Innovate UK, as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), is making available a share of up to £10 million in grant funding for UK-registered businesses through the 'Next Wave: Breakthrough Wave 1' competition. This initiative is targeted at industrial research projects exploring Createch innovation that aligns with the Industrial Strategy. The program is designed to support early-stage innovations, advancing them beyond the proof-of-concept phase to de-risk future investment and promote sustained growth within the sector.
Program Overview
• Funding Body: Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
• Funding Amount: A share of up to £10 million is allocated for this competition.
• Funding Type: Grant.
• Competition Aim: To support early-stage innovation at the intersection of high-growth potential Createch and the Industrial Strategy Frontier industries, developing innovations beyond proof of concept and de-risking future investment.
Key Dates
• Competition Opens: Tuesday 23 June 2026.
• Online Briefing Event: Friday 3 July 2026, at 10:00am.
• Competition Closes: Tuesday 11 August 2026, at 11:00am UK time.
• Applicants Notified: By 1 October 2026.
• Project Start Date: Projects must start by 1 January 2027.
Project Eligibility Criteria
• Total Eligible Costs: Must be between £100,000 and £500,000.
• Project Duration: Must last between 9 and 12 months.
• Project Timeline: Projects must start by 1 January 2027 and end by 31 December 2027.
• Location of Work: Any organisation receiving funding must conduct its project work in the UK, plan to exploit the results within the UK, and allocate the majority of its funding expenditure in the UK.
Applicant Eligibility
• Lead Organisation: A project must be led by a UK-registered micro, small, or medium-sized enterprise (SME), which can apply alone or as the lead of a collaborative project. Academic institutions, RTOs, and non-profit-driven organisations are not eligible to lead.
• Collaborating Partners: Eligible collaborators include UK-registered businesses of any size, academic institutions, charities, not-for-profit organisations, public sector organisations, and research and technology organisations (RTOs).
• Collaboration Rules: In a collaboration, the lead and at least one other partner must apply for funding. No single partner may account for more than 70% of the total eligible project costs.
• Non-Funded Partners: Projects may include partners from the UK, EU, or other countries that do not claim funding.
• Subcontractors: Subcontractors are permitted, with their costs not to exceed 50% of the total project costs. A clear justification is required for using overseas subcontractors.
• Application Limits: A business may lead on only one application but can be a collaborator in up to two additional applications. Organisations not leading a project can collaborate in a maximum of three applications.
Funding Details
• Grant Funding Levels: For industrial research projects, funding for eligible costs is available up to 70% for micro or small organisations, 60% for medium-sized organisations, and 50% for large organisations.
• Research Organisation Participation: Research organisations involved in non-economic activities can share up to 30% of the total eligible project costs. They may receive up to 100% of their eligible costs, or 80% of Full Economic Cost (FEC) for academic institutions.
• Subsidy Control: Funding is provided under the Research, Development and Innovation Streamlined Subsidy Scheme, in accordance with the Subsidy Control Act 2022.
Scope and Themes
• Project Focus: Proposals must focus on innovation in high-growth commercial digital platforms and services, present a clearly innovative idea that addresses an industry challenge, aim to create a new revenue stream, and be market-ready within 12 months of project completion.
• Specific Themes: Projects must concentrate on one of the following frontier industries: video games; advertising and marketing; film and TV; or music, performing, and visual arts.
• Cross-Sector and Design Applications: Cross-sector applications that combine frontier industries with other creative sectors, as well as proposals from design businesses contributing to the specified frontier sectors, are encouraged.
• Research Category: The competition will fund projects classified as 'industrial research'.
Projects Not Funded
• Ineligible Leadership: Projects not led by a UK-registered SME.
• Budget and Subcontractor Violations: Projects with costs outside the £100,000 to £500,000 range or with subcontractor costs exceeding 50% of the total.
• Out of Scope: Projects that are not within the specified frontier industries, or those focused on commissioning content, business-as-usual activities, or physical infrastructure construction.
• Ineligible Activities: Projects that are primarily content creation without an R&D component (e.g., podcasts, informational websites), developing internal workflow tools without wider ecosystem benefit, or creating secondary funding mechanisms like grant programmes or accelerators.
Application Process
• Application Portal: Submissions must be made through the Innovation Funding Service (IFS).
• Application Sections: The application is structured into four parts: Project details, Application questions, Finances, and Project Impact.
• Assessment: Applications will be evaluated by three independent assessors. Scored questions will cover the business need, technical approach, team composition, market analysis, commercialization strategy, wider impacts, project management, risk assessment, and value for money.
Support and Contact Information
• General and Application Enquiries: For general support, contact support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.
• Scope-Related Questions: For questions regarding the competition's scope, email creative@iuk.ukri.org.
• Accessibility and Inclusion: Applicants can request guidance and reasonable adjustments. It is recommended to make contact at least 15 working days before the closing date.
• Partner Finding Support: Innovate UK Business Connect offers assistance to those seeking project partners.
This competition presents a notable opportunity for SMEs within the UK's Createch sector to secure funding for pioneering industrial research. Prospective applicants are advised to thoroughly review the complete competition details, including all eligibility and scope requirements, on the official Innovate UK and GOV.UK websites to ensure their proposals are fully aligned with the program's objectives before the submission deadline.