Skip to content
hubai.uk Ask HubAI
Menu
HUBAI NAVIGATOR

Start with the decision.

Build my AI stack
FIND YOUR FITAsk HubAITell us the job. Find tools that fit your budget and team.Start decision
UK FUNDING INTELLIGENCE

Find a credible route to fund AI and innovation.

Search recorded opportunities by support type, applicant and status. Check each source date and confirm availability before drafting.

Verification rule

HubAI explains the route; the official funder controls eligibility, award value, deadline and outcome. Re-check the source before acting.

Official source desk ↓
NEW · RESEARCH-LED

UK AI Adoption Grant 2026

Research organisations lead. Businesses can join as project partners. The call opened on 29 September and closes on 1 December 2026 at 16:00 UK time. It covers five priority science and engineering domains.

Check the applicant boundary →
TWO STRANDS · ONE GUIDE

Battery Innovation 2026

Compare feasibility and concept-development ranges, duration and consortium rules in one decision page.

Use the eligibility checker →
NETWORK-LED · STARTUP PARTNER

Ofgem SIF Discovery

A startup cannot lead alone. Start with the network challenge, then secure a licensed network or NESO partner.

See the partnership route →
20 recorded routesDeadlines use UK time. Source dates differ by record; seven statuses rechecked on 15 October 2026.
OpenResearch grant

UKRI: Enabling AI adoption across science and engineering

Research-led projects that pair AI expertise with a non-AI science or engineering domain to accelerate adoption in five priority areas.

This is not a direct SME grant. A UKRI-eligible research organisation must lead; a business can participate as a project partner.

research-ledbusiness-partner-eligible
Total fund
£5 million
Closes
1 December 2026 · 16:00 UK time
Applicant
UKRI-eligible research organisations; businesses may join as project partners
UKRI · Terms checked 15 October 2026 · Status checked 15 October 2026Check fit →
OpenGrant

Battery Innovation Programme: Feasibility Round 3

Six-to-18-month feasibility projects that reduce technical or commercial uncertainty in battery technologies and manufacturing.

grantbusiness-ledcollaborative
Total fund
Part of a shared £25 million programme
Closes
2 December 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK business-led collaborations with at least one funded SME
OpenGrant

Battery Innovation Programme: Concept Development Round 3

Twelve-to-36-month concept-development projects for larger, collaborative battery innovations with a credible route to scale and UK exploitation.

grantbusiness-ledcollaborative
Total fund
Part of a shared £25 million programme
Closes
2 December 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK business-led collaborations with at least one funded SME
OpenSIF third-party funding

Ofgem Strategic Innovation Fund: Discovery Cycle 7

Short discovery projects addressing published energy-network challenges, with network leadership and at least 10% private contribution.

A startup cannot apply alone or lead this call. The lead must be an eligible Ofgem-licensed network operator or NESO.

SIF third-party fundingnetwork-ledcollaborative
Total fund
Up to £30 million across Cycle 7 challenges
Closes
21 October 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
Licensed energy networks or NESO leading collaborations
Ofgem + Innovate UK · Terms checked 21 September 2026Check fit →
OpenGrant

Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund: Winter 2026

Supports eligible public-sector organisations to develop and exploit knowledge assets with commercial or wider public value.

CKAF is not open to general startups or commercial companies as applicants. Eligible public-sector organisations must lead.

grantpublic-sector-only
Total fund
Public-sector knowledge asset programme
Closes
1 December 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
Eligible public-sector research establishments and bodies
Government Office for Technology Transfer · Terms checked 21 September 2026Check fit →
OpenResearch grant

Bioinformatics and Biological Resources Fund 2026

Supports community bioinformatics resources, FAIR data and software infrastructure that strengthen biological research and AI readiness.

Do not treat this as a general software or clinical-health funding call. The resource must serve BBSRC-relevant biological research communities.

research-ledAI-ready data
Total fund
£7 million
Closes
19 November 2026 · 16:00 UK time
Applicant
BBSRC-eligible UK research organisations
BBSRC · Terms checked 21 September 2026 · Status checked 15 October 2026Check fit →
ClosedGrant

Medicines Manufacturing Data Institute: Phase 1

Phase 1 supports the consortium and delivery plan for a secure, federated medicines-manufacturing data institute, with projects requesting £50,000 to £100,000.

Total fund
Phase 1 competition
Closes
14 October 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK businesses, universities, RTOs, public bodies and nonprofits
OpenResearch grant

Next generation artificial intelligence: explainable AI

Supports speculative, high-risk and high-reward research that advances explainability, reliability and understanding of advanced AI systems.

Total fund
£12.05 million
Closes
20 October 2026 · 16:00 UK time
Applicant
Eligible UK research organisations
ClosedGrant

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships 2026–27: Round 3

A university, RTO, college or Catapult leads a partnership that embeds expertise and an associate inside a UK business to solve a strategic innovation challenge.

Total fund
£12.5 million
Closes
14 October 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK knowledge bases partnering with eligible UK businesses
OpenGrant

UK–Singapore Collaborative R&D 2026

Supports bilateral R&D in AI, cybersecurity, semiconductors, quantum, advanced connectivity and engineering biology.

Total fund
£3 million UK allocation
Closes
16 December 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK businesses partnering with an independent Singapore business
Innovate UK + Enterprise Singapore · Terms checked 7 September 2026Check fit →
OpenGrant

Oldham Council Innovation Grant

Provides up to 50% of eligible project cost, capped at £10,000, for qualifying innovation projects that create at least one full-time job.

Total fund
Discretionary local programme
Closes
Delivery and job creation by 28 February 2027
Applicant
Eligible Oldham businesses
Check availabilityGrant

BIC Innovation Grant Sunderland

Supports qualifying innovation projects where technology or automation is new to the business or market and at least one job is created.

Total fund
40% contribution
Closes
Check current availability with the programme
Applicant
Eligible Sunderland businesses in commercial premises
Sunderland programme partners · Terms checked 7 September 2026Check fit →
Check availabilityGrant

Forest of Dean District Council Business Start-up Grant

Small start-up grant for qualifying businesses established after April 2023, including eligible R&D, equipment and product or service launch costs.

Total fund
Local programme
Closes
Check current availability before applying
Applicant
Eligible Forest of Dean start-ups in non-home premises
Forest of Dean District Council · Terms checked 7 September 2026Check fit →
Check availabilityTraining and advice

East Midlands AI Skills Hub

Free AI skills and adoption support, including help intended for SME employees. It should not be presented as a cash award.

Total fund
Free skills support
Closes
Check current cohort availability
Applicant
East Midlands learners, workers and SMEs
East Midlands Combined County Authority · Terms checked 7 September 2026Check fit →
ClosedGrant + private investment

Investor Partnerships – ACT and Semiconductors

Grant funding alongside private investment for invited UK SMEs working in advanced connectivity technologies or semiconductors.

Total fund
£15 million
Closes
14 October 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK registered SMEs
OpenResearch grant

UKRI: Integration of AI/HPC with quantum computing

Collaborative research projects integrating quantum computing into high-performance computing workflows, with an emphasis on access and adoption.

Total fund
£17 million
Closes
3 November 2026 · 16:00 UK time
Applicant
Eligible UK research organisations
EPSRC + STFC · Terms checked 2 September 2026 · Status checked 15 October 2026Check fit →
OpenResearch grant

Economic research on the returns to R&D investment

Research to improve measurement of the economic and social returns generated by research and development investment.

Total fund
£2.46 million
Closes
19 November 2026 · 16:00 UK time
Applicant
Eligible UK research organisations
ESRC · Terms checked 2 September 2026 · Status checked 15 October 2026Check fit →
OpenGrant

National Materials Innovation Programme: CR&D Round 1

Collaborative industrial research accelerating advanced-materials innovation across prioritised high-growth themes.

Total fund
£12 million
Closes
28 October 2026 · 11:00 UK time
Applicant
UK business-led collaborations
FINANCE & ACCELERATOR CHECK · 15–21 SEPTEMBER

Review recorded on 21 September.

Checks across British Business Bank, combined authorities, Growth Hubs, universities, KTP and bank accelerators found no new national application window or material terms change versus the previous review.

APPLICATION PLAYBOOK

A stronger first pass before you spend days writing.

Use this five-part gate to reject weak-fit calls early and concentrate on evidence.

  1. 01EligibilityLegal entity, geography, partners and project dates.
  2. 02ScopeThe innovation must answer the funder’s actual brief.
  3. 03EvidenceCustomer problem, technical baseline and measurable advance.
  4. 04DeliveryWork packages, risks, budget, team and dependencies.
  5. 05ImpactUK exploitation, adoption, productivity and wider value.
OFFICIAL SOURCE DESK

Always finish at the source.

OFFICIAL

Innovate UK competitions

Live business-led innovation competitions, eligibility and closing dates.

Open service ↗OFFICIAL

UKRI Funding Finder

Research, fellowship, grant, loan and other opportunities across UKRI councils.

Open service ↗OFFICIAL

GOV.UK Find a Grant

Search and filter UK government grants, eligibility and application routes.

Open service ↗OFFICIAL

British Business Bank

Finance options for UK smaller businesses, including loans and growth finance.

Open service ↗
Important

This directory is general information, not legal, financial, tax or grant-writing advice. Inclusion is not an endorsement and does not confirm eligibility.