Funding Competition: Innovate UK Transformative Technologies

Deadline: 29-Mar-23

UK registered small and micro businesses can apply for a share of up to £20 million for affordable, adoptable and investable innovations in transformative technologies.

The aim of this competition is to provide a package of targeted support to enable ambitious UK registered micro and small businesses in transformative technologies to reach their potential.

You must focus on one of the transformative technologies and how you can enable affordable, adoptable and investable innovations for:

• semiconductors
• future telecoms
• AI assurance
• engineering biology
• quantum
• sustainable UK materials and manufacturing.

Specific Challenge Themes

• You must focus on one of the transformative technologies and how you can enable affordable, adoptable and investable innovations for:
  • Semiconductors
    • with improvements and scale up for semiconductor manufacture within the UK
    • identifying or delivering a clear, game-changing intervention and address an identified industrial requirement or improvement
    • realistically and significantly meeting and providing a long-term commitment to supporting the UK semiconductor industry
  • Future Telecoms
    • applying innovation from at least one technology area utilising distributed computing, multi agent systems or the application of AI into networking technologies
    • developing new business models and innovation within both wired and wireless communications, including but not limited to:
      • neutral host networks
      • citizen WI-FI
      • mesh networks,
      • energy efficient networks
      • satellite and non-terrestrial networking solutions
    • They encourage projects to build on or contribute to open standards development or the extension of OpenRAN
  • Artificial Intelligence Assurance
    • with the development of novel solutions and processes to advance trust in the compliance and risk of AI systems
    • delivering a clear, game-changing intervention for one or more of the following:
      • auditing
      • impact assessment or evaluation
      • reliability and robustness testing
  • Engineering Biology
    • with innovation that harnesses advances in biology, and the engineering of biological systems and organisms, to address challenges and improve productivity in:
      • human and animal health, from discovery to manufacture
      • environmental solutions, sustainability and cleaner manufacturing processes
      • food security or biosecurity
    • developing new tools, products, services or processes that exploit engineering biology techniques
    • supporting skills development in the broader engineering biology ecosystem, in areas such as precision fermentation and scale-up
  • Quantum
    • with quantum technologies including quantum computing (hardware and software)
    • single photon detection or generation
  • Sustainable UK Materials and Manufacturing
    • accelerating the development and adoption of resource efficient solutions, with simultaneous demonstration of resilience or technological advancement
    • addressing two or more of the following:
      • materials for the future
      • smart design
      • resilient supply chains
      • world class production
      • longer in use
      • reuse.

Funding Information

• Your project’s total costs and grant request must be between £25,000 and £50,000.
• Your project must:
  • have total project costs and grant request of between £25,000 and £50,000
  • start by 1 June 2023
  • end by 30 November 2023
  • last between 3 and 6 months in duration
  • carry out its project work in the UK
  • intend to exploit the results from or in the UK.

Eligibility Criteria

• Lead Organisation
  • To lead a project your organisation must be a UK registered micro or small business.
  • If your business has been funded by Innovate UK previously, you are not eligible to apply for this competition.
  • Businesses with directors who have previously received a grant or Innovation Loan from Innovate UK as part of a different company, are eligible to apply but will be considered on a case by case basis.
  • A business with a previous award to a parent or subsidiary would also be eligible to apply, but the parent company must be classified as a micro or small business. Applications will be considered on a case by case basis.
  • If you are unsure, contact our customer support team by email at least 10 working days before the submission deadline.

Ineligible

• They are not funding projects that:
  • do not meet the competition eligibility or scope requirements
  • do not evidence potential for the proposed innovation to lead to significant and positive economic or societal impact
  • do not evidence value for money
  • involve primary production in fishery and aquaculture
  • involve primary production in agriculture
  • have activities relating to the purchase of road freight transport
  • are not allowed under De minimis regulation restrictions
  • are not eligible to receive Minimal Financial Assistance
• They cannot fund projects that are:
  • dependent on export performance, for example giving an award to a baker on the condition that they export a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example if they give an award to a baker on the condition that they use 50% UK flour in their product.

For more information, visit Innovate UK.