Innovate UK Venture Builder Pilot
Supports United Kingdom university spin-outs in frontier AI, engineering biology, and advanced materials manufacturing.
The Innovate UK Venture Builder Pilot is a £3.75 million programme launched April 22, 2026 that provides up to £150,000 in grant funding plus nine months of structured programme support to deep-tech university spin-outs working in three UK Industrial Strategy priority areas: Frontier AI, Engineering Biology, and Advanced Materials and Manufacturing. The pilot is designed to close the gap between e…
Deep-tech spin-outs aligned to the UK Government's Industrial Strategy in three priority areas: Frontier AI, Engineering Biology, and Advanced Materials and Manufacturing. Spin-outs must originate from UK Universities, Public Sector Research Establishments, or Research Institutes.
Sign up free to see the funding breakdown
Sign up free to see the industries in scope
Sign up free to see the full eligibility
Sign up free to see how to apply
Sign up free to see what you submit
Sign up free to see how they score you
Sign up free to see the timeline
Sign up free to see where teams trip up
Guides for this application
All guides →Innovate UK Grants for Deeptech Startups
How UK deeptech startups should approach Innovate UK grants, including competition fit, R&D categories, collaboration, eligibility, budgets, and strategy.
Start hereTRL Levels Explained for Deeptech Founders
Learn what TRL levels mean, how to estimate technology readiness, and how TRL affects grants, EIC Accelerator, SBIR/STTR, funding stage, and application evidence.
Write proposalHow to Write a Grant Proposal Reviewers Can Score
Learn how to write a grant proposal around reviewer criteria, evidence, work packages, budget logic, and commercialization for deeptech and R&D funding.
DocumentsGrant Work Plan Template: Work Packages, Gantt, Milestones, and Risks
Use this grant work plan template to structure work packages, tasks, owners, deliverables, Gantt timing, dependencies, and risk registers.
More from Innovate UK
All grants from this funder →Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP): 2026 – 2027 Round 3
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
A university and a business share a graduate for a project neither could run alone.
Advancing innovation in accelerated cancer diagnosis
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
Supporting clinical validation of early cancer diagnostic technologies
National Materials Innovation Programme: CR&D Rd1
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
Funds UK-registered businesses collaborating on industrial research into advanced materials, covering up to 70% of project costs from a £12 million pool.
DRIVE35 Scale-up Fund drawdown five
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
Build the UK plant that makes zero emission vehicle technology at real volume.
UK-Singapore CRD 2026
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
Funding for UK-Singapore industrial research collaborations.
BridgeAI
🇬🇧Innovate UK · United Kingdom
Supports artificial intelligence adoption in agriculture, construction, creative, and transport sectors.
Similar grants
Browse the directory →
Innowwide — Next
🇪🇺EUREKA · Global / Multinational
Offers market-feasibility support for small companies exploring non-European markets through Europe-wide innovation networks.
SFC Interface Innovation Vouchers
🇬🇧SFC · United Kingdom
Offers voucher-based projects so Scottish organizations can work with universities on urgent innovation needs.
SMART Innovation Funding
🇬🇧Welsh Gov · United Kingdom
Funds Welsh organizations developing new or significantly improved products, processes, and services.
SMART Innovation Funding
🇬🇧Business Wales · United Kingdom
Funds Wales-based businesses of all sizes to research and develop new products, processes, or services through discretionary Welsh Government R&D grants.
Eureka Network Projects — Permanent
🇪🇺EUREKA · Global / Multinational
Offers open access collaboration through Eureka Network Projects so small enterprises can join international innovation groups.
Invest NI Grant for R&D
🇬🇧Invest NI · United Kingdom
Supports Northern Ireland businesses through Invest NI with innovation grants that strengthen future growth projects.