Innovate UK Director for Innovation Ecosystem
David has been with Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, since 2014.
As Director for Innovation Ecosystem, he is responsible for four key areas of Innovate UK impact. He is the programme director for the £1.6 billion core investment in Catapults and UK Agri-Tech Centre, and his team leads for Innovate UK on:
- innovation talent and skills
- start-up and spin-out programmes
- applicant-led grant funding programmes, such as Smart and Knowledge Transfer Partnerships
He is also a non-executive director of Innovate UK Business Connect. In previous roles, he was responsible for Innovate UK’s strategy on local engagement and public sector innovation.
Before joining Innovate UK, David had 20 years’ experience in defence research and development (R&D). He set the strategy for the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) materials research programme, and was Technical Director for the MOD’s Research Acquisition Organisation. During that time, he led development of the Defence Technology Strategy, established the MOD’s first small business innovation programme, and represented the UK in several large multinational defence R&D collaborations.
From 2011 to 2014, he was seconded to the US Department of Defense. There he worked in the Pentagon on strategy and coordination across $25 billion R&D programmes in the US Services, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and on 5-Eyes defence R&D collaboration.
Find out more about David Wilkes on LinkedIn.
Last updated: 21 May 2025