Biosecurity Frontiers

Biosecurity Frontiers

Funds UK-based organisations developing biosecurity innovations across biodetection, AI diagnostics, and non-pharmaceutical protective systems for national security.

⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.

Biosecurity Frontiers is a themed competition run by the Cabinet Office with delivery support from UK Defence Innovation (formerly DASA). It operates under the 2023 UK Biological Security Strategy and the 2025 National Security Strategy. The competition offers non-dilutive grants of £100,000 to £500,000 per project, with up to £2 million available in total, targeting innovations that strengthen UK biosecurity across three defined challenge areas. UKDI takes no equity and the award covers 100% of eligible project costs.

Funding is available across three challenge themes: Biodetection and Biosurveillance (sensors, detection systems, monitoring networks); AI and Diagnostics, Therapeutics and Vaccines (AI-driven diagnostic tools, vaccine development platforms, therapeutic innovations); and Non-pharmaceutical protective systems (personal protective equipment, decontamination, physical barriers). The competition expects to fund 5 to 7 proposals spread across these three areas. Project duration is not explicitly fixed but is tied to the deliverables required.

Eligibility is open to the full range of UK-based organisations: academia, sole traders, SMEs, and large companies. International companies may also apply if they have a UK-registered business listed at Companies House. There is no ownership-nationality restriction — being UK-based (not UK-owned) is sufficient. All project work must be carried out in the UK.

The application submission deadline for Cycle 1 (the only announced cycle) was 12:00 Midday on 10 June 2026 (BST), and that cycle is now closed. The competition does not currently list a next cycle date; applicants should monitor the UKDI funding pipeline for future rounds. Applications are submitted through the UKDI community portal. Proposals are evaluated on technical merit, alignment to the three challenge areas, and practical deployability.

Note: this is a Cabinet Office-funded, biosecurity-specific competition. It sits outside the standard UKDI Open Call and is themed. Companies from non-defence sectors (biotech, medtech, AI for health) are explicitly in scope if their technology addresses one of the three challenge areas.