REF2021 IMPACT CASE STUDY: Enabling Applications of Ontologies via Reasoning Systems

The overarching goal of semantic technology is to help machines understand data. Research led by three professors at the Department of Computer Science has had significant impact on its development and deployment across the world through state-of-the-art reasoning systems.  

Reasoning systems generate conclusions from available knowledge using logical techniques such as deduction and induction, and play an important role in AI and knowledge-based systems. 

Professors Ian Horrocks, Boris Motik, and Bernardo Cuenca Grau played a leading role in advancing semantic technologies for complex data and knowledge applications, developing cutting-edge open-source reasoning systems that support the widely used Web Ontology Language, OWL 2. As ontologies define the structure of knowledge in various domains, the research team’s systems enabled the application of OWL ontologies across sectors such as healthcare, IT and infrastructure. 

The research team also developed RDFox, a high-performance knowledge graph and semantic reasoning engine that has created direct economic impact through spinout company Oxford Semantic Technologies (OST), backed by Samsung Ventures. In 2024, OST was acquired by Samsung Electronics.

We are delighted to see the fruits of our work in advancing semantic technologies and facilitating the wide application of ontologies via reasoning systems. We hope that our work will form the basis of developments for years to come and continue to have a range of impacts in multiple settings. Professor Ian Horrocks

The impact 

Underpinned by the University’s HermiT and ELK algorithms and reasoning systems, the latest research work has led to a range of impacts in diverse settings. It has changed the landscape for ontology developers, alongside non-profit organisations and businesses that develop and use ontology-based systems. It has also had direct influence on commerce and production through the spinout company OST and the application of its patented technology in industry.  

The work has led to widespread impact across healthcare and other information systems, including for building and maintaining ontologies in industry and in large government projects. These include the National Cancer Institute Thesaurus, the WHO’s International Classification of Diseases, and SNOMED CT, the world’s most comprehensive clinical terminology language, implemented across the NHS as a core component of its patient record service. 

The highly scalable RDFox tool was applied in several pilot industry projects by OST, bringing the cutting-edge research in semantic technologies to industry, having raised more than £4M in investment. Customers include electronics giant Samsung and German multinational Festo. Samsung Electronics subsequently acquired OST in 2024, and RDFox will now be integrated into a wide range of Samsung AI devices, such as mobile phones, TVs and home appliances. 

Find out more  

The full REF submission is available in this PDF.