Sovereign AI – Proof of concept

Key Features

UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £1.6 million for the development of Proof of Concept demonstrators of AI technologies with state of the art performance. This is to support the UK’s AI sovereignty objectives.

Programme:     Innovate UK

Award:     Share of up to £1.6 million

Opens: 11th Aug 2025

Closes: 10th Sep 2025

! This scheme is closing soon

Overview

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will invest a minimum of £1.6 million. This funding is from Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation and is subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications being received.

Innovate UK reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions under exceptional circumstances, for example, in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations, or broader government funding decisions.

These projects will be to validate highly scalable proof of concept stage AI technologies that will support the UK’s AI sovereignty objectives. Your project can deliver and validate the performance of novel architectures or subsystem components, utilising computer simulation or synthetic data when full system capability cannot be achieved within the project delivery.

Scope

The aim of this competition is to demonstrate Proof of Concept of AI technologies with state of the art performance in areas of strategic importance to UK. This will ensure that frontier AI technologies are developed in the UK, safeguarding UK’s future economic growth and security and geostrategic influence.

Your technology must have in principle the ability to scale at pace, but you are not required to prove or validate scalability. We are expecting projects to deliver technologies at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3 to 5.

Your project must demonstrate the ability of your technology to work in principle. You can focus in demonstrating at least the key critical component and you can utilise synthetic and simulated data for validation. You need to demonstrate how you will achieve state of the art performance if capability already exists, or new to the world capability if the technology is further developed.

Your proposal must deliver one or more of the following:

  • Proof of Concept of architecture or subsystem component
  • technical validation of capability of system or subsystem component
  • frontier AI performance that delivers new to the world capability or state of the performance of existing capability
  • ability of architecture and business model to scale
  • demonstrate a clear path for access to data
  • demonstrate strategy to access compute infrastructure and quantify requirement for compute

Portfolio approach

Innovate UK want to fund a variety of projects across different technologies, markets, technological maturities, research categories and themes. Innovate UK call this a portfolio approach.

Specific Themes

Your project must focus on one or more of the following:

Fundamental AI research:

  • embodied AI, sensory motor grounded systems
  • safe by design architectures, multi agent systems, agentic AI
  • novel architectures including neuro symbolic, neuromorphic and biologically inspired models

AI for materials discovery of:

  • material discovery and property prediction
  • generative and physics-ML hybrid models
  • automated workflows and closed loop discovery

This list is not intended to be exhaustive

AI for biosciences and health:

  • genomics and multi omics models for medicines discovery
  • foundational patient level health models
  • foundational bioscience models
  • scalable and secure monitoring and evaluation of health AI

AI for defence and national security:

  • real time and near real time systems
  • distributed and decentralised systems
  • specialised models for critical infrastructure management and cybersecurity

AI aided design for:

  • AI accelerator chips
  • neuromorphic hardware
  • optical backplanes

Eligibility

Your project must:

  • have total costs between £50,000 and £120,000
  • last between 1 and 3 months
  • carry out all of its project work in the UK
  • intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
  • start by 1 of January 2026
  • end by 31 March 2026

Projects must always start on the first of the month, even if this is a non-working day. You must not start your project until your Grant Offer Letter has been approved by Innovate UK. Any delays within Project Setup may mean we need to delay your project start date.

You must only include eligible project costs in your application. See our overview of eligible project costs. For specific guidance, see the eligibility section in this competition.

If your project’s total costs falls outside of our eligibility criteria, you must provide justification by email to support@iuk.ukri.org at least 10 working days before the competition closes. Innovate UK will decide whether to approve your request.

If you have not requested approval or your application has not been approved by us, you will be made ineligible. Your application will then not be sent for assessment.

Lead organisation

To work alone your organisation must be a UK registered business of any size.

More information on the different types of organisation can be found in our Funding rules.

Subcontractors

Subcontractors are allowed in this competition.

Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.

You cannot use subcontractors from overseas.

All subcontractor costs must be justified and appropriate to the total eligible project costs.

Subcontracting costs are limited to 20% of total project costs.

Number of applications

A business can only lead on one application.

Sanctions

This competition will not fund you, or provide any financial benefit to any individual or entities directly or indirectly involved with you, which would expose Innovate UK or any direct or indirect beneficiary of funding from Innovate UK to UK Sanctions. For example, through any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any entity as lead, partner or subcontractor related to these countries, administrations and terrorist groups.

Use of animals in research and innovation

Innovate UK expects and supports the provision and safeguarding of welfare standards for animals used in research and innovation, according to best practice and up to date guidance.

Any projects selected for funding which involve animals will be asked to provide additional information on welfare and ethical considerations, as well as compliance with any relevant legislation as part of the project start-up process. This information will be reviewed before an award is made.

Exclusions

Innovate UK are not funding projects that:

  • are literature review studies
  • do not require research and development
  • are not delivering measurable objectives
  • are unable to scale in principle

Innovate UK cannot fund projects that are:

  • dependent on export performance, for example, giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it exports a certain quantity of bread to another country
  • dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example, giving a subsidy to a baker on the condition that it uses 50% UK flour in their product

Funding Costs

A minimum of £1.6 million has been allocated to fund innovation projects in this competition. This is subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications being received. Funding will be in the form of a grant.

Innovate UK reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions under exceptional circumstances, for example, in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations, or broader government funding decisions.

If your organisation’s work on the project is commercial or economic, your funding request must not exceed the limits below. These limits apply even if your organisation normally acts non-economically but for the purpose of this project will be undertaking commercial or economic activity.

Choose the applicable categories below for the Research, Development and Innovation Streamlined Subsidy Scheme:

Category 1 Feasibility studies

Funding available for your eligible project costs of:

  • up to 70% if you are a micro or small organisation
  • up to 60% if you are a medium sized organisation
  • up to 50% if you are a large organisation

Category 2 Industrial research projects

Funding available for your eligible project costs of:

  • up to 70% if you are a micro or small organisation
  • up to 60% if you are a medium sized organisation
  • up to 50% if you are a large organisation

For more information on company sizes, please refer to the company accounts guidance.

If you are applying for an award funded under State aid Regulations, the definitions are set out in the European Commission Recommendation of 6 May 2003.

Innovate UK may revoke our decision to provide funding without notice if government commitment for this initiative is withdrawn.

Interested in applying for this competition?

Book an appointment to speak to one of our advisors to discuss your eligibility to apply for this Grant Funding opportunity.