- agency
- Innovate UK (UK Research and Innovation)
- amount
- Grant funding. Project cost bands: feasibility studies £50,000-£300,000; industrial research £100,000-£1,000,000; experimental development £250,000-£2,000,000. Grant covers up to 70% of eligible costs (micro/small) or 60% (medium) for feasibility/industrial research, and 45%/35% for experimental development. A minimum of £100 million was allocated to the competition.
- country
- United Kingdom
- deadline or recurrence
- Round 2 application deadline was 3 February 2026 (11:00 UK time); now closed. Run as periodic rounds.
- eligibility
- Open to UK-registered SMEs applying as single applicants that carry out the project work in the UK and have established a relationship and strong investment traction with one of Innovate UK's approved investor partners before applying. Projects must align with the UK Modern Industrial Strategy across six sectors: advanced manufacturing, clean energy industries, digital and technologies, defence, creative industries, and life sciences.