Aim
This funding opportunity aims to support the delivery of the UK Government AI Opportunities Action Plan (AIOP) by investing in up to 12 Turing AI pioneer interdisciplinary fellowships. Researchers without a background in core AI research will develop domain relevant AI capability, using it to advance progress against a challenge-driven research problem in their home domain. This funding opportunity will form part of a suite of investments supporting the government’s AIOP ambitions.
Funding for this opportunity is subject to final budget approval.
It is expected that successful fellows focus primarily on their research and, on average, a minimum of 50% full time equivalent (FTE) commitment is expected over the lifetime of the award.
Funding opportunity objectives
The objectives of this funding opportunity are:
- to enable leading researchers from a diverse range of backgrounds outside of core AI research to build domain relevant AI capability and knowledge, and tackle a specific research challenge
- to drive transformative change and accelerate the adoption and utilisation of AI across multiple domains, the research base and wider economy, though community leadership
- to enable engagement and collaboration within or between academic and non-academic partners to deliver AI-enabled challenge-driven research
- to support the career development of leading researchers, contributing to a diverse research community with increased AI skills and knowledge
Scope
This funding opportunity is aimed at established researchers without a background in core AI research but a vision for how the use of advanced AI techniques could enable potentially transformative new avenues in their research and that of their broader community.
This funding opportunity is targeted at applicants who will benefit from the flexibility and time the fellowship will provide to enable them to build domain relevant AI skills and capability.
Alongside the development of your own AI skills and capability, research leadership skills, and future career direction, the fellowship should also deliver high-quality domain-specific research that embeds AI approaches.
You will be expected to undertake professional development and upskilling activities in technical AI and demonstrate how your enhanced AI capability will be applied to drive transformative change within your discipline. While you are not expected to be leading AI experts by the end of the fellowship, you should be equipped to lead a team that can effectively apply interdisciplinary AI techniques to deliver world-class AI-enabled research outcomes.
You should be established in your field, with a demonstrated ability to lead a research-focused group and drive research directions and the capability to drive broader adoption of AI approaches across your domain. This could be demonstrated by, but not limited to, receipt of significant funding or leading significant research programmes or workstreams or managing your own independent group in or outside academia. In any case, you should demonstrate why you consider it appropriate to describe yourself as established in your domain.
Alternative evidence of research leadership is welcome particularly for those with primarily industry-based experience. You should demonstrate a clear understanding of how to lead a research project, including articulating relevant transferable skills such as strategic planning, team coordination, stakeholder engagement, and delivery of complex, research challenge-driven work.
For more information on the background of this funding opportunity, go to the Additional information section.
Fellowship expectations
You will be expected to:
- develop a high-quality programme of ambitious, novel and creative research challenge-driven activities, where the integration of AI enables potentially transformative new approaches to tackling a specific research challenge in your domain
- demonstrate the appropriateness and timeliness of the Turing AI pioneer interdisciplinary fellowships to support your professional development and research ambitions
- co-create and collaboratively deliver the programme with academic and non-academic partners or stakeholders to ensure their research will benefit the wider society and economy
- demonstrate a clear vision of how AI will be embedded in your research within and beyond the fellowship, providing confidence that you have the right expertise and structures in place to deliver on this vision. For example, through your mentor(s), AI collaborator and appropriate access to compute and data
- collaborate with an established AI specialist or researcher who will support your development and collaborate on the planned research throughout the life of the fellowship
- take ownership of your learning journey, both in terms of developing technical AI skills and other softer skills. For example, leadership, collaboration, entrepreneurship, mentorship, communication, identifying and pursuing potential training opportunities which will enhance and accelerate your learning
- develop the skills and careers of your research team, mentoring and developing the independent researchers and innovators of the future
- enhance your position of leadership in the national and international research community, championing broader inclusive AI use across their research community
- be an active part of the Turing AI fellows cohort as detailed in the following section
- embed the principles of responsible AI and responsible research and innovation (RRI) throughout your activities
- embed considerations of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in your fellowship
- have a vision for your future research and how the fellowship will support it beyond the length of the funding
This funding opportunity is expected to be highly competitive and as such you are encouraged to ensure you demonstrate your ability to meet these expectations.
At this full application stage you are expected to expand on your ambitious vision for your research which details the potential for impact in and beyond your domain, as well as the transformative potential of embedding AI within the approach. It is expected that you further develop this vision and the approach with input from your AI collaborator. Further details can be found in the Collaboration with an AI expert section. Flexibility should be built into the programme to adapt the planned approach to delivering the proposed outcomes, if appropriate, as your AI skills and understanding grow.
Research focus
You are expected to frame your proposals around clearly defined, domain-specific research challenges, working closely with stakeholders across and beyond academia to develop a research programme with the potential for impactful outcomes through AI embedded approaches.
The fellows proposed programme of research is expected to:
- demonstrate how AI can accelerate progress or unlock new capabilities in the applicant’s domain which wouldn’t be possible otherwise
- tackle problems that are recognised as urgent or high value by relevant academic or non-academic communities
- deliver solutions that could lead to new tools, services, or processes with significant impact
We recognise that AI will have a transformational impact in many domains, both on the way research is done and the pace of progress. We welcome applicants from all research domains across the breadth of UKRI’s remit.
UKRI particularly welcome proposals which support government missions, such as the Industrial Strategy, or are addressing domain specific research challenges in the following areas, where significant opportunities to accelerate progress through embedding AI exist:
- engineering biology
- frontier physics
- materials science
- medical research
- quantum technology
This is not an exclusionary list and proposals from other areas across UKRI remit including non-STEM disciplines are also welcome.
You are encouraged to frame your proposals in terms of:
- the potential for AI to solve the identified challenge
- the potential for AI to have an outsized impact and deliver impact on the domain in the near term
- how the area builds on existing UK research strengths
- how advancements in these areas will drive progress across government missions and Industrial Strategy sectors
See more information about UKRI’s portfolio and strategies.
Collaboration with an AI expert
You should collaborate with an established AI specialist or researcher. The collaborator will support your development and collaborate on the planned research throughout the life of the fellowship. Research organisations should support potential applicants in identifying suitable collaborators. You are encouraged to explore the existing landscape of UKRI relevant AI research as detailed in the Additional information section to help identify potential collaborators.
You are expected to have identified a collaborator at the outline application stage and worked with them to ensure the proposed vision is realistic in the AI landscape. If invited to submit a full application, you are expected to co-create the planned programme with the AI collaborator.
The level of guidance or support needed may vary by fellow experience and will need to be fully justified and subject to expert review. The support should be sufficient to enable the delivery of the ambitious AI embedded research programme and support the development of the fellows AI skills and understanding.
Collaborators should not have a leadership role in the programme and would not be expected to have significant time costed to the grant. Their role may evolve as the fellowship progresses, and your AI skills and knowledge grow. However, you and AI expert should build a mutually beneficial two-way relationship.
If based at an eligible UK institution, the AI collaborator should be included as project co-lead on the application. If based outside the UK or at an ineligible institution, the AI collaborator should be included as a project partner on the application. Please note that project partners cannot receive funding from the grant except in specific circumstances. See further information about project partners.
Only one AI collaborator can be included as a project co-lead on the application. No other co-leads are permitted. The only exception is for job shares where there can be one project co-lead as the job share fellow and a second as an AI expert. See the Who can apply section for further information. The project co-lead would not be permitted to take over the operation of the fellowship if the fellow leaves the project.
End user partnerships and cross-sector collaborations
You should build strong relationships and cross-sector collaborations with potential end users of your research to drive your research direction. This includes industry, policy makers, public bodies, charities and other groups.
It is expected that you will continue to engage stakeholders throughout the duration of the fellowship, for example by setting up an external advisory board to provide guidance and support, ensuring that the research is aligned with real-world needs and applications. Clear plans for engaging with new and existing collaborators over the duration of the fellowship should be detailed in the application on the UKRI Funding Service.
Mentorship
You should have access to one or more mentors from your host organisation who can support your personal development, for example in leadership skills, team coordination, and project management.
Cohort engagement
Subject to renewal The Alan Turing Institute, the national institute for data science and AI, will continue to support all appointed fellows via bespoke cohort activities. You will receive access to the Turing offices and be informed of engagement opportunities at the Institute, but are not required to work at or with the Institute beyond engaging proactively with cohort activities stipulated by UKRI at the time of the award.
Successful applicants will be expected to be an active part of the AI Turing fellows cohort including those funded through this funding opportunity as well as previous and any future Turing AI fellowship opportunities. The cohort will maximise networks between different disciplines and institutions, enhance individual growth, create an environment for sharing research and learning, foster idea generation and most importantly influence and drive AI adoption across disciplines.
Funding will be awarded on the condition that you actively engage with the cohort and in particular any activities or events like coffee mornings, annual events, showcase events and so on organised by the cohort management team.
Upon completion of the fellowship, graduate fellows will become part of an alumni of the programme, supporting the advocacy of AI adoption in non-AI domains and engage through UKRI’s wider cohort structure.
Research outcomes and impacts
You are encouraged to think about potential outcomes and impacts of your proposed programmes of work. This could include, but is not limited to, commercialisation, policy-impact, impact on other research domains, or supporting the work of public bodies such as the NHS. You should consider how you may take advantage of UKRI’s broad support mechanisms, such as Innovate UK’s ICURe programme, UKRI’s policy fellowship scheme, and other council-specific impact activities.
You may have the opportunity to commercialise or expand the development of your research outcomes for potential commercialisation. As your programme matures, you will be linked with ICURe to assess the commercialisation and impact creation potential (subject to funding). ICURe provide access to training and development for equipping researchers with essential commercialisation skills and receiving an early indication of whether their research project is best suited for a spin-out or licence agreement.
Monitoring and evaluation
You will be required to provide key monitoring information as part of the award. The mandatory monitoring will be confirmed at the start of the award but will include:
- six monthly updates focused on key outputs and outcomes
- annual reports focused on progress against fellowship aims, key outputs, outcomes, and impacts, future plans and financial reporting
- final report detailing key outputs, outcomes, and impacts
- contributing to and participating in a final evaluation of the overall programme
- standard Researchfish reporting
Compliance with reporting will be part of the grant terms and conditions.
UKRI reserves the right to request additional information as deemed necessary for monitoring evaluation purposes, including initiating mid-term reviews of individual grants if required.
Time commitment
If you work part time, you can hold your Turing AI pioneer interdisciplinary fellowship part time as well, at a minimal level of 50% full time equivalent. In these circumstances, the duration of your fellowship can be extended proportionally to a maximum duration of six years.
If you do not work part time, you may hold our fellowship for between 50% and 100% of your time. However, the total fellowship duration will be fixed at three years. This must be clearly justified in your application as the fellowship should be the fellow’s main research focus.
Whether part time or full time, you may start your award with less than 50% FTE but should ramp up your commitment to a minimum of 50% FTE within six months of the award start date.
You should design an appropriate variable time commitment over the duration of the award to deliver your research vision. Additionally, you should plan your work packages to accommodate for any potential delays in recruiting post-doctoral researchers where necessary.
Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI)
EDI enriches diversity of thought, builds stronger perspectives and performance within organisations and communities, and fosters more innovative and creative approaches. This is particularly pertinent in AI, as AI algorithms impact people’s lives and therefore risk exacerbating existing inequalities in society. By having a diverse AI community and workforce, the design and development of algorithms will be less likely to reflect the inherent biases of a majority group. Furthermore, investing in a diverse array of fellows of different genders, ethnicities, backgrounds and career paths will enable greater diversity of thought and approach in AI that is key to the development of creative new AI technologies and a sustainable UK AI ecosystem.
The long-term strength of the UK research base depends on harnessing all the available talent. UKRI expects that EDI is embedded at all levels and in all aspects of research practice and funding policy. We are committed to supporting the research community, offering a range of flexible options which allow applicants to design a package that fits their research goals, career and personal circumstances. This includes career breaks, support for people with caring responsibilities, flexible working and alternative working patterns.
For this funding opportunity, joint applications on a job-share basis are permitted. If your application is a proposed job-share, please state this where relevant in your application and set out your proposed arrangements in the ‘Applicant capability to deliver’ and ‘Career development’ sections.
Only one applicant for any joint applications should be listed as ‘fellow’ and the other as ‘project co-lead’ in the Funding Service, as the Funding Service functionality does not support both applicants to be listed as ‘fellow’. UKRI will recognise both applicants as ‘fellow’. The team should choose one of the fellows’ organisations to be responsible for submitting the grant application and administering the grant should the application be successful.
Expert review is central to UKRI funding decisions. We require expert advice and robust decision-making processes for all UKRI funding initiatives. We are committed to ensuring that fairness is fully reflected in all our funding processes by advancing policy which supports equality, diversity and inclusion. For further information, please see our EDI webpages.
For more information on the background of this funding opportunity, go to the Additional information section.
Duration
The duration of this award is 36 months.
Projects must start on 1 October 2026.
Funding available
The FEC of your project can be up to £2,187,500.
UKRI will fund 80% of the FEC.
You are expected to request a tailored package of resources, designed in partnership with your host organisation and partners, to enable you to achieve the objectives of your research agenda. The fellowship will provide salary support.
Support for studentships through this investment will not be permitted, in line with other UKRI research grants. Student engagement should be realised through host organisation or stakeholder support, or collaboration with other training investments in the UK landscape such as the UKRI AI centres for doctoral training.
It is expected that resources will be used flexibly (in line with the UKRI grant terms and conditions) to deliver the vision and desired outcomes of the programme.
The fellowship must start on 1 October 2026, and no extensions will be given for delays in the appointment of staff. Therefore, when preparing the application, recruitment time should be taken into consideration. That is, if it is estimated that it will take six months to recruit a research and innovation associate (RIA)(was PDRA), then only 30 months of RIA time should be requested. Only if there is a RIA or staff member ready to start at the beginning of the fellowship, should you apply for the full three years (36 months) of time.
Please note that, due to the nature of this funding, grant extensions will only be considered under exceptional circumstances, in line with the Equality Act 2010, and will require UKRI agreement on a case-by-case basis. The research organisation remains responsible for compliance with the terms of the Equality Act 2010, including any subsequent amendments introduced while work is in progress, and for ensuring that the expectations set out in the UKRI statement of expectations for equality and diversity are met.
See further information on allowable costs.
Compute, data and equipment
Access to compute is a key enabling factor for the fellowships and is an allowable expenditure under the grant. You are expected to build plans for access into your programme and allocate funding as appropriate.
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and UKRI can confirm up to 6,000,000 (GPU) hours are available specifically to the Pioneer fellows’ cohort over the duration of the three year scholarship programme. This is equivalent to 500,000 GPU hours per fellow. You must complete an expression of interest for AI research resource, detailing expected usage over the life of the fellowship by 24 February 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. Details provided in this form will not be formally assessed and will only be used for the purposes of AI research resource (AIRR) allocation planning. and will only be used for the purposes of AIRR allocation planning.
Successful fellows who wish to request access to compute resource via the AIRR, will be required to complete compliance forms and provide an estimate of compute requirements for the full three year period before the start of programme on the 1 October 2026.
Not all projects carried out by fellows will require the same quantity of AIRR compute. The starting point will be equal access for all fellows, but awards of compute resource via the AIRR will be managed across the cohort, with unmet demand from one fellow made available to others as appropriate within the total 6,000,000 GPU hours allocation budget.
The AIRR programme team will regularly monitor fellows’ utilisation of their compute award. You will also have an annual opportunity to review research delivery plans and amend their estimated compute requirements for the remainder of their programme. Where AIRR compute is left unused for extended periods, fellows’ compute awards may be reprioritised to ensure national resources are used for research with the greatest impact.
All utilisation of the AIRR is subject to scheduling prioritisation to ensure system use aligns with His Majesty’s Government objectives, such as responding to national crises or enabling large-scale research for public benefit. Where this prioritisation disrupts fellows’ workloads, advance notice will be given and support provided to reschedule usage promptly.
Before the start of their fellowship, successful fellows will be required to request access to the AIRR via the Gateway route. This enables fellows to access 10,000 GPU hours with which to familiarise themselves with the AIRR systems, schedule test runs and troubleshoot any technical issues before formally commencing research.
Further to this dedicated access to AIRR compute, pioneer fellows will also be able to apply for additional resource through other access tracks. You are encouraged to check the UKRI Funding finder for new opportunities for access, noting the ongoing Isambard-AI and Dawn AIRR supercomputers: Gateway route opportunity for short-term, small-scale compute awards.
All compute awards through the AIRR provide access to resources in line with the Subsidy Control Act 2022. In summer 2026, successful fellows will be asked questions to indicate if State Aid or Subsidy applies to their project.
You will need to obtain access to datasets independently. Project planning should outline how access to data and permissions to utilise data for AI analysis and training will be secured, where necessary.
Equipment, between £25,000 to £400,000 per item, is allowed on this funding opportunity. Note that access to compute should primarily be through the AIRRs and existing infrastructure. We reserve the right to remove equipment where unaffordable.
For equipment costing £25,000 and above, three verbal quotes should be detailed in the resources and cost justification. Written quotes are not required as part of the application, but we reserve the right to request them later, prior to releasing funds. If there is a sole supplier or fewer than three (verbal) quotes this should be explained as part of the resources and cost justification. See details of how to include equipment in your application.
Smaller items of equipment, individually under £25,000, and consumables should be in the ‘Directly Incurred – Other Costs’ heading. See more information about EPSRC’s approach to equipment funding.
Guidance for host organisations
This funding opportunity is aimed at investing in established researchers without a background in core AI research, but with a vision for how the use of advanced AI techniques that could enable potentially transformative new avenues in their research and that of their broader community.
The host organisation is expected to provide appropriate support to fellows in order to enable them to build their profile, research activity and career. The host organisation should actively enable flexible fellowship pathways including secondments and collaboration building with cross-sector stakeholders and invest in developing the career and leadership skills of the fellow (including through providing the fellow with a mentor). The research organisation is also expected to encourage and support the fellow in engaging with the wider cohort of pioneer fellows.
Within their host organisation statement, the host organisation is expected to set out the strategic reasons for putting forward the applicant for the Turing AI pioneer interdisciplinary fellowships, and their intended approach to supporting the individual, their team, and their research activity to enable their full potential contribution to the UK to be realised.
The host organisation will play a key role in the retention of outstanding talent. They should demonstrate clear support for the proposed fellow and articulate the fellow’s anticipated role in delivering the organisation’s AI adoption strategy. It is expected that significant tangible support will be offered to the fellow, notably above and beyond that of a standard fellowship, and commensurate with the national strategic need to invest in that individual.
It is expected that career mobility between the fellow’s team and collaborative partners in other disciplines or sectors will be explicitly enabled, including secondments in both directions. Additionally, host organisations will be expected to outline how they plan to facilitate interaction between Turing AI fellows nationally.
The host organisation statement at this stage of this funding opportunity should draw on the discussions between the applicant and head of department. The host organisation and the applicant should engage to co-create a work plan and discuss and outline the support that will be required to enable them to realise the objectives of the AI pioneer fellowships. This should include plans to realise their research vision, develop their leadership, develop AI skills and knowledge, and progress their career during as well as beyond the end of this fellowship. Host organisations should develop a plan to monitor and adapt this plan of support as needed to allow a flexible fellowship pathway.
At the end of this three year investment, it is expected that fellows and their wider teams and partners will be in a sustainable position to continue their research beyond the end date of the award. The host organisation must demonstrate how they will ensure sustainability of the fellow’s research and activity to embed AI approaches into their research domain.
Supporting skills and talent
We encourage you to follow the principles of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers and the Technician Commitment.
Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I)
UKRI is committed in ensuring that effective international collaboration in research and innovation takes place with integrity and within strong ethical frameworks. Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) is a UKRI work programme designed to help protect all those working in our thriving and collaborative international sector by enabling partnerships to be as open as possible, and as secure as necessary. Our TR&I Principles set out UKRI’s expectations of organisations funded by UKRI in relation to due diligence for international collaboration.
As such, applicants for UKRI funding may be asked to demonstrate how their proposed projects will comply with our approach and expectation towards TR&I, identifying potential risks and the relevant controls you will put in place to help proportionately reduce these risks.
See further guidance and information about TR&I, including where applicants can find additional support.
