kilometres or less from the ground about to become dangerously congested?This picture is further complicated by the presence of objects that we cannot control and never intended to have circling around the planet. Space debris - bits of old rockets that have been jettisoned, old satellites that no longer function, fragments of metal- even a glove that was lost during a space walk. What happens if some of this space junk hits one of the thousands of satellites orbiting the earth? Could this set off a terrifying chain reaction that could hinder future space missions and make satellite communication vastly more difficult? Could our ability to track the weather, climate change, use satellite navigation and even access the internet be set back decades?Do we also as a species need to start thinking about the implications for all that metallic pollution we are sending into space? Should we be thinking of space in the same way we think about our oceans and rainforests? Is space the next environmental frontier?Presenter: Professor Ben Ansell Producer: Tom Gillett Sound mix: Neil Churchill Editor: Damon Rose Contributors: Dr Samantha Lawler - Associate Professor of Astronomy, University of Regina John Crassidis - Moog Professor of Innovation, University at Buffalo Joanne Wheeler MBE - Managing Partner at Alden Legal Andrew Faiola – Commercial Director, Astroscale Ben Nowack – CEO and Co-Founder, Reflect OrbitalMaterial from: Space X ‘Gravity’ – Heyday Films/ Esperanto Filmoj/ Warner Bros. Pictures – Director Alfonso Cuarón CNN

Anthony King, Exeter’s professor of strategic studies, and Florence Gaub, NATO Defence College research director, explore how Ukraine and Iran are resisting stronger forces. They discuss hybrid warfare, cheap drones, battlefield surveillance, AI targeting, autonomous weapons and rapid military innovation. The conversation also examines troop shortages, Britain’s digital defence plans, and what people would truly fight to protect.

Yang Li, Cosine co-founder, develops locally controlled AI. Tera Allas, a productivity and investment expert, examines Britain’s funding challenges. Anu Bradford, Columbia law professor and digital regulation scholar, explores global tech power. They discuss dependence on Silicon Valley, AI kill-switch fears, Europe’s scaling problem, sovereign AI, open-source alternatives, and whether middle powers can reclaim digital control.

Sam Wetherell, a University of York urban historian; Tom W. Bell, a law professor focused on alternative governance; and Atossa Araxia Abrahamian, author of The Hidden Globe, explore charter cities. They discuss special economic zones, imported laws, Shenzhen and Dubai, Honduras’s ZEDEs, colonial legacies, private power, and whether capitalism can thrive without democracy. The conversation also ventures into eco-cities, seasteads, city-states, and governing the Moon and Mars.

Barry Eichengreen, economic historian who explains how Bretton Woods and the Nixon shock shaped the dollar. David Shrier, AI and crypto futurist who explores digital currencies and stablecoins. They discuss the dollar's global dominance, the role of Treasuries as a safe asset, sanctions as leverage, and whether cryptocurrencies or other currencies could realistically replace the dollar.

Should we rethink who our city streets are for? It can often feel like there is a hierarchy on the roads, with cars needing to get from A to B as fast as they can, taking priority over people cycling or walking. But what if we flipped it on its head and put pedestrians at the top? Or, what if we saw our streets in a totally new light and instead decided they were places for meeting friends, playing or resting under a tree? Ben Ansell finds the people designing new streets, and he hears one radical idea that requires an entirely new language. Ben visits a new kind of street where pedestrians have priority, not cars. It has been designed by traffic engineer Keith Firth at NRP. Campaigner Martin Cassini argues we could get rid of traffic lights to encourage drivers to pay better attention to pedestrians and to help ease traffic jams. But would all road users feel confident crossing without a dedicated beep or time to cross? Sohanna Srinivasan, head of Urban Planning Design at North Hertfordshire council, sets out her plan for how streets can have space built-in for people to fully enjoy their neighbourhoods while Dutch author Marco te Brömmelstroet says we need to rethink the language we use about cities. Change the language, change the mind set. Is it that simple? Presenter: Ben Ansell Producer: Phoebe Keane Editor: Damon Rose

Sharon Rosenzweig-Lipson, CSO at Life Biosciences, explains cellular rejuvenation and ER100, an early epigenetic restoration therapy. Andrew Steele, longevity researcher and author, breaks down aging biology, biological age measures and mortality-rate concepts. They explore epigenetic clocks, partial cellular reprogramming, organ-specific trials and the tension between exciting science and cautious safety timelines.

Of the 195 widely-recognized sovereign countries in the world, only a quarter are monarchies. And of those 43 monarchies, 15 of those have the same King. That’s Charles III, who’s head of state for Commonwealth territories as large as Australia and Canada, and as far apart as the UK and Tuvalu in the South Pacific. In the other 28, the ruling monarchs can be called Kings, Emirs, Sultans, and there’s an Emperor on the Chrysanthemum throne in Japan.Of course, there are also Queens - but some modern monarchies such as Japan and Lichtenstein still don’t allow female succession. In others, eldest daughters are passed over for their younger brothers - and this still happens in Spain and Monaco. If this all seems a bit medieval, that's because it is! Monarchy is a system of governance that developed hundreds - or in the case of Japan - more than 1000 years ago, so it can look outdated through a 21st century lens. But it's enduring, and opinion polls suggest it can be popular. So what does monarchy mean in the modern age? Which royal families are not only surviving, but are expanding their spheres of power and influence, and why the newest "monarchies" in the USA, Russia and China are not even royal at all. Presenter: Professor Ben Ansell Producer: Ravi Naik Editor: Damon Rose Contributors: Dr Craig Prescott, specialist in UK Constitutional Law, Royal Holloway, University of London Adam Hanieh, MBI Jaber Chair of Middle East Studies and Professor in the Development Studies Department at SOAS, University of London. Stacie Goddard, Betty Freyhof Johnson ’44 Professor of Political Science and Associate Provost, Wellesley College, Massachusetts. Abe Newman, Professor and John Powers Chair in International Business Diplomacy, Director, BMW Center for German and European Studies, Georgetown University, Washington DC

Tracy Dennis-Tiwary, a behavioral neuroscience and psychology professor, explores how authenticity ties to wellbeing and social media. Nick Clarke, a political geography professor, examines authenticity in politics and voter preferences. Lone Sorensen, a political communication scholar, looks at political messaging and performative authenticity. Estelle Lovatt, art critic and painter, discusses art provenance, authorship and AI as a creative tool. They debate authenticity in art, politics, social media and AI.