The METIUS programme is a new infrastructure investment with a total UK funding allocation of £14.5 million. It aims to harness cutting-edge AI to improve the speed, relevance and accessibility of evidence synthesis for decision-makers tackling urgent challenges. METIUS is co-funded by the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST), the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and forms part of the UKRI Creating Opportunities and Improving Outcomes strategic theme. The investment started on 1 October 2025 and will run for five years. The purpose of the evaluation is to assess the extent to which the project has increased policymakers’ use of synthesised evidence to inform policy development, and to evaluate the associated benefits for evidence-informed public policy in the UK and internationally. In addition, the evaluation will generate actionable insights to inform the design and delivery of future research inve