Deadline: 2-Jul-25
UK registered academic institutions, RTOs or Catapults can apply for innovation projects with businesses, not for profits or public sector organisations.
The Innovate UK Accelerated Knowledge Transfer (AKT) scheme will support a Knowledge Base partner, in working with their Business Partner, to deliver a short, rapid and targeted intervention. This intervention will accelerate the evaluation or development of an innovation project or concept, with the potential for a significant impact for the Business Partner.
Focus Areas
- Projects must be focused on improving treatment, recovery, and harm reduction, prevention for people with drug or alcohol addictions.
Funding Information
- Projects must run for 13 weeks. The maximum grant will be £35,000 per project. The Business Partner must contribute 10% (minimum) of the total project costs in cash. There is no upper limit to the cash contribution of the business.
Ineligible Projects
- They will not fund:
- projects that are not strategic for the business partner
- projects that do not demonstrate a genuine market opportunity or viable route to market
- research projects
- projects where the business partner is an ineligible public sector organisation
- projects which are classed as State aid under EC regulations or a subsidy under the EU-UK TCA
- undertakings which gain a selective economic or commercial advantage from the funding
- Projects that focus on:
- tobacco or nicotine addiction
- gambling and behavioural addictions
- prevention of initiation of use of addictive substances
- early intervention in substance use behaviour, prior to addiction being established as a treatment need
Eligibility Criteria
- Each Accelerated Knowledge Transfer (AKT) project is a partnership between a:
- UK knowledge base, acting as lead organisation and submitting the application
- UK registered business or not for profit or eligible public sector organization
- They use the term ‘business partner’ for businesses, not for profit organisations, social enterprises, public sector organisations, charities or charitable businesses.
- The knowledge base partner cannot work alone.
- The knowledge base partner must lead the project and must:
- be a UK registered higher education (HE) or further education (FE) institution, research technology organisation (RTO) or Catapult
- invite one UK registered business, public sector organisation or not for profit organisation into the Innovation Funding Service (IFS) application
- provide a minimum of 0.25 days per week of supervision to the project
- not have ownership of 50% or more of the business partner or a controlling interest through a shareholder agreement
- complete the application form in partnership with the business
- submit a current full economic costing (fEC) letter with each application if you are using the full fEC costing model and support the project in accordance with its provision, or submit the non fEC declaration letter
- provide the project secretariat
- reach an intellectual property (IP) agreement with the business partner before the project commences, if required
- agree to attend specified meetings
- ensure that none of the proposed academic team are directors, consultants or otherwise engaged by the business or group
- The knowledge base partner must lead the project and must:
- Business partners cannot work alone. They must develop the project with a UK knowledge base who can provide the right skills to meet the knowledge gap within the business.
- They encourage business partners to approach knowledge bases directly to discuss the suitability of AKT for their specific circumstances.
- To collaborate with a knowledge base, the business partner must:
- be a UK registered business or not for profit organization
- have four or more full time equivalent employees
- complete the application form in partnership with the knowledge base partner
- provide the knowledge base with evidence of their ability to financially support their contribution
- be able to host the associate and provide them with supervisory support
- if appliable, reach a written IP agreement with the knowledge base before the project commences
For more information, visit GOV.UK.