Innovate UK Grant Funding Opportunities
Innovate UK grants can fund feasibility studies, industrial research, and late-stage innovation across a wide range of sectors – from software and AI to life sciences, engineering, manufacturing, net zero and transport. This page pulls in live funding opportunities from UKRI so you can quickly spot relevant calls, check deadlines, and shortlist the best fit. If you’d like support, Innovation Tax can review eligibility, shape a compliant project plan, and strengthen your application narrative and costs, so you submit with confidence.
This page pulls a live feed of open UKRI opportunities, so you can quickly spot relevant calls by theme and sector, check opening and closing dates, and shortlist the best-fit competitions for your project.
Tip: Most calls are competitive. You’ll improve your odds by aligning your proposal to the scoring criteria, showing credible delivery, and building a clear impact story – not just describing the technology.
What Innovate UK assessors typically look for
While each competition differs, strong applications usually show a compelling case across a few core areas: a clear problem and market need (who feels the pain, how large the opportunity is, and why existing solutions fall short), credible innovation (what’s genuinely novel, what makes it technically or commercially difficult, and why it hasn’t been achieved already), and a realistic delivery plan (well-structured work packages, key dependencies, risks and mitigations, and appropriate resourcing). Where a consortium is required, they also demonstrate the right mix of partners with clear roles and balanced capability, alongside a strong impact story (economic, societal, and/or environmental) with a believable route to adoption. Finally, they include robust cost justification, aligned to eligible categories and supported by clear, defensible assumptions.
Innovate UK Grant Funding Opportunities (Live Feed)
Discover open grant opportunities from Innovate UK funding calls (updated automatically) and get expert support to assess fit, shape a winning bid, and submit with confidence.
- Farming Futures R&D fund: Automation and Robotics Round 2
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £20 million to develop innovative solutions for automation and robotics in agriculture, horticulture and forestry. This funding is from the Farming Futures R&D fund.Innovate UK
- Ultra long duration energy storage project development studies
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £3 million for project development studies to support the development of ultra long duration battery energy storage demonstrators in the UK.Innovate UK
- Accelerating adoption of quantum enabled sensing and PNT
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £14.3 million to accelerate the adoption of quantum enabled position, navigation, and timing (PNT) and sensing technologies by addressing specific technical and commercial barriers.Innovate UK
- Quantum computing applications for large scale impact: CR&D
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £13 million for building quantum computing software applications that show clear value and potential high impact on near term quantum computing systems.Innovate UK
- Farming Innovation Programme: feasibility round five
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £15 million for feasibility projects. This funding is from the industry-led Research and Development Partnerships Fund, part of the Farming Innovation Programme.Innovate UK
- DRIVE35 innovation fund: collaborate three
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £20 million for late stage collaborative research and development projects. Projects will support the UK’s transition to zero emission vehicles and a pathway to a net zero automotive industry. DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) is a Department for Business and Trade led programme.Innovate UK
- Scaling performance of quantum computing hardware: CR&D
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £33 million to develop device level hardware and associated software to meet the scale, programmability, and runtime performance needs of universal fault tolerant quantum computers.Innovate UK
- 2445: DRIVE35: Scale Up Fund
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million, to create scale up manufacturing facilities for zero emission vehicle technologies.Innovate UK
- UK-Switzerland CR&D Round 3
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £3 million for innovative projects in specific technology areas. You must collaborate with at least one Swiss implementation partner applying under the equivalent Swiss Innosuisse programme.Innovate UK
- UKRI Translation: STFC Proof of Concept
Apply for funding to commercialise your technology or science developed from the STFC PPAN community. This scheme aims to support the PPAN community to develop technology and science towards commercialisation. You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for STFC funding.STFC Innovate UK
- Consumer Led Flexibility for the Clean Energy Superpower Mission
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £25 million for pre-commercialisation projects. This funding is from the UKRI R&D Missions Accelerator Programme through the Clean Energy Superpower Mission.Innovate UK
- Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund (CKAF) autumn
UK registered government research organisations can apply for grants from £50,000 up to £250,000 to move viable public sector knowledge assets towards commercial readiness. This funding is provided by the Government Office for Technology Transfer (GOTT).Innovate UK
- Zero emission vessels and infrastructure two: alternative fuels
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million. The funding will be to develop, deploy and operate innovative clean maritime solutions for three years in a real world environment. This funding is from the Department for Transport.Innovate UK
- Zero emission vessels and infrastructure round two: electric power
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million. The funding will be to develop, deploy and operate innovative clean maritime solutions for three years in a real world environment. This funding is from the Department for Transport.Innovate UK
- Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure 2: energy efficiency
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million. The funding will be to develop, deploy and operate innovative clean maritime solutions for three years in a real world environment. This funding is from the Department for Transport.Innovate UK
- Knowledge Transfer Partnership
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships help businesses to partner with an academic organisation, research organisation or a Catapult, to employ a graduate with the skills and knowledge that can help the business to innovate and grow.Innovate UK AHRC BBSRC ESRC EPSRC NERC STFC
Found a call that looks relevant? Send us the link and we’ll tell you if it’s worth pursuing.
Quick check: You’re more likely to be eligible if you can show (1) genuine innovation, (2) technical uncertainty, (3) a clear route to impact, and (4) realistic costs and delivery plan.
How Innovation Tax supports grant applications
Applying for Innovate UK funding is more than completing a form – you’re building a case that your project is innovative, deliverable, and high impact. We support businesses through the full lifecycle, including:
- Opportunity selection & fit assessment
What to apply for and what to avoid - Project shaping
Scope, objectives, work packages, deliverables, and milestones - Technical narrative & innovation rationale
State of the art, novelty, challenges, validation approach - Commercial story & impact
Market need, traction, adoption pathway, benefits - Finance & costs
Eligible costs, assumptions, value-for-money, matching funds - Writing & review
Clear, compliant responses aligned to scoring criteria - Risk, ethics & compliance
Data, IP, security, regulatory, EDI, sustainability requirements - Exploitation & IP strategy
Ownership, IP, protection and commercialisation plan
Want help choosing the right call or writing a stronger bid?
If you’ve found a funding opportunity that looks promising, we can help you validate eligibility, shape and refine the scope, and strengthen your application to improve your chances of success – from a rapid eligibility review and bid-writing support (or a critical review of what you’ve drafted), through to budget and work package structuring, finishing with a full submission-readiness check.
Find out if your project is eligible - fast.
A quick, no-obligation review to assess eligibility and potential value.
- Initial assessment in 24–48 hours
- Grant Funding Specialists
- Clear next steps & checklist