This programme brings together Innovate UK’s use of grant funding, and investor partners’ aligned finance and expertise.
Its aim is to stimulate research and development in micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, while accelerating equity investment into those companies so that they can grow more rapidly through innovation.
The investor partnerships model is aimed at high potential and growth-focused innovative micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) who:
The model not only allows Innovate UK to directly fund companies who have a R&D project, but also encourages companies to seek equity investment so that they are not just funding their project, but also accessing capital from equity investment to grow their business.
Innovate UK has selected a ‘pool’ of investor partners who have demonstrated that they have the credibility, capability, capacity and appetite to invest in innovative, technology-led businesses in areas that align with our objectives in programme areas.
The investor partners will work with Innovate UK to consider innovative businesses that apply for grant funding alongside their investment. The investor partners include venture capital funds, corporate investors, business angel groups and social impact investors. Innovate UK’s pool of investor partners represents a wide variety of focus, be that sector focus, founding team and business stage. Geographically, the pool of investors draws from UK domestic capital as well as international capital and investment portfolios may be regional, national or international, including the UK.
Investor Partnerships has been providing grant funding alongside aligned equity investment since 2017, initially running as a pilot (2017 to 2022), then as standalone programme (2022 to 2025) and now as part of Innovate UK’s Growth Catalyst (2025), which provides integrated business support to grant awardees in addition to the grant funded element.
View the full list of investor partners.
The three-year programme was launched in 2022 with the scope focused on the ‘Future Economy’ described in Innovate UK’s plan for action. This focuses on the following themes:
Since Spring 2025, investor partnerships is focused on sectors in scope of the UK Industrial Strategy including:
Please check the most recent competition brief to see what is in scope and how much funding is available.
The investor partnership programme tackles the challenges faced by highly innovative UK businesses with strong growth potential in accessing the finance required to grow and scale.
It does this by leveraging Innovate UK’s expertise, connections and grant funding while encouraging commercial investors to provide finance and business acumen to younger businesses operating in underserved markets.
Investor partnerships aim to address the ‘equity investment gap’ by encouraging highly innovative micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to attract investment that is aligned to research and development (R&D) grant support at an early stage, so that they are also better able to attract the necessary level of follow-on investment as they scale and grow.
This alignment aims to deliver impact through economic growth by ensuring that innovative businesses are adequately capitalised and by attracting additional equity investment into risky SMEs from (or led by) selected investor partners.
Investors can apply to become one of Innovate UK’s investor partners through an application process.
Applications can be made through the Innovation Funding Service.
We encourage micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to work with Innovate UK Business Growth before considering applying for a grant or engaging with investors. This will help you to find out if your business is suitable and ready to take on external investment.
The first stage in a grant application is for one of our investor partners to submit an expression of interest, where they will describe your proposed research and development (R&D) project, and set out their possible interest in making an investment.
As a result, SMEs must engage with our investor partners before considering applying for a grant. All our investor partners have produced a public summary that describes their firm, their investment areas of interest and the amounts that they typically invest. These summaries also set out how they wish to be contacted about the programme.
View the full list of investor partners.
Innovate UK Business Connect is also developing an investor engagement programme to help in this process.
Businesses will be able to apply for grant funding in 2025 through Growth Catalyst competitions. Applications in SME funding opportunity rounds can be made through the Innovation Funding Service. Each funding opportunity will describe the areas that are in scope and any areas of particular focus.
Our funding opportunities may fund R&D projects that are classed as feasibility studies, industrial research or experimental development.
For feasibility studies and industrial research projects, the following intervention rates may apply:
For experimental development projects that are nearer to market, the following intervention rates may apply:
In order to receive grant funding for your project you must also receive aligned investment from (or led by) one or more of our selected investor partners.
For feasibility studies and industrial research projects, the aligned investment must be at least the same amount as the grant commitment.
For experimental development projects, the aligned investment must be at least twice the amount of the grant commitment.
Since the pilot launched in 2017, Innovate UK has run investor partnership programmes in the following areas:
Across our investor partnership programmes between 2017 and November 2025:
An interim evaluation of the initial pilot programme, carried out by independent consultants SQW, confirmed that overall, the pilot played a fundamental role in enabling or accelerating early stage, very technical R&D which was deemed too risky or early stage for private investment alone.
The pilot has accelerated access to finance, with a direct impact on projects’ technological progression and on the businesses’ development.
Investor partners are chosen, following an application process, by an expert investor selection panel from Innovate UK and UKRI, with independent sector expertise when required.
Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) may be offered grant funding for their research and development project, following an application and independent assessment process.
SMEs must receive investment from (or led by) one or more investor partners to align with the grant funding offer to start their project.
Last updated: 9 December 2025
