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.
- ADOPT Facilitator support grant: round 12
Farming, growing or forestry businesses based in England can apply for a grant of £2,500, to engage an external Project Facilitator to support the development of a Full ADOPT Grant application.Innovate UK
- MDI programme innovation and scale-up hub
UK registered eligible organisations can apply for a share of up to £4 million for a manufacturing digitalisation innovation (MDI) and scale-up hub to improve the targeting, quality and commercial impact of grant funded activity.Innovate UK
- Engineering Biology Investor Partnerships round 1
UK registered SMEs can apply for a share of up to £8 million to develop engineering biology products and services with selected investor partners.Innovate UK
- Frontier AI: SME Champions, phase 1
UK registered SME’s can apply for a share of up to £3.1 million to deliver feasibility studies for frontier artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) technologies with a clear route to defensible scale-up.Innovate UK
- CfI: Innovation in play to improve child outcomes
Organisations can apply for a share of £3 million, inclusive of VAT, to develop practical solutions that reignite the importance of play and increase access to high quality, real world play experiences, improving outcomes for children and young people.Innovate UK
- Germany Bilateral Collaborative R&D: round 5
UK registered SME’s can apply for a share of up to £2.4 million for the purpose of developing innovative proposals with Germany. You must collaborate with at least one German SME applying under the equivalent German ZIM programme.Innovate UK
- Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund (CKAF) Winter
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.Innovate UK
- Battery innovation: concept development round three
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £25 million to support innovation in battery grade material technologies for electrification. This funding is from the battery innovation programme.Innovate UK
- Battery innovation: feasibility studies round three
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £25 million to support innovation in battery grade material technologies for electrification. This funding is from the battery innovation programme.Innovate UK
- Engineering Biology Collaborative R&D: Round 3
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £8.5 million to develop and scale Engineering Biology platforms, products and services. This funding is part of UKRI’s Engineering Biology Programme.Innovate UK
- Medicines Manufacturing Data Institute: Phase 1
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £500,000 for a phase 1 project to establish the Medicines Manufacturing Data Institute (MMDI). This funding is from Innovate UK.Innovate UK
- Engineering Biology Access to Infrastructure Pilot
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £5 million for Engineering Biology pilot scale and validation projects. This funding is part of UKRI’s Engineering Biology Programme and funded by BIST.Innovate UK
- Farming Innovation Programme: Small R&D Partnership Projects Round 5
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £13 million for small R&D partnership projects. This funding is from the industry led R&D Partnerships Fund, a part of the Defra Farming Innovation Programme.Innovate UK
- National Materials Innovation Programme: CR&D Rd1
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £12 million for collaborative industrial research to speed the translation of advanced materials innovations in three prioritised high growth themes and one strategic opportunity theme.Innovate UK
- Investor Partnerships – ACT and Semiconductors
UK registered SMEs can apply for grant funding alongside private investment from selected investor partners.Innovate UK
- Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP): 2026 – 2027 Round 3
UK registered academic institutions, RTOs or Catapults can apply for a share of up to £12.5 million to fund innovation projects with businesses.Innovate UK
- Advancing innovation in accelerated cancer diagnosis
Innovate UK, on behalf of the OLS Cancer Healthcare Goals programme, will invest up to £25.4 million, to support the clinical validation and evaluation of early cancer diagnostic technologies and devices.Innovate UK
- DRIVE35 Scale-up Fund drawdown five
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million to create scale up manufacturing facilities for zero emission vehicle technologies. DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) is a BIST-led programme aimed at transforming the UK's automotive industry.Innovate UK
- UK-Singapore CRD 2026
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £3 million for the purpose of developing innovative proposals with Singapore. You must collaborate with at least one Singapore business applying under the equivalent Enterprise Singapore programme.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
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