Founded in 2006,[1] Culture Lab provides an environment for academics and practitioners to work beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries, and offers access to specialist digital technologies for a diverse range of creative, practice-led research.

Situated in a Grade II listed building (the Grand Assembly Rooms on King's Walk, Newcastle), Culture Lab houses open-plan research areas, and dedicated performance, electronics, workshop, multimedia and sound spaces.

Prior to being used by the Culture Lab, the building was listed on 4 August 2000 and was then used as the University PE and Fitness Centre.

[2] Often working in collaboration with arts organisations, industry partners and other academic institutions, Culture Lab has facilitated conferences on diverse topics, including Music & Machines, Architecture in the Space of Flows, and Artificial Intelligence & Simulation of Behaviour, as well as hosting frequent public performances, installations, lectures, seminars and workshops.

Culture Lab initiatives have included the INSCAPE project (funded by the European Commission) to design an interactive storytelling tool; AMUC, a collaborative motion-capture project involving Computing Science, Mechanical Engineering and Performing Arts; and the Ambient Kitchen, providing a platform for exploring assistive technology in the domestic setting.