The latest grant opportunities for UK businesses and research organisations.
May has ushered in another bout of unseasonably warm weather. Plus, a hatful of bank holidays to enjoy it on!
Thankfully, no one’s told the hard-working folks at the UK and Europe’s various innovation funding agencies, who are continuing to churn out new and lucrative grant competitions at pace.
As always, you can find the most exciting of these competitions here, in the latest instalment of Grants Watch, curated by GrantTree’s innovation funding experts.
This edition features:
- Evergreen schemes from the UK government and the European Union
- Sector-specific grants for companies in farming and flight
- The latest round of investor partnerships, which blends grant funding with equity investment
Not sure what to apply for? Let us tell you.
If you want to know what grants you should be applying for, you can book in a free, 30-minute Eligibility and Competitiveness Assessment. After familiarising ourselves with your R&D roadmap, my colleagues and I will tell you:
- What grants you’re eligible for
- Which competitions you have the best chance of winning
- How much funding you could win
- What other types of government funding you may be eligible for
Get started on your grant funding journey now by booking your Eligibility and Competitiveness Assessment here.
In this edition
EIC Accelerator
Funding available: Up to €2.5 million
Deadline: 1 October 2025 for stage 2 of the application
Run by Europe’s leading innovation funding agency, the European Innovation Council, the Accelerator scheme offers generous grants for UK startups and scale-ups looking to fund late-stage R&D to take mature innovations to market.
Accelerator has two strands:
- Open – Open to all fields of science and technology, but more competitive
- Challenges – For innovations focused on specific areas of technology
The areas are:
- Acceleration of advanced materials development and upscaling along the value chain
- Biotechnology-driven low-emission food and feed production systems
- GenAI4EU: Creating European Champions in Generative AI
- Innovative in-space servicing, operations, robotics and technologies for resilient EU space infrastructure
- Breakthrough innovations for future mobility
UK companies are eligible for all EIC competitions as the UK is associated to Horizon Europe, under which the EIC was established.
Learn more about the EIC Accelerator.
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EIC Pathfinder
Funding available: Up to €4 million
Deadline: 21 May 2025 for the Open strand and 29 October 2025 for the Challenges strand
Pathfinder offers grants to UK startups and scaleups looking to perform R&D to validate early-stage, potentially ground-breaking innovations (TRL 1-2).
Like Accelerator, Pathfinder has two strands:
- Open – Grants of up to €3 million for consortia featuring at least 3 independent organisations from different EU member states and associated countries
- Challenges – up to €4 million for single applicants and small consortia whose R&D aligns with specific themes
The themes are:
- Biotech for climate resilient crops and plant-based biomanufacturing
- Generative-AI-based agents to revolutionise medical diagnosis and the treatment of cancer
- Towards autonomous robot collectives delivering collaborative tasks in dynamic, unstructured construction environments
- Waste-to-value devices: Circular production of renewable fuels, chemicals and materials
The deadlines are 21 May 2025 for the Open strand and 29 October 2025 for the Challenges strand.
EIC Transition
Funding available: Up to €2.5 million
Deadline: 17 September 2025
Unlike Pathfinder and Accelerator, Transition is only open to companies that have already received grant funding from one of the following competitions and organisations:
- EIC Pathfinder
- European Research Council proof of concept grants
- Horizon Europe research and innovation actions
- European Defence Fund (EDF)
Transition funds development work that is designed to take transformative innovations from “lab to market” and is open to both single organisations and small consortia.
Transition has just one strand, Open, which accepts applications from all areas of technology.
Farming Futures R&D Fund
Funding available: Up to £1.75 million
Deadline: 25 June 2025
This Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) competition, delivered in partnership with Innovate UK, is looking to fund collaborative projects that deliver innovative solutions in two areas:
Grants from these competitions cover between 50% and 70% of project costs, depending on your company’s size. You must apply as part of a consortium, led by a UK-registered business of any size.
Both competitions offer funding for industrial research projects, which convert validated ideas into tangible innovations, such as prototypes, models, or working systems, that can be tested and refined in simulated or real-world environments.
Future Flight: Regional Demonstrator
Funding available: Up to £200,000
Deadline: 11 June 2025
This Innovate UK competition offers funding for projects looking to demonstrate the commercial viability of drone, electric take-off and landing (eVTOL) or zero-emission take-off and landing (CTOL) aircraft or services.
This competition is designed to catalyse the commercialisation of future flight solutions and accelerate the transition of cutting-edge innovations from trial stage to real-world operation.
Projects must last 5-7 months, start on 1 September 2025, and involve at least one SME, local government authority and end user/customer.
Learn more about the Future Flight: Regional Demonstrator competition.
Future Leaders Fellowships: Round 10
Funding available: Up to £3 million
Deadline: 5 November 2025, 11 am
This UKRI-funded programme offers large grants, covering up to four years of project work, to early-career innovators looking to tackle difficult and novel challenges.
The competition is designed to support excellence in innovation and develop the next generation of research and innovation leaders.
Highlights:
- Up to four years of project work funded
- Applicants can apply from any sector
- Open to people working at a range of non-academic organisations, including businesses, catapults and charities
If you’re applying from an eligible research organisation, you need to apply through the UKRI Funding Service.
Innovation Loans
Funding available: Up to £2 million
Deadline: 2 July for Round 21
Innovate UK’s underutilised Innovation Loans Future Economy scheme offers £100,000 to £2 million in debt financing for startups and scaleups looking for funding to commercialise a late-stage technology.
Innovation Loans have a range of favourable features, such as below-market interest rates and repayment terms of up to 7 years. They also cover up to 100% of project costs, more than most Innovate UK competitions, which generally max out at 70%.
Innovation Loans are especially well-suited for companies that have already received grant funding, as they are designed to support innovations that have reached the stage of development typically achieved after a grant-funded project.
Investor Partnerships: Funding for Climate and Clean Energy Innovators
Funding available: Grants of up to £900,000
Deadline: 2 July 2025
Innovate UK’s Investor Partnerships competition lets companies access grant funding and equity investment at the same time.
This round focuses on companies developing climate and clean energy technologies that can make a “significant contribution” to mitigating emissions. To qualify, companies must first establish a relationship with one of Innovate UK’s approved investors.
Grants of up to £900,000 are available, but the amount of equity funding must at least match the grant award.
Learn more about the Investor Partnerships competition.
Let GrantTree find you funding
Looking for grant funding for your business or research organisation? GrantTree can help.
Over the last 15 years, we’ve secured more than £100 million in grants for innovative projects. Calling on that unmatched experience, we can help you understand which competitions you are not only eligible for but have a good chance of winning, helping you make the most of the time you invest in your application.
We can also help you understand what other types of government funding you might be eligible for, like R&D Tax Relief.
To find out what funding you should apply for, just get in touch. My colleagues and I will be right with you.
