Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), will invest up to £12 million in collaborative materials innovation projects through the National Materials Innovation Programme. The competition aims to accelerate the adoption of advanced materials, support UK growth sectors, and strengthen industrial competitiveness.
Program Scope and Focus
• Aim: Support significant materials innovations with strong potential for industrial adoption and commercialisation.
• Materials Innovation: Projects can improve existing materials, develop new materials, or deploy existing materials in novel ways to overcome technical barriers.
• Proposal Focus: Projects must align with at least one competition theme and associated sub-theme.
• Desired Outcomes: Innovations should improve material performance, functionality, efficiency, sustainability, or industrial resilience.
• Collaboration: Projects must be business-led and collaborative, including at least one UK-registered SME claiming grant funding.
Eligibility and Consortium Requirements
• Lead Organisation: A UK-registered business of any size.
• Consortium: Must include at least one UK-registered micro, small, or medium-sized enterprise claiming funding.
• Eligible Partners: Businesses, academic institutions, charities, not-for-profits, public sector organisations, and research and technology organisations.
• Funding Distribution: No single organisation may claim more than 70% of total eligible project costs.
• Application Limits: A business can lead one application and collaborate on up to two others. Businesses not leading may collaborate on any number of applications.
Project and Funding Details
• Total Funding: Up to £12 million.
• Grant Request: Between £500,000 and £1 million per project.
• Project Duration: 18 to 30 months.
• Project Timeline: Projects must start by 1 February 2027 and end by 31 July 2029.
• Location: Funded project work must be carried out mainly in the UK, with results intended for UK exploitation.
• Funding Rates: Up to 70% for micro and small organisations, 60% for medium organisations, and 50% for large organisations.
Competition Themes and Sub-themes
Theme 1: Future Healthcare Solutions
• Biocompatible and regenerative materials
• Bioelectronic materials
Theme 2: Structural Materials Innovation
• Sustainability
• Surface engineering
• Design and deployment
• Extreme environments
Theme 3: Power Electronics and Connectivity
• Wide and ultra-wide bandgap materials
• Advanced connectivity materials
Theme 4: Metamaterials and Metasurfaces
• Future telecommunications and advanced connectivity
• Convergent electronic-photonic technologies
• Thermal, acoustic and mechanical metamaterials
• Energy security and net zero
• Healthcare
Project Requirements and End User Involvement
• Project Type: Collaborative industrial research.
• Core Focus: Materials innovation must be the main focus of the project.
• Sector Identification: Applicants must identify the relevant IS-8 growth sector and target application.
• Commercialisation: Projects must demonstrate a credible route to adoption, commercialisation, and UK scale-up.
• End User Requirement: At least one named end user from a UK growth-driving sector must be involved.
• End User Role: The end user may participate as a funded or non-funded collaborator or through a project advisory role, but their involvement must be clearly defined.
• Ineligible End Users: Academics, academic institutions, consultants, consultancies, and RTOs cannot satisfy the end-user requirement.
Program Exclusions
Projects will not be funded if they:
• Fall outside the specified themes and sub-themes.
• Focus mainly on AI, machine learning, or other digital tools rather than materials innovation.
• Do not include a named end user with a defined role.
• Do not identify a relevant IS-8 growth sector and application.
• Lack a credible route to adoption or commercialisation.
• Focus primarily on raw material or chemical synthesis.
• Focus solely on defence applications.
• Focus mainly on regulation, policy, education, skills, or similar enabling activities.
Briefing and Applicant Support
• Online Briefing: Held on 3 September 2026.
• Applicant Clinics: Scheduled for 11 September and 7 October 2026.
• Collaboration Support: Innovate UK Business Connect provides support for organisations seeking consortium partners.
• Application Deadline: 28 October 2026, 12:00 GMT+1.
This competition offers UK businesses an opportunity to lead collaborative R&D projects that accelerate advanced materials innovation toward commercial and industrial adoption while supporting UK manufacturing, competitiveness, and net zero ambitions.