Innovation funding opportunities
Looking for funding and support to develop your idea? At Innovate UK Business Connect, we connect businesses, researchers and innovators with the right opportunities they need to grow.
Explore opportunities for funding and expert guidance, to help turn your innovation into a commercial success.
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ARIA: Trust Everything, Everywhere - opportunity seeds
Opens: 22/06/2026
Closes: 27/07/2026
ARIA (the UK's Advanced Research & Innovation Agency) are seeking high-potential proposals to build a new cyber-physical trust infrastructure, with funding available up to £500,000 each.
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Women TechEU 2026-27
Opens: 01/06/2026
Closes: 13/07/2027
Women TechEU 2 EIC is an EU-funded project designed to support women-led early-stage deep tech startups from Europe. Each startup can receive €75,000 in funding.
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Scaling performance of quantum computing hardware: CR&D
Opens: 27/06/2026
Closes: 18/09/2026
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.
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DRIVE35 Innovation Fund: Collaborate 3
Opens: 26/06/2026
Closes: 16/09/2026
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.
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UK Space Agency: Commercial Climate Services Call 4
Send intent to submit by 31 July, full submission required by 7 August
Grants of up to £85k per project are now available to support the development of commercial UK-based services using satellite Earth Observation data.
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Clean Transport Accelerator: Maritime 2026
Opens: 16/06/2026
Closes: 28/07/2026
The Clean Transport Accelerator: Maritime is a six-month programme supporting SMEs developing innovative solutions for maritime decarbonisation. Up to six TRL 5–8 companies will receive tailored commercial support and apply for up to £30k to run a four‑month trial with partners.
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Next Wave: Breakthrough Wave 1
Opens: 23/06/2026
Closes: 11/08/2026
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £10m for industrial research projects to explore industrial strategy aligned Createch innovation.
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DRIVE35: Scale Up Fund
There is no submission deadline
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £150 million, to create scale up manufacturing facilities for zero emission vehicle technologies.
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Contracts for Innovation: Earlier identification of UK children with Special Educational Needs (SEN)
Opens: 23/06/2026
Closes: 05/08/2026
Organisations can apply for a share of £2.5m inclusive of VAT to develop innovations that enable earlier, fairer, more reliable identification of special educational needs (SEN) in contexts where existing market solutions underperform or do not operate.
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Horizon Europe 2026-27: Horizontal Actions - Bridging Actions
Various closing dates between January and June 2027
A series of topics aiming to facilitate a smooth transition between Horizon Europe 2021–2027 and the next EU R&I Framework Programme, Horizon Europe 2028–2034.
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Horizon Europe 2026-27: Horizontal actions - Transformative change towards a nature-positive economy and society
Opens: 06/10/2026
Closes: 16/09/2027
Supporting R&I activities dedicated to biodiversity across pillar II of Horizon Europe, with up to €50m for the largest projects.
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Horizon Europe Chips Joint Undertaking 2026
Various closing dates to 31 March 2027
Topics under the CHIPS-JU work programme, with up to €70m available for the largest projects
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3rd UK-Switzerland Bilateral Call for Joint Innovation Projects
Opens: 01/07/2026
Closes: 03/09/2026
Bilateral call to strengthen Swiss-UK innovation collaboration in Semiconductors, Life Sciences, or Engineering Biology.
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HMGCC Co-Creation Challenge: Upgradeable sensors to rapidly detect chemical and biological hazards
Opens: 22/06/2026 Closes: 23/07/2026
HMGCC Co-Creation are offering up to £60k to develop next-generation sensors to enhance our ability to detect a broad range of chemical and biological substances in real-time.
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Decarbonising operational fleet and tools for gas network operations
Opens: 16/06/2026
Closes: 28/07/2026
Cadent Gas Ltd is seeking innovative vehicle, on board power and compatible tool solutions to enable the transition from diesel-powered operational fleet vehicles to low or zero emission alternatives.
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NHS Cancer Programme - Innovation Open Call 4
Opening Sep 2026; closing date tbc
Applications are invited for innovations that focus on productivity and supporting the NHS to meet Cancer Waiting Times, as well as innovations that support the earlier detection and diagnosis of cancer.
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Robotics Adoption Central Convening Body summer 2026
Opens: 10/06/2026
Closes: 08/07/2026
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £2 million for creating a central convening body to coordinate the robotics adoption hubs. Funding is from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).
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Consumer Led Flexibility for the Clean Energy Superpower Mission
Opens: 10/06/2026
Closes: 26/08/2026
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £25 million for pre-commercialisation projects to develop solutions that enable flexible loads to be better utilised in energy system operation.
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Global Incubator Programme: Seabed to Space Dual-Use Technologies, Canada
Opens: 08/06/2026
Closes: 24/07/2026
Innovate UK seeks up to eight innovative UK companies with dual-use civilian & military tech within the national security, defence, and marine technology sectors to join our tailored 12-month incubation programme delivered in partnership with COVE, a global innovation hub located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
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Innovation Loans Expression of Interest
There is no submission deadline
UK registered micro, small or medium sized enterprises can submit an Expression of Interest for loans for close to market innovative projects with strong commercial potential. They must significantly improve the UK economy and drive societal benefit.
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ACTASAP Pilot Phase 1
Opens: 04/06/2026
Closes: 28/07/2026
UK registered academic institutions can apply for up to £32,000 each to take part in ACTASAP, an accelerator to bring academic research to market.