DRIVE35 Innovation Fund: Demonstrate

Who can apply

Your project

Your project must:

• lead to a demonstrator product or process to enable new commercial opportunities or secure follow on investment

• have total eligible grant funding request of between £500,000 and £1.5 million

• be a minimum of 50% match funding, for example, if you are asking for £500,000 in grant your total eligible project costs need to be a minimum of £1 million

• align to at least one of the three scope themes

• be achieving TRL 5-6 or MRL 4-5 by completion, based on published Automotive Technology and Manufacturing Readiness Levels

• last between 9 and 12 months

• carry out all of its project work in the UK

• intend to exploit the results from or in the UK

• start by 1 February 2026

• end by 31 January 2027

As a key component of the dissemination requirements for this competition, there will be an opportunity to showcase your project outcomes at the 2027 CENEX Expo. All projects must be prepared for potential selection to represent themselves at this event.

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 grant funding request or duration 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. We 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 lead a collaborative project or 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.

Academic institutions cannot lead or work alone.

Project team

To collaborate with the lead, your organisation must be one of the following UK registered:

• business of any size

• academic institution

• charity

• not for profit

• public sector organisation

• research and technology organisation (RTO)

Each partner organisation must be invited into the Innovation Funding Service (IFS) by the lead to collaborate on a project. Once partners have accepted the invitation, they will be asked to login or to create an account IFS. They are responsible for entering their own project costs in the application.

To be an eligible collaboration, the lead and at least one other organisation must:

• apply for funding when entering their costs into the application.

• include rationale for the collaboration and describe the structure in your application

• ensure any one partner does not account for more than 70% of the total eligible costs

Non-funded partners

Your project can include non-UK partners, including partners based in the EU, who bring their own funding. Non-UK partners are permitted to carry out project work from within their home countries and exploit results overseas. Their costs will count towards the total eligible project costs.

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 can use subcontractors from overseas but must make the case in your application as to why you cannot use subcontractors from the UK.

You must provide a detailed rationale, evidence of the potential UK contractors you approached and the reasons why they were unable to work with you. We will not accept a cheaper cost as a sufficient reason to use an overseas subcontractor.

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

Number of applications

There is no limit on the number of applications an organisation can be involved in.

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.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed work within projects, both that in the UK and internationally, will comply with the UKRI guidance on the use of animals in research and innovation.

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.

Previous applications

You can use a previously submitted application to apply for this competition.

If you have previously submitted an application that reached our assessment stage, you can re-apply once more with the same proposal.

If there are minor differences to the proposal, but it is judged by us to be ‘not materially different’, the same rule applies.

We will not award you funding if you have:

• failed to exploit a previously funded project

• an overdue independent accountant’s report

• failed to comply with grant terms and conditions

• overdue industrial contribution payments to the APC

Innovate UK may withhold a grant payment at any time if you have any outstanding sums due to us in relation to other projects.

Subsidy control (and State aid where applicable)

This competition provides funding in line with the Subsidy Control Act 2022. Further information about the Subsidy requirements can be found within the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk).

Innovate UK is unable to award organisations that are considered to be in financial difficulty. We will conduct financial viability and eligibility tests to confirm this is not the case following the application stage.

EU State aid rules now only apply in limited circumstances. Please see the Windsor Framework to check if these rules apply to your organisation.

In the ‘Project details’ section of your application you will be asked questions to indicate if State Aid or Subsidy applies to your organisation.

Further Information

If you are unsure about your obligations under the Subsidy Control Act 2022 or the State aid rules, you should take independent legal advice. We are unable to advise on individual eligibility or legal obligations.

You must always make sure that the funding awarded to you is compliant with all current Subsidy Control legislation applicable in the United Kingdom.

This aims to regulate any advantage granted by a public sector body which threatens to, or actually distorts competition in the United Kingdom or any other country or countries.

This award is classified as a Subsidy which does not form part of your Minimal Financial Assistance or De Minimis allowance.

Funding

Up to £40 million UK Government grant funding has been allocated to fund innovation projects in this competition. Funding will be in the form of a grant.

These are pre-production projects and you must apply for the minimum amount of grant funding required to make your project viable.

Your total grant funding request must be no more than £1.5 million and no more than 50% of your total eligible project costs. This is regardless of your individual partners’ grant claims.

A minimum of 70% of your project’s total project costs must be incurred by commercial organisations.

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.

The balance between your total eligible project costs and the amount of grant awarded must be funded by the organisation receiving the grant.

For industrial research projects, you can get funding 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 experimental development projects which are nearer to market, you can get funding for your eligible project costs of:

• up to 45% if you are a micro or small organisation

• up to 35% if you are a medium sized organisation

• up to 25% 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.

We 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.

Research participation

The research organisations undertaking non-economic activity as part of the project can share up to 30% of the total eligible project costs. If your consortium contains more than one research organisation undertaking non-economic activity, this maximum is shared between them. Of that 30% you can get funding for your eligible project costs of up to:

• 100% of your eligible project costs if you are an RTO, charity, not for profit organisation, public sector organisation or research organisation

• 80% of full economic costs (FEC) if you are a Je-S registered institution such as an academic

Eligibility criteria for claiming 80% of FEC funding

1. Research organisations using the Je-S system must submit their costs through the Je-S system which calculates the 80% FEC figure.

2. On IFS, only the 80% FEC output should be entered at 100% funding.

3. Applicants do not need to show the remaining 20% on the finance table.

To find out more see our: Cost Guidance for Academics.

The Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC)

A 3.5% industrial contribution is payable to the APC by all partners on grant received.

Your proposal

The aim of DRIVE35 Innovation Fund is to support R&D projects that design, develop and manufacture technologies in the automotive sector. Your project will support the UK’s transition to zero emission vehicles and a pathway to a net zero automotive industry.

The aim of strand 2 (this strand) is to develop a product or process demonstrator, to show increased capability and commercial exploitation opportunity as a result of the project.

Your proposal must fall within one or more of the following themes:

Theme 1: Promote zero emission vehicle technologies:

Focus on product and process innovations that contribute to achieving zero emissions for on board vehicle applications in one or more of the following areas:

• electrical energy storage: development of batteries, supercapacitors, their components, management, and integration systems

• electric machines and associated driveline

• power electronics including Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X)

• Internal Combustion Engines (ICE) for on-road applications, we will only fund project proposals which aim to achieve zero harmful tailpipe emissions utilising non-fossil fuels

• Internal Combustion Engines (ICE) for off-road applications, we will fund project proposals that support a transition to zero emissions, utilising non-fossil fuels

• lightweight materials and manufacturing processes

• fuel-cell systems and associated balance of plant

• hydrogen storage and management systems

Within the technology scope outlined above;

Your project can include:

• upstream supply chain for the above technologies, including: raw materials, component manufacturing, subassembly manufacturing

• circularity and Design for Disassembly: projects focused on the disassembly, remanufacturing, recovery, and reuse of materials

• digitalisation of validation, verification, and design: use of digital tools to enhance the design, validation, and verification processes for the listed technologies

Theme 2: Enhance Manufacturing Competitiveness

R&D projects which use innovations to enable productivity and cost competitiveness and reduce embedded carbon. These will be across all aspects of zero emission vehicle and technology manufacturing and their associated supply chain in one or more of the following areas:

• Digital Transformation: integration of digital tools within the manufacturing process. Such as the use of AI, digital twins, vision systems and Internet of Things (IoT)

• manufacturing process decarbonisation: switching processes to use non-fossil energy sources or innovations enabling reduced energy consumption within manufacturing processes including capture and reuse

• Lean Manufacturing: implementation of innovative lean principles to improve circularity of materials used in processes, reduce their environmental impact and improve efficiency including the use of advanced automation techniques

• Supply Chain Development: initiatives for suppliers to improve their processes, capability and capacity for R&D and subsequent industrialisation for example, flexible production lines to service multiple customers to lower capital investment. UK capability building to enable market access, and sustainability

The technologies in scope within this theme apply to any component, sub assembly or system involved in the manufacture of zero emission vehicles. The proposals must have an outcome which increases the likelihood and competitiveness of manufacturing zero emission vehicles and their supply chain in the UK.

Theme 3: Future Vehicle Innovation - Software Defined Vehicles (SDV) and Electrical/Electronic (E/E) Architectures

Focus on innovations in software and E/E architecture to enhance zero emission vehicle functionality and reduce time to market. These projects will leverage the UK's unique innovation skills for global product competitiveness, in one of more of the following areas:

• Integrated E/E systems: development of scalable and flexible E/E architectures, including software platforms and hardware design that support advanced vehicle functionalities and future technologies

• validation and verification technology: use of digital twins and in the loop (xIL) innovations to create comprehensive models of E/E systems, enabling rapid simulation, optimisation, and validation of interconnected systems

• embedded Software Development: innovations, including in the creation of, embedded software that decrease time to market, enhance vehicle performance, safety, security and connectivity

• network communications: development of robust network communication systems to support the integration of various electronic components and systems within the vehicle

• Control Systems: advanced control systems that improve vehicle functionality and performance

The technology scope of the competition is piloting themes 2 and 3, as part of the government’s commitment to ensure the scope of the funding competition meets evolving industry needs. This approach aims to explore new opportunities while maintaining its dedication to supporting innovative and impactful projects. All proposals, regardless of theme, must meet the competition aims and objectives.

Portfolio approach

We want to fund a variety of projects across different strands, themes, technologies, markets, technological or manufacturing level maturities or focus, and research categories. We call this a portfolio approach.

Research categories

We will fund industrial research projects and experimental development projects, as defined in the guidance on categories of research.

Projects we will not fund

We are not funding projects that:

• focus on business processes not directly involved in the design, test, validation, recycle or reuse or manufacture of vehicles for example, company back office systems and infrastructure

• relate to the design, development, integration, use, test or direct manufacturing of automated driving systems (ADS)

• only focussed on the development of clean fuels

• not aligned with the UK net zero research innovations framework

• requesting more than 50% grant for total project costs

• are developing solutions such as e-Scooters or e-Bikes

We 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

14 July 2025

Pre-recorded briefing event: watch the recording

Briefing slides are available to download from Supporting Information.

21 October 2025

Applicants notified

1 February 2026

Project start from

Before you start

You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure:

• that all the information provided in the application is correct

• your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria

• all sections of the application are marked as complete

• that all partners have completed all assigned sections and accepted the terms and conditions (T&Cs)

You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

What we ask you

The application is split into three sections:

1. Project details.

2. Application questions.

3. Finances.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

1.Project details

This section provides background for your application and is not scored.

Application team

Decide which organisations will work with you on your project and invite people from those organisations to help complete the application.

Application details

Give your project’s title, start date and duration.

Research category

Select the type of research you will undertake.

Project summary

Describe your project briefly and be clear about what makes it innovative. We use this section to assign the right experts to assess your application.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Public description

Describe your project in detail and in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information. If we award your project funding, we will publish this description. This can happen before you start your project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Scope

Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. If your project is not in scope, it will not be eligible for funding.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

2. Application questions

The assessors will score all your answers apart from questions 1 to 7. You will receive feedback for each scored question. Find out more about how our assessors assess and how we select applications for funding.

You must answer all questions.

You must not include any website addresses or links (URLs) in your answers. If you do, your application will be made ineligible.

Question 1. Applicant location (not scored)

You must state the name and full registered address of your organisation and any partners or subcontractors working on your project.

We are collecting this information to understand more about the geographical location of all applicants.

Your answer can be up to 100 words long.

Question 2. Animal testing (not scored)

Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing?

You must select one option:

• Yes

• No

We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare.

Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance.

Question 3. Permits and licences (not scored)

Will you have the correct permits and licences in place to carry out your project?

We are unable to fund projects which do not have the correct permits or licences in place by your project start date.

You must select one option:

• Yes

• No

• In the process of being applied for

• Not applicable

Question 4. International collaboration (not scored)

Does your proposed work involve any international collaboration or engagement?

You must provide details of any expected international collaboration or engagement.

You must include a list of the names and the countries, any international project co-leads, project partners, visiting researchers, or other collaborators are based in.

You must also include details of any subcontractors or service providers.

If your proposed work does not involve international collaboration or engagement, your answer must confirm this.

Your answer can be up to 100 words long

Question 5. Trusted Research and Innovation (not scored)

You must explain if your proposed project work relates to UKRI’s Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) Principles, including:

• a list of any dual-use (both military and non-military) applications to your research

• a list of the areas where your project is relevant to one or more of the 17 areas of the UK National Security and Investment (NSI) Act

• whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance and the status of any applications

• a list of any items or substances on the UK Strategic Export Control List

If your proposed work does not relate to UKRI’s TR&I Principles, your answer must confirm this.

We may ask you to provide additional TR&I information at a later date, in line with UKRI TR&I Principles and funding terms and conditions.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 6. Marketing and communications project lead (not scored)

You must provide the full name and email address of a marketing and communications contact for the lead partner in your project.

Your answer can be up to 100 words long.

Question 7. Which theme is applicable to your application (not scored)

You must consider which of the three themes listed below best represents your project and provide a percentage against each. The total percentage given must add up to 100%.

Details regarding the themes can be found in the scope section.

• Theme 1: Promote Zero Emission Vehicle technologies

• Theme 2: Enhance Manufacturing Competitiveness

• Theme 3: Future Vehicle Innovation - Software Defined Vehicles (SDV) and Electrical/Electronic (E/E) Architectures

Question 8. Strategic Rationale and market opportunity

Describe why this project is critical to each applicant’s business strategy outlining the customer problem that this application can solve.

Additionally, quantify and explain:

• the market size, trends and potential

• the competitive market conditions which the project seeks to change or take advantage of

• your realistic serviceable and obtainable market, identifying potential applications in other sectors and clearly addressing any split between Zero Emission Vehicles and other industries or sectors

• growth potential and scalability of the product or service

• the distribution and route to market strategy including potential partnerships, supply chain opportunities and intellectual property rights advantages

A credible route to market must be identified and you must specify any letters of support you have received.

For large organisations, evidence of senior sponsor and parent company support for the project must be provided.

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF, up to two A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 9. Innovation

What is innovative about your project for your respective organisation, both commercially and technically and how do you compare to current market offerings?

Describe:

• what is innovative about your project with evidence of both the commercial and technical innovation compared to what is currently available on the market

• the current development status of the project, stating the starting TRL and MRL for the innovation, with evidence and justification for the development status

• explain how the know how or intellectual property of the consortia members is likely to advance because of the project

• how existing technology or processes are being applied in a new way to deliver commercial innovation and how this will deliver benefits to project partners

• any technology transfer, such as migration across sector boundaries, if applicable

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF, up to two A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 10. Technical approach and project management

How will you approach the project to ensure efficient, effective and timely delivery?Describe how you will manage the technical delivery of your project, including:

• an overview of the technical approach your project will take clearly stating its deliverables and outputs

• the structure and content of the work packages indicating lead partner assigned and cost of each

• the technical design and validation and engineering challenges to be addressed

• your key milestones including the frequency and nature of project reviews

• the simulation, test and validation activities to achieve the sufficient TRL or MRL for this competition

• quantities and responsibilities for the significant engineering spend items

• your project plan in enough detail to identify any links or dependencies between work packages or milestones

• your approach to project management, identifying any major tools and mechanisms you will use to achieve a successful outcome

• the project management reporting lines including how governance and executive sponsorship will be implemented

The project start-up phase is critical, therefore explain your delivery plan to achieve this, and provide confidence that you can start within this time including the ability to match fund as per Question 14.

You must submit a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to two A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 11. Team and supply chain

Can the project team be assembled, with the necessary skills and experience to deliver the project objectives?

Explain

• why and how the team will be ready to start by 1 February 2026 highlighting any required recruitment plans

• the complementary capabilities of your team and any consortium members and the specific know how or expertise they will contribute

• your capacity and the capacity of any partners in terms of design, test and development, prototyping and manufacturing activities

• how any gaps in the team’s capabilities will be addressed, including the use of identified subcontractors where applicable along with any future relationships established as a result of the project

• how your organisation and any partners fit into a manufacturing supply chain for the product

If projects are single entity, then you need to justify how you have the capability to deliver the project as such, and why this is the best solution for the successful delivery of the project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 12. Risk management

What are the risks affecting the project and how will the consortium manage them?

Describe:

• the main risks and uncertainties of your project, including the technical, commercial, managerial and environmental risks

• how you will mitigate these risks

• the key tools and mechanisms that will be utilised, to provide confidence that effective control will be in place

You are encouraged to avoid understating risk levels, as this may be interpreted as failure to recognise the importance of risk management to the success of the project.

You must submit a risk register as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF, up to two A4 pages long and no larger than 10MB in size. The font must be legible at 100% zoom.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 13. Project dissemination and exploitation approach

How will the results of the project be disseminated?

How will your project plan to disseminate the results following successful delivery, this can include but is not limited to:

• new web content

• customer presentations

• industry exhibits

• conferences and seminars

• written publications

For disseminating and presenting the project results, you must provide a clear description of how you will be able to display your demonstrator and what will be delivered with clear owners, if appropriate.

List or describe the next steps of how the potential outputs of this demonstrator project can be exploited. Detail how the products or services, processes, or applications will be exploited by you and any partners and organisations within the project and beyond toward achieving your route to market strategy.

You will be required to provide a close out report and case study at the end of your funded project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 14. Costs

How much will the project cost and how does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer?

Explain:

• your total project costs

• the grant you are requesting

• and provide evidence on how each partner will finance their contributions to your project detailing the status of any required funding required to complete the project activities

• how it compares to what you would spend your money on otherwise

• the balance of costs and grant across the project partners

• any subcontractor costs and why they are critical to your project

• justification for any high value spend items

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 15. Added value

How will this public funding help you to accelerate or enhance your approach to developing your project towards commercialisation?

You must provide evidence that the funding will increase the total amount that the consortia partners spend on R&D in the UK.

Explain and evidence:

• how does public funding enable your project to deliver outcomes that wouldn’t otherwise be achievable, and what specific advantages would it bring; can you list these benefits and quantify them if possible

• what your project might look like without public funding

• the benefits from involvement of the partners

• the wider benefits to the UK supply chain and automotive sector

• potential economic and environmental benefits, such as jobs created or safeguarded

• projected investments and additional spend required to achieve your ambitions, highlighting the sources of funding

• growth in sales and profitability and any carbon or air-quality savings

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 16. Economic Monitoring Form

You must download and complete the Economic Monitoring form.

• You must upload the completed worksheet as an appendix to Question 16.

• You must write “Worksheet Uploaded” as your response to this question.

The information provided will be used as part of the assessment process.

3. Finances

Each organisation in your project must complete their own project costs, organisation details and funding details in the application. Academic institutions must complete and upload a Je-S form.

For an overview on what costs you can claim, see our project costs guidance. Note this is general guidance, for specific guidance please see the eligibility section in this competition. You can also view our application finances video.

Assessment

Your application will be reviewed by five independent assessors based on the content of your application and their skills or expertise relevant to your project. All of the scores awarded will count towards the total score used to make the funding decision unless you are notified otherwise.

You can find out more about our assessment process in the General Guidance.

Background and further information

DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) is a Department for Business and Trade led programme aimed at transforming the UK's automotive industry. This will be achieved by supporting R&D and the commercial scale up of innovative zero emission vehicle technologies, and unlocking capital investment in zero emission vehicles, batteries and their wider supply chain.

DRIVE35 Innovation is funded by the Department of Business and Trade and delivered in partnership with the Advanced Propulsion Centre and Innovate UK.

DBT will:

• fund all DRIVE35: Innovation projects, subject to Ministerial agreement

• make a recommendation to Ministers to support funding if the benefit meets an acceptable level and all other assessment criteria are met

• formally monitor delivery of economic benefits including but not limited to post-project delivery

• assess the delivery mechanism of the DRIVE35 Innovation competition to ensure it remains aligned with HMG processes and Ministerial steers, including the Industrial Strategy

• lead the delivery, design and monitoring of the programme implementation approach

• assess the benefit that the proposed project will deliver to the UK economy through value for money assessment

Formed in 2013 the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) accelerates the industrialisation of technologies which help to realise zero emission vehicles. It is at the heart of the UK Government’s commitment to end the country’s contribution to global warming by 2050.

APC will:

• work with consortia to support bid development

• support the competition process, including hosting both launch and guidance events and interviews

• support project start-up and delivery once contracts are awarded, through APC staff

• monitor the impact of the project portfolio

• offer the opportunity for wrap around business support to awardees in readiness for commercialisation

• provide links to wider government support initiatives where appropriate

Innovate UK will:

• deliver the competition process and technical assessment framework

• support and manage applicant queries about the competition process

• issue and manage grant contracts

• provide formal assurance that projects are meeting their commitments once they are running (known as project monitoring)

• approve financial claims and issue funds

Where a project is linked to overseas investment in the UK, or export of goods from the UK, the Department for Business and Trade will also:

• provide a way for overseas businesses to contact the Department for Business and Trade staff in their own country, via knowledgeable staff at UK embassies and consulates

• support potential investors with sector-specific information and facts about the UK economy

• provide support for investors looking for a UK location and data benchmarking to demonstrate the competitive position of the UK

• provide introductions to other government departments and partner organisations for businesses setting up in the UK for the first time or expanding their existing UK investments

• support business wishing to export through trade missions and customer connections, supported by UK embassies and consulates

• offer export finance support to businesses wishing to trade overseas, through the Department for Business and Trade’s UK Export Finance (UKEF) organisation

• provide ongoing after care customer support through a dedicated relationship manager

APC can help by:

• providing general guidance regarding interpretation of competition rules and guidelines on an informal basis

• helping your business to structure the bid development process

• explaining common pitfalls

• answering questions about whether or not your project is within scope

Any information received by Innovate UK for this competition may be shared with APC and DBT. Innovate UK has a data sharing agreement in place with these bodies which safeguards both personal and commercial data in accordance with data protection legislation.

Note that the APC’s role is to provide indicative guidance rather than formal advice. To contact APC email info@apcuk.co.uk.

Briefing recording and slides

Pre-recorded briefing event: watch the recording

Briefing slides are available to download.

DRIVE35 Innovation Fund Demonstrate - Applicant Briefing Slides.pdf (opens in a new window)

What happens if you receive a grant offer

If you have passed your initial assessment and have received an email with a grant offer, you will be asked to complete the project set up process on the Innovation Funding Service (IFS).

We will ask for information that will allow us to undertake mandatory checks on your organisation and the eligibility of your costs, as well as review the documentation for your project.

You must follow the unique link embedded in your email notification. This takes you to your project's dedicated IFS Set Up portal, where we gather the information required to set up your project.

Watch our videos on what steps there are before a project starts and how successful applicants receive their funding or read more about Project Setup in our General Guidance.

If your application is unsuccessful

If you are unsuccessful with your application this time, you can view feedback from the assessors. This will be available to you on your IFS portal following notification.

Sometimes your application will have scored well, and you will receive positive comments from the assessors. You may be unsuccessful as your average score was not above the funding threshold or your project has not been selected under the portfolio approach if this is applied for this competition.

We would like to remind you that eligible non-funded business can still benefit from fully funded and bespoke support from the Innovate UK Business Growth service.

Find a project partner

If you want help to find a project partner, contact Innovate UK Business Connect.

Support for SMEs from Innovate UK Business Growth service

Innovate UK Business Growth helps innovation focused businesses make the best strategic choices and access the right resources, in order to grow and ultimately achieve scale.

Our innovation and growth specialists provide our fully funded and bespoke support to clients nationwide. Visit the service’s website to discover whether you could benefit from this advisory support, which is available to Innovate UK funded and non-funded businesses alike.

Protecting your innovation

A Secure Innovation campaign has been developed to help founders and leaders of innovative startups protect their technology, competitive advantage, and reputation.

This was developed by UK’s National Protective Security Authority (NPSA) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

Data sharing

This competition is jointly operated by Innovate UK, and Trade (DBT) and Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (each an ‘agency’).

Any relevant information submitted and produced during the application process concerning your application can be shared by one agency with the other, for its individual storage, processing and use.

This means that any information given to or generated by Innovate UK in respect of your application may be passed on to DBT and APC and vice versa. This would include, but is not restricted to:

• the information stated on the application, including the personal details of all applicants

• scoring and feedback on the application

• information received during the management and administration of the grant, such as Monitoring Service Provider reports and Independent Accountant Reports

Innovate UK may also share any relevant information submitted and produced during the application process concerning your application with Innovate UK’s national and regional UK third parties and partners who may contact you. For more information see how we handle grant applicant and grant holder data.

Innovate UK, DBT and APC are directly accountable to you for their holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. Data is held in accordance with their own policies. Accordingly, Innovate UK, Innovate UK Business Connect, DBT and APC will be data controllers for personal data submitted during the application.

Innovate UK’s Privacy Policy

Innovate UK Business Connect Privacy Policy

Department of Business and Trade’s (DBT) Privacy Policy

Advanced Propulsion Centre UK’s (APC) Privacy Policy

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is committed to upholding data protection legislation, and protecting your information in accordance with data protection principles.

The Information Commissioner’s Office also has a useful guide for organisations, which outlines the data protection principles.

Contact us

If you need more information about how to apply or you want to submit your application in Welsh, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.

Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Innovate UK or any of our partners will not tolerate abusive language in any written or verbal correspondence, applications, social media or any other form that might affect staff.