Future Lab

Future Lab

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Goodwood’s Festival of Speed looks to the horizon 

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The world's most glamorous summer garden party isn’t just about celebrating cars and motor racing, it’s also looking ahead to how the world of tomorrow might shape up.

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An increasingly popular attraction at the annual motorsport festival is FOS Future Lab, a glimpse at emergent technology and wondrous inventions. A pavilion packed with cutting edge inventions, this area has the air of a 1930’s world fair, where visitors flock to see the innovations which could be a daily sight in only a few years. The only thing which is missing is nuclear-powered jetpacks and flying cars.

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Except, that’s not entirely true. Drawing gasps of admiration this year was Lilium’s eVTOL jet – which is now being developed for practical applications by the UK’s largest helicopter and private jet operator. Audiences also got to marvel at a range of exciting innovations, including live motion capture technology, interactive experiences, robot puppies, cargo drones and healthcare solutions. This is a unique chance to glimpse where science, technology and engineering will be advancing in the coming decades.

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As preparations get underway for next year’s Festival of Speed, we spoke to Amey Turner, Goodwood’s Technology & Future Lab Project Manager, about what we can expect from the expo and how these emerging technologies might benefit all of us.

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Is there such a thing as an average Future Lab participant?

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Not at all! Future Lab explores the theme of ‘Technology for a Better World’ and every year we have exhibitors from all over the world showcasing the very best in future mobility, digital experiences, sustainability, space and robotics. The one thing they all share is that they’re pioneers with cutting-edge technology impacting the way we will live.

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We’ve had biodomes for living on Earth, Mars and beyond; the world’s most dexterous robotic hands; satellites that clean up space junk with a huge arm; solar race cars and even jet packs!

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Who is Future Lab aimed at? Is it prospective STEM graduates, science enthusiasts or industry specialists?

Future Lab is for everyone – it’s a completely unique experience and we’re very proud of that. All our exhibitors have a Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) angle for children to explore or to pique the fascination of young adults just discovering their path into STEM. This year we hosted the Durham University Solar Car team at Future Lab who brought their two solar race cars and it was amazing to see how much engagement they got and how inspirational they are. They even set the very first time for a solar race car on the iconic Goodwood hillclimb. 

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But the exhibition isn’t just for young people, adults also enjoy the opportunity to get hands-on and have a go at drone racing or rubric hand challenges. One of the best things about Future Lab and the technology we showcase is that it gives us the ability to surprise and delight our guests who may never have thought about how technology is changing the way we live, or the role it plays in our homes, work and schools. 

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It seems that there’s a historical link between Goodwood and emergent technologies. Is Future Lab part of carrying on that tradition?

Absolutely. Future Lab sits under FOS TECH (Festival of Speed Technology) in tandem with our STEM Programme. The Duke of Richmond brought motorsport back to Goodwood in 1993 and from the very beginning has recognised the important role technology plays not just in future-proofing motoring and motorsport, but also in how we live. 

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Future Lab and STEM are ways for Goodwood to share the technology we think is so vital to our futures and inspire young people to get involved. It’s how we bring this ethos to life at the Festival of Speed, but it runs through everything we do at Goodwood. For example, this year’s Revival was the world’s first historic motorsport event to run all its races on sustainable fuels – it’s a huge achievement we’re incredibly proud of. 

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How much of a part do green technologies play at Future Lab?

Sustainability is a huge part of what the exhibition explores each year as part of ‘Technology for a Better World’. In 2024, visitors could discover the future of mobility with a full-scale model of an electric vertical take-off and landing jet, as well as explore stories of decarbonisation and cleaning up space junk. 

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Green tech is essential in preserving our future and having exhibitors that can bring it to life is so important. The Durham University solar race car was an incredible crowd-pleaser, and the student team’s work in solar tech is paving the way for mass market technology.

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Have there been any previous exhibitors who have brought their innovations to the mass market?

Definitely. As well as delighting our visitors, Future Lab is also a platform for B2B conversations and we’re always excited to see businesses move along their journey from start-up to scale-up and beyond. 

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The Lilium vertical take-off jet first exhibited at Future lab in 2023 with a model of the cabin, this year they returned with a full-scale model and next year we may even have the real thing as the business prepares to go to market. 

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This year we also had the dynamic debut of the DEX-EE – a new dextrous hand made for machine learning by Shadow Robot in collaboration with Google DeepMind.

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We even linked the European Space Agency (ESA) with Epic Games to launch their vividly immersive ‘Lunar Horizons’ moon mission game in Fortnite, which was unveiled at Future Lab in 2023. 

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How much do you think exhibitions like Future Lab can help shape our world?

Exhibitions like Future Lab are vital in bringing important topics around sustainability and our collective future to the public in a fun, interactive and engaging way. Our mission is to give our guests an amazing, immersive experience but also challenge them to think about the way we live and how emerging technologies will shape our near and distant future.

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 Having STEM activities as part of Future Lab alongside a specially-curated STEM programme is also essential to engage and inspire the young people who will become the next generation of ground-breakers, innovators and pioneers.

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Goodwood Festival of Speed returns on Thurs 10 – Sun 13 July. Prices start from £67, Half price Young Persons tickets for those aged 13-21 and children under 12 go free. Tickets go on sale Monday 4 Nov, at 9am

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www.goodwood.com/motorsport/festival-of-speed 

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