UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £20 million to run late-stage, collaborative research and development projects that speed up the UK’s move to zero emission vehicles and a net zero automotive industry.
The DRIVE35 Innovation Fund is a Department for Business and Trade (DBT) programme, delivered with Innovate UK and the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC). This competition, Collaborate 3, backs projects that design, develop and manufacture strategically important automotive technologies, and that target real commercialisation at the end of the project.
Below, I have explained the key things you need to know about this competition before you apply: who is eligible, how much funding is on the table, and what the application process looks like.
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Who is Eligible?
Your Organisation
To lead a project, you must be a UK registered business of any size. This competition only funds collaborative projects, so you’ll need to work with at least one other organisation that is also applying for funding. Businesses of any size can take part, including a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME).
You can work with the following as collaborators:
- Academic institutions
- Businesses of any size
- Charities
- Public sector organisations
- Research and technology organisations (RTOs)
- Research organisations
A maximum of six partners is allowed on a project.
Your Project
Your project must:
- Have a total grant funding request of between £2.5 million and £20 million
- Last between 18 and 36 months
- Start from 1 May 2027
All funded work must be carried out in the UK, and you must intend to exploit the project results from or within the UK.
Your project must also:
- Achieve Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7 to 8, or Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) 6 to 7
- Align with at least one of the three scope themes: promoting zero emission vehicle technologies, enhancing manufacturing competitiveness, or future vehicle innovation through software defined vehicles and electrical/electronic architectures
- Be late-stage R&D that targets direct commercialisation at the end of the project
- Support the UK’s transition to zero emission vehicles and the growth, transition and security of the UK automotive supply chain
Innovate UK won’t fund projects that:
- Are dependent on export performance
- Are focused on business processes not directly involved in the design, test, validation or recycling of vehicles
- Are only focused on developing clean fuels
- Cover back office systems and infrastructure
- Focus on e-scooters or e-bikes, although two-wheel vehicles are in scope
- Include the design, development, integration, use, test or manufacturing of automated driving systems (ADS)
- Request more than 50% grant for total project costs
How Much Funding Can I Apply For?
The amount you can claim depends on your organisation’s type and size and the sort of research your project involves.
Individual grants range from £2.5 million to £20 million.
Applying as a Company
| Project Type | Micro and Small | Medium | Large |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial Research* | 70% | 60% | 50% |
| Experimental Development** | 45% | 35% | 25% |
*Industrial research refers to planned research aimed at acquiring new knowledge for developing new products, processes, or services.
**Experimental development is closer to market. It involves using existing knowledge to develop or improve products, processes, or services.
Funding Example
If you’re a medium-sized company running an experimental development project with £8 million of eligible project costs, you could claim 35%, giving you a grant of £2.8 million. You will need to fund the remaining £5.2 million from other sources, like R&D Tax Relief, investment or loans.
Applying as a Non-Commercial Organisation
Research organisations and other partners undertaking non-economic activity can share up to 30% of the total eligible project costs, and at least 70% of total project costs must be incurred by commercial organisations. Non-commercial partners are funded at higher rates:
- Up to 100% of eligible costs if you are a charity, not-for-profit, public sector organisation, research organisation, or RTO
- Up to 80% of full economic costs (FEC) if you’re a Je-S-registered institution, like a university
How Do I Apply?
The deadline for applications is 16 September 2026.
Applications are submitted via Innovate UK’s Innovation Funding Service (IFS) portal.
The application is split into three sections:
Project Details
This section is not scored and gives background for your application. It covers:
- Application team
- Project details, like your title, start date and duration
- Project summary
- Public description
- Research category
- Scope
Most answers in this section are limited to 400 words.
Application Questions
There are 22 questions in total:
- Nine unscored administrative questions covering topics like animal testing, export licences, international collaboration and which theme applies to your project
- Thirteen scored questions covering your strategic rationale, market, collaboration benefits, supply chain benefits, technical approach, project management, risks, value for money, additionality, funding model and jobs
You can include appendices (PDFs of up to two A4 pages) for the scored technical questions.
Finances
In the Finances section, each organisation in your project enters its own project costs, organisation details and funding details.
Your application will be reviewed by up to five independent assessors. Their individual scores will be combined to determine your final result.
If you’re successful, you’ll be notified by 18 December 2026. Applications that pass the initial assessment will be invited to an interview at the APC in Warwick during the week beginning 9 November 2026.
Like with most competitions, Innovate UK takes a ‘portfolio approach’ by funding projects across different technologies, markets and technological maturities. This means that a strong score won’t necessarily guarantee that your application will be successful.
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