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Explaining the uses of AI, Prof Sloan said a farmer growing plants in fields needed to check for pests.

“Go back even 10 years, you would have had to manually go around and actually look at all of those plants,” he said.

“Now what you can do, is you can take a machine… you can scan individually, you can compare what you’re seeing very quickly to what a healthy plant looks like.”

He said it was the same with animals, adding: “A cow can tell you by the way it walks, the way it sits, how it spends its time, whether it’s OK or not OK.”

It took time and experience for a person to check them, he said, but with cameras, “we can spot them, we can see them, and we can act really quickly to keep the animals healthy”.

The renovations will also be funded by the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society and the steamer’s owning charity, Waverley Steam Navigation Co.

The £135,000 is needed to replace the ship’s two masts and several windows in the dining saloon with authentic materials.

Mr Semple said: “They are vital components that really give the authentic nature to Waverley.

“Essentially, many parts of the ship could be replaced with more modern materials and fittings which may last longer, but collectively that would change the look and feel of the ship.”

Waverley was built shortly after the Second World War for the London and North Eastern Railway, connecting passengers from Glasgow to towns such as Rothesay and Dunoon.

It was launched in October 1946 and entered service the next year.

Following the end of its working life, the ship was gifted to the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society in 1974 for £1.

The team behind the world’s last seagoing paddle steamer is hoping to raise £135,000 to replace “vital components” ahead of the 80th anniversary of its launch.

The sum is just a small part of the £1.5m required to repair the Waverley, which is due to visit the Bristol Channel in late May 2026.

Waverley was built in Glasgow to connect rail passengers to seaside towns, and now offers cruises to the public.

Paul Semple, general manager of Waverley Excursions, the company that runs the trips, said: “We are preserving her truly unique character. As the world continuously changes around Waverley, she becomes even more special as she represents a moment in time when she was first designed and built.”

The renovations will also be funded by the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society and the steamer’s owning charity, Waverley Steam Navigation Co.

The £135,000 is needed to replace the ship’s two masts and several windows in the dining saloon with authentic materials.

Mr Semple said: “They are vital components that really give the authentic nature to Waverley.

“Essentially, many parts of the ship could be replaced with more modern materials and fittings which may last longer, but collectively that would change the look and feel of the ship.”

Waverley was built shortly after the Second World War for the London and North Eastern Railway, connecting passengers from Glasgow to towns such as Rothesay and Dunoon.

It was launched in October 1946 and entered service the next year.

Following the end of its working life, the ship was gifted to the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society in 1974 for £1.