Defence and Security Accelerator

Runs Defence and Security Accelerator, a Ministry of Defence vehicle for defence and security innovation at early technology stages.

The Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) sits under the UK Ministry of Defence and, since February 2026, has been folded into UK Defence Innovation. It funds exploitable innovation for UK defence and security through MOD-standard contracts rather than grants, with delivery built to move early-stage technology into use.

Its main routes are the Open Call for Innovation, which is currently paused pending the UKDI transition, Themed Competitions for specific defence challenges, and Defence Innovation Loans. Recent funded work ranges from biosecurity and rapid transfusion diagnostics to conflict wound care and AI security screening, with project types spanning defence, security, biotech, medtech, robotics, quantum, aerospace, and cyber hardware. Funded projects are placed on contract and applicants keep their IP.

That makes DASA a fit for teams that can answer a customer-defined problem and are ready to test in real operating conditions. Submissions run through the UKDI Online Submission Service, and the work is administered with Dstl. The strongest proposals are likely to be those with a clear defence or security use case, a realistic development plan, and enough technical maturity to justify a funded contract rather than a purely exploratory discussion.