Innovate UK is investing up to £33 million to develop the device-level hardware and software that universal fault tolerant quantum computers need to scale. Your business can apply for a grant of up to £3.5 million.
Quantum computing has moved from the physics lab towards the engineering challenge of building machines that actually work at scale. This competition backs the companies solving the hardware problems standing in the way, from error rates and control electronics to the interconnects that link qubits together.
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 or a research and technology organisation (RTO). If an RTO leads, it must collaborate with two businesses of any size. Academic institutions can take part but can't lead.
This is a collaborative competition, so you must work with at least one other organisation. You can collaborate with the following UK registered organisations:
- Academic institutions
- Businesses of any size
- Charities
- Not for profits
- Public sector organisations
- Research and technology organisations (RTOs)
To be an eligible collaboration, the lead and at least one other organisation must claim funding, and no single partner can account for more than 75% of the total eligible costs.
Your Project
Your project must:
- End by 31 December 2029
- Have a grant funding request of between £1 million and £3.5 million
- Last between 24 and 36 months
- Start from 1 January 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:
- Be directly relevant to universal fault tolerant quantum computing, using any qubit modality, like superconducting, trapped ion, neutral atom, photonic or spin
- Demonstrate the feasibility and performance of hardware and associated software against scale, programmability and runtime requirements
- Identify one or more pre-requisite capabilities and specifications of a universal fault tolerant computer that it will target
- Validate the innovative technologies, industrial processes and hardware needed to close the capability gaps
Innovate UK won't fund projects that:
- Don't focus on developing a hardware solution relevant for universal fault tolerant quantum computers
- Don't identify specific capability gaps and solutions
- Duplicate existing commercial agreements or someone else's project scope
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 £1 million to £3.5 million.
Applying as a Company
| Project Type | Micro and Small | Medium | Large |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial Research* | 70% | 60% | 50% |
*Industrial research refers to planned research aimed at acquiring new knowledge for developing new products, processes, or services.
Funding Example
If your eligible project costs are £4 million and you are a small company claiming 70% for industrial research, you could receive a grant of £2.8 million. You will need to fund the remaining £1.2 million from other sources, like R&D Tax Relief, investment or loans.
Applying as a Non-Commercial Organisation
Research organisations doing non-economic work can share up to 60% of the total eligible project costs. If more than one research organisation is involved, they share this limit between them. Within that, you can get funding of up to:
- 100% of your eligible costs if you are a charity, not-for-profit, public sector organisation, research organisation, or RTO
- 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 18 September 2026.
Applications are submitted via Innovate UK's Innovation Funding Service (IFS) portal.
The application is split into four sections:
Project Details
This section sets the background for your application and isn't scored. It covers:
- Application details, including your project title, start date and duration
- Project summary
- Public description
- Research category
- Scope
- Your application team
Most answers in this section are limited to 400 words.
Application Questions
There are 16 questions in total:
- Six unscored administrative questions covering topics like applicant location, animal testing, permits and licences, international collaboration, export licences and trusted research
- Ten scored questions covering your business need, technical approach, team, market, route to market, wider impacts, project management, risks, value for money, and the case for public funding
You can include appendices (PDFs) for the approach, team, project management, and risk questions.
Finances
Each organisation in your project completes its own project costs, organisation details and funding details.
Project Impact
Each partner completes the Project Impact questions before you can submit. This section isn't scored but gives background to your project.
Your application will be reviewed by three independent assessors. Their individual scores will be combined to determine your final result.
If you're successful, you'll be notified by 26 October 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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