Innovate UK Growth Catalyst – Investor Partnerships Round 2 is sponsored by Innovate UK. This program provides grant funding alongside aligned equity investment to highly-innovative high-potential micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK. It aims to de-risk the development of emerging technology and accelerate business growth and scale.

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Innovate UK Growth Catalyst – Investor Partnerships Round 2 UK registered SMEs can apply for grant funding alongside private investment from selected investor partners. Competition opens: Wednesday 10 December 2025 Tuesday 3 February 2026 11:00am This competition is now closed. Innovate UK Growth Catalyst A minimum of £100 million has been allocated to fund innovation projects in this competition.

This is subject to us receiving a sufficient number of high quality applications. Funding will be in the form of a grant. Innovate UK Growth Catalyst is an integrated package of funding and support, designed to help accelerate high-potential start-ups on their journey to becoming scale-ups and beyond.

This Growth Catalyst competition is targeted at growth-oriented start-ups from seed to Series A, with the funding element delivered through our proven Investor Partnerships model, and expert support available from our Innovate UK Business Growth Innovation and Growth Specialists, Innovate UK Business Connect, and the Catapults.

For more information our Suitability Checker can help you make a better-informed decision about whether to apply. It takes only a few minutes to complete and will help you understand quickly if your application is likely to be suitable for consideration. The Suitability Checker is a standalone tool and not part of the application process.

Innovate UK, as part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has selected investor partners with aligned investment interests and capacity to lead investments. These investor partners have demonstrated that they have the credibility, capability, capacity and appetite to invest in innovative, technology-led businesses in areas that align with our strategic priority areas.

The Investor Partnerships programme brings together: Innovate UK’s expertise in identifying innovation and using grant funding to change the risk profile of businesses investor partners aligned funding and expertise in identifying opportunities and teams that can best use extra investment finance The aim of this competition is to provide support for research and development and access to the capital investment you need to develop and commercialise your innovations.

This may be in combination with our Business Support (Innovate UK Business Growth, Innovate UK Business Connect, Catapults) This competition is for SMEs that can demonstrate the potential to grow and scale and must also have a project that is aligned to the following UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy (“Invest 2035”) key sectors and technologies: Further information on these specific themes within these sectors is provided in the scope section.

Innovate UK provides support for your investment readiness and for engaging with suitable investors through Innovate UK Business Growth and Innovate UK Business Connect. In the first instance you can contact Innovate UK Business Growth for support in understanding your readiness for investment and also to look at your wider strategy for growth.

You can also contact Innovate UK Business Connect to establish if there are specific programmes for connecting businesses in your sector to relevant investors. Support and connections to sector specific investors can also be provided by the relevant Catapults . You must establish a relationship and a strong level of investment traction with one of our approved investor partners before you apply for funding.

View details of our investor partnerships: Investor Partnerships - Innovate UK Business Connect The investor partner must have submitted an expression of interest directly to Innovate UK and confirmed with you that you are in a position to apply for grant funding as you will be asked to identify them in the application. Without an EOI submitted by your named Investor Partner, your application will be viewed as ineligible.

Examples of sufficient investment traction will depend on the approach taken by the investor partner and could include: indicative offer from an investor partner which could include an angel investor from an investor partner angel group or network going through due diligence with an investor partner received a term sheet from an interested investor partner To be successful, your project must be independently confirmed by Innovate UK as fundable and have received aligned investment directly, led or catalysed by the investor partner identified in your application.

If selected for funding, the Innovate UK award will be conditional on the aligned equity investment closing at least at the declared minimal amount of investment required. Without investment we will not be able to issue the grant even if selected for funding. In applying to this competition, you are entering into a competitive process.

This competition has a funding limit, so we may not be able to fund all the proposed projects. It may be the case that your project scores highly but we are still unable to fund it. We consider a range of factors when determining whether to provide funding to applicants.

This includes an assessment of prior conduct, such as any outstanding payments owed to Innovate UK or UKRI. Such factors may influence the funding decision, potentially resulting in a refusal of funding or an award subject to additional scrutiny. We also reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions.

This may be in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations or broader government funding decisions. Innovate UK’s Pledge for Progress for Women in Innovation highlights 10 commitments designed to create opportunities and deliver long-term term economic impact through support for women-led businesses. This competition provides an important and tangible route for delivering on the pledge.

This competition closes at 11am UK time on the deadline stated in this Innovate UK competition brief. We cannot guarantee other government or third party sites will always show the correct competition information.

Your project’s total costs will depend on your research category and must be between £50,000 and £300,000 for feasibility studies, £100,000 and £1 million for industrial research, £250,000 and £2 million for experimental development. 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).

Innovate UK Customer Support Service and Reasonable Adjustments Service are unavailable during the holiday period (between 22nd December and the 5th of January). To accommodate this, the competition was announced early to allow applicants extra time to prepare an application. The eligibility criteria will depend on your research category .

For feasibility studies projects: your total project costs must be between £50,000 and £300,000 the project duration must be between 6 and 12 months For industrial research projects: your total project costs must be between £100,000 and £1 million the project duration must be between 6 and 24 months For experimental development projects: your total project costs must be between £250,000 and £2 million the project duration must be between 12 and 24 months 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. This competition is open to single applicants only.

To apply your organisation must: be a UK registered micro, small or medium sized business (SME) carry out its project work in the UK intend to exploit the results from or in the UK be invited to apply by your investor partner have discussed and agreed your proposal with your investor partner before submitting your application More information on the different types of organisation can be found in our Funding rules .

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 eligible project costs An SME can only submit one application into this round of the competition.

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. 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 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.

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. 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 not do anything which could cause a breach of Subsidy Control legislation applicable in the United Kingdom. This aims to regulate any advantage granted by a public sector body which threatens to, or distorts competition in the United Kingdom or any other country or countries.

A minimum of £100m million has been allocated to fund innovation projects in this competition. This is subject to us receiving a sufficient number of high quality applications. Funding will be in the form of a grant.

You will only receive Innovate UK grant funding if you also secure aligned investment at or above the minimum required for the relevant research level. Your investor partner must also submit a “Declared Minimum Aligned Investment”, which you must confirm with your investor partner. Before any funding decision, we will ask the investor partner to confirm the “Declared Minimum Aligned Investment”.

If the “Declared Minimum Aligned Investment” is higher than the minimum required for the relevant research level, it will be treated as greater leverage and will strengthen our assessment of additionality unless there is a strong justification not to. However, at the same time, the confirmed "Declared Minimum Aligned Investment" becomes the new "Minimum Aligned Investment". Your project cannot start until this amount has been secured.

Innovate UK will decide which projects are eligible and in scope to receive grant funding. The decision will be based on three factors: Innovation: Assessed by independent assessors based on your application. Additionality: Based on the impact of the grant in accelerating your innovation and leveraging the aligned investment.

Assessed by the Investor Partnerships Team based on information provided by your named Investor Partner. Traction: Based on the likelihood of the investment completing within a reasonable timeframe. Assessed by the Investor Partnerships Team based on information provided by your named Investor Partner.

To be successful in this competition, you must score strong across all three factors. We will ask your confirmed Investor Partner to provide an update on the progress of your investment prior to making our funding decision. Our assessment of the additionality and traction will be based on this update.

It is therefore important that you liaise with your Investor Partner and that their response represents your understanding of the investment position at that time. If you are successful, you will receive grant funding to cover a proportion of the costs of your project. The project will only be allowed to commence once the agreed aligned investment has been confirmed.

Your business must have sufficient capital resources, including through investment from the investor partner and the grant funding, to enable you to meet all your project’s eligible costs. All recipients must act commercially, and your funding request must not exceed the limits specified.

Feasibility studies and industrial research projects For feasibility studies and industrial research projects, Innovate UK will fund: up to 70% of eligible project costs for micro or small organisations up to 60% for medium sized organisations The absolute minimum aligned investment led by the Investor Partner must always be at least equal to the grant funding.

Experimental development projects For experimental development projects Innovate UK will fund: up to 45% of eligible project costs for micro or small organisations up to 35% for medium sized organisations The absolute minimum aligned investment led by the Investor Partner must always be at least twice as much as the grant funding.

Innovate UK may revoke our decision to provide funding without notice if government commitment for this initiative is withdrawn. The aim of this competition is to provide you with support for research and development and access to the capital investment you need to develop and commercialise your innovations.

Your proposal must have a clear route to market, a clear link to innovation and evidence that you can create a team to deliver your proposal.

registered in the UK as an SME by the time the award is contracted able to complete the aligned investment led by the investor partner needed to qualify for the award, through the issue of new shares or convertible debt You must also demonstrate that if your project is funded, it will: have significant market impact be able to demonstrate the potential to grow and to scale be attractive to equity investors The scope for this competition reflects the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy (“Invest 2035”) which identifies key sectors and technologies where innovation and R&D investment can deliver national advantage, productivity gains and global competitiveness.

For Innovate UK purposes, eligible R&D activity should be aligned to one or more of the following strategic sectors as defined by the Industrial strategy or to the Battery Innovation Programme supported by the Department of Business and Trade. If your technology fits within the “Foundation industries” or “Cross-sector enabling technologies” themes, then you must be able to link it to one of the Industrial sectors.

These are the areas where grant support can most effectively catalyse business-led innovation and attract aligned private investment. Industrial strategy sector - advanced manufacturing Encompasses process and product innovation across the UK’s high-growth manufacturing industries, with the aim of scaling resilient supply chains and strengthening UK productivity and competitiveness.

batteries and energy storage advanced materials (including composites, metals, polymers, ceramics, glass, and smart materials) agri-tech (manufacturing and processing technologies for the agri-food value chain) Also in scope, when evidenced as essential inputs to sustainable growth of these industries: materials such as steel, cement, ceramics, glass, and composites chemicals and critical minerals infrastructure services supporting industrial resilience, including ports, electricity networks, and construction Also in scope are projects aimed at improving productivity and competitiveness of advanced manufacturing companies and their supply chains through: development and deployment of new technologies that deliver step-changes in productivity further development of technologies that reduce deployment risk and accelerate cross industry adoption Industrial strategy sector - clean energy industries Encompasses innovation to support net-zero energy generation, storage and system efficiency, enhancing the UK’s global competitiveness and energy security.

wind (onshore, offshore and floating) hydrogen production and systems fusion and nuclear fission carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) and greenhouse gas removal heat pumps and Electricity networks energy infrastructure, smart-grid integration and digital energy management systems supply-chain innovations supporting localisation and cost reduction grid integration and digitalisation of energy systems Industrial strategy sector - digital and technologies Encompasses frontier technologies that underpin productivity, resilience and innovation across every industrial sector, accelerating digital transformation and data-driven growth.

artificial intelligence and machine learning advanced connectivity (5G and 6G, IoT and satellite communications) cross-sector digital applications that enable industrial automation, process control and predictive maintenance secure data infrastructure and interoperability across supply chains Industrial strategy sector - defence Encompasses dual-use and civil-applicable innovations that strengthen the UK’s advanced engineering and security capabilities while maintaining export compliance and ethical standards.

Those technologies should have high civic commercialisation potential.

autonomous systems and robotics maritime and aerospace capabilities supply-chain and manufacturing innovations that enhance defence resilience other frontier technologies for example, sensors, composites, AI systems, advanced materials Where projects and business plans have specific defence sector opportunities, we expect to see evidence of defence industry supply chain, including MoD market traction, which we may independently validate.

Industrial strategy sector - creative industries Innovate UK aims to strengthen the UK’s position as a global creative powerhouse, driving innovation at the intersection of culture, technology and design. The Creative Industries frontier industries contribute significant growth thanks to strengths in their size, employment, and connectedness with other parts of the Creative Industries and wider economy.

Our support will particularly target these high-growth sub sectors, as well as unlocking the emerging, disruptive growth potential of createch.

advertising and marketing music, performing and visual arts Industrial strategy sector - life sciences Encompasses health and medical innovation that supports the UK’s ambition to become a global leader in life sciences by 2035, driving productivity, investment, and improved population health outcomes. The focus is on SMEs with strong growth potential and the capability to deliver measurable economic impact through innovation.

pharmaceuticals – therapeutic discovery and development across all modalities, advancing drug discovery and strengthening advanced manufacturing capabilities medical technologies (MedTech) – accelerating development of AI-enabled diagnostics, medical devices, wearable devices, and minimally invasive technologies health data and AI (TechBio) – integration of health data, multi-omics technologies, and digital (including AI) tools to improve patient outcomes and enable personalised medicine We welcome projects that address conditions unique to, disproportionately impact, or manifest differently in women, recognising this as a major growth opportunity for the UK.

Encompasses the industrial inputs and materials systems that underpin the UK’s manufacturing, energy and infrastructure sectors, supporting the transition to net zero and enhancing resilience.

materials – steel, glass, ceramics, cement, paper and chemicals resource and process efficiency – low-carbon industrial processes and recycling innovation supply-chain modernisation – digitalisation, data management and automation of traditional sectors development of industrial clusters and shared infrastructure to enable decarbonisation cross-sector initiatives improving circularity and resource security Cross-sector enabling technologies Across all sectors, Innovate UK funding can support R&D in cross-cutting themes such as: advanced manufacturing and materials data, AI and digitalisation net-zero and sustainability technologies resilience and supply-chain innovation inclusive and responsible innovation practices Battery Innovation Programme Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, is delivering the Battery Innovation Programme on behalf of the Department for Business and Trade.

Funding will be considered to high-quality applications that meet one or more of the following criteria: accelerate the development and commercialisation of state-of-the-art battery technologies in the UK support the growth of the UK battery supply chain and related companies enhance the UK’s competitiveness in the global battery market demonstrate how battery technologies can meet specific application requirements and drive electrification across diverse sectors Your proposal can address one or more of the following areas: cell design and components process and manufacturing tools quality control and diagnostics testing, simulation and digital tools Your project can target performance requirements for at least one of the listed sectors and can support emerging use cases or cross sector applicability.

defence, aerospace, and battery energy storage automotive sector including on and off-highway vehicles, motorsports and niche automotive battery energy storage systems Innovation and ideas can come from anyone and anywhere. We want to see investments unlocked for the diverse and extraordinary talent in the UK.

We encourage innovation involving communities that are typically under-represented, including: from regions that have historically accessed lower levels of investment (outside London, Oxford and Cambridge) women and other marginalised genders people with non-traditional education backgrounds We want to fund a variety of projects within Investor Partnerships, this includes the Battery Innovation Programme.

Our initial funding decision is based on the innovation score, investment additionality, expected leverage and likelihood of investment completion. Where funding is limited within these specific themes, we may make a funding decision based on the project type and size, grant requested, business stage, location, and sector to ensure portfolio balance and alignment with strategic intent. We call this a portfolio approach .

We will also take into account the impact of the grant in accelerating investment and the likelihood of the investment completing within a reasonable time. We will fund feasibility projects, 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 are: collaborative R&D projects not part of a company’s growth plan unable to prove there is potential for return on investment and growth large capital infrastructure not invited by a specified investor partner 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 Online briefing event: watch the recording .

Briefing slides are available to download from the Supporting information section. 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 You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

The application is split into four sections: 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.

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). Innovate UK Customer Support Service and Reasonable Adjustments Service are unavailable during the holiday period (between 22nd December and the 5th of January). To accommodate this, the competition was announced early to allow applicants extra time to prepare an application.

This section provides background for your application and is not scored. Do not include any website addresses (URLs) in your answers. Decide which people from your organisation will work with you on the project and invite those people to help complete the application.

Equality, diversity and inclusion Have you completed the EDI survey? We will not use this data when we assess your application. We collect this data anonymously and only use it to help us understand our funding recipients better.

You must select one option. Give your project’s title, start date and duration. Select the type of research you will undertake.

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.

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 could happen before you start your project. Your answer can be up to 400 words long. Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition and specifically to which of the sectors it belongs, including the Battery Innovation Programme.

If your project is not in scope for the confirmed sector, it will not be eligible for funding. You must choose only one eligible sector and be clear which it is. If your project spans more than one sector, select the one which fits best and explain why it sits within that sector.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long. The assessors will score all your answers apart from question 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. Your answer to each question can be up to 400 words long.

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 subcontractors working on your project. We are collecting this information to understand more about the geographical location of all applicants. Question 2.

Animal testing (not scored) Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing? You must select one option: 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: In the process of being applied for 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.

Question 5. Export licence (not scored) You must indicate whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance . You must select one option: Question 6.

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. Question 7. Investor partner