ACTASAP Pilot Phase 1
This is a pre-commercial accelerator programme designed to help UK academic researchers transition Advanced Connectivity Technology (ACT) ideas into viable commercial opportunities through value proposition and market validation activities. Funding is strictly limited to academic staff salaries and travel/subsistence for mandatory programme events.
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Competition Scope & Overview
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), will invest up to £800,000 in innovative Advanced Connectivity Technologies (ACT) ideas coming from the UK’s academic research base. This competition is funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and delivered by Innovate UK, UKRI. This is subject to a sufficient number of high quality applications being received. This competition is part of the Advanced Connectivity Technologies (ACT) R&D Programme, announced in the Digital and Technologies Sector Plan under the UK’s Industrial Strategy. DSIT’s ambition is for more technologies developed in the UK to be used in networks around the world. We aim to grow a strong UK ACT ecosystem of UK and international companies that attract private investment. ACT are emerging and advanced technologies that enable the transmission of data by communications networks and network infrastructure in an increasingly digitised economy and society, connecting both people and things. These include technologies that make up advanced wireless systems, such as 5G and the transition to 6G, non-terrestrial networks, and advanced optical networks. The ACT R&D Programme is a key part of delivering this ambition. Delivered through UKRI, it will use a range of interventions to:
support the UK’s world leading academic research base and keep the UK at the forefront of ACT research provide early stage, pre-commercial funding to help move ideas from research towards commercial viability support challenge focused solution development so government funding tackles real world needs, drawing on UK industry expertise and investment to develop ACT products and services support the growth and scale up of industrial solutions by helping UK SMEs attract private capital and expand the UK’s global ACT footprint
This Advanced Connectivity Technologies Academic Startup Accelerator Programme (ACTASAP) competition specifically focuses on early stage, pre-commercial support to help move ideas from research towards commercial viability. The aim of this competition is to identify the most promising commercial opportunities in academia relating to ACT. Your proposal must include the area of your research, the problem that you are looking to solve and your proposed solution.
The ACTASAP is an 11 month programme. This is Phase 1 of a potential 2 phase competition.
Phase 1 will last up to four months, split into two equal stages:
an initial stage, P1a, for value proposition development activities a further stage, P1b, for market validation activities
Project teams invited to the market validation stage will be required to give a presentation to an independent judging panel. The panel will select teams to progress. Phase 1 will determine the value of the idea and, if appropriate, identify the best commercial route to progress. The programme will be supported by industry experts, including some from the advanced connectivity technologies sector.
In applying to this competition, you are entering into a competitive process. This competition has a funding limit, so we may not be able to fund all the proposed projects. It may be the case that your project scores highly but we are still unable to fund it.
Our experience from similar competitions suggests that you could have a 40% chance of success.
We consider a range of factors when determining whether to provide funding to applicants. This includes an assessment of prior conduct, such as any outstanding payments owed to Innovate UK or UKRI. Such factors may influence the funding decision, potentially resulting in a refusal of funding or an award subject to additional scrutiny.
We also reserve the right to adjust funding allocations for any of our competitions. This may be in response to changes in policy, portfolio funding considerations or broader government funding decisions.
This competition closes at 11am UK time on the deadline stated in this Innovate UK competition brief. We cannot guarantee other government or third party sites will always show the correct competition information.
Official Applicant Guidance Documents
Applicant Briefing ACTASAP Pilot Phase 1.pdf
This document provides the official applicant briefing slides for the Innovate UK ACTASAP Pilot Phase 1 competition. It outlines essential details regarding project scope, eligibility criteria, key dates, financial requirements, and the application process for academic institutions seeking commercialisation support.
Download Official DocumentACT ASAP assessor guidance and scoring.pdf
This document is the official assessor guidance for the ACT ASAP Programme Pilot Phase 1. It provides applicants with the specific criteria and scoring rubrics used to evaluate project proposals, ensuring alignment with programme requirements for funding eligibility.
Download Official DocumentApplication Questions & Guidance Brief
Every question below carries specific word limits and guidance criteria.
Project summary
Official Guidance
Describe your project briefly and be clear about what makes it an innovative ACT solution.
Public description
Official Guidance
Describe your project in detail, and in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information. If we award your project funding, we will publish this description. This can happen before you start your project.
Scope
Official Guidance
Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. If your project is not in scope, it will not be sent for assessment. We will tell you the reason why.
Applicant location (not scored)
Official Guidance
You must state the name and full registered address of your organisation and any partners working on your project. We are collecting this information to understand more about the geographical location of all applicants.
Animal testing (not scored)
Official Guidance
Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing? You must select one option: Yes, No. We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare. Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance.
Permits and licences (not scored)
Official Guidance
Will you have the correct permits and licences in place to carry out your project? We are unable to fund projects which do not have the correct permits or licences in place by your project start date. You must select one option: Yes, No, In the process of being applied for, Not applicable.
Export licence (not scored)
Official Guidance
You must indicate whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance. You must select one option: Yes, No.
Trusted Research and Innovation (not scored)
Official Guidance
You must explain if your proposed project work relates to UKRI’s Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) Principles, including: a list of any dual-use (both military and non-military) applications to your research; a list of the areas where your project is relevant to one or more of the 17 areas of the UK National Security and Investment (NSI) Act; whether an export control license is required for this project under the academic export control guidance and the status of any applications; a list of any items or substances on the UK Strategic Export Control List. If your proposed work does not relate to UKRI’s TR&I Principles, your answer must confirm this. We may ask you to provide additional TR&I information at a later date, in line with UKRI TR&I Principles and funding terms and conditions.
Select which ACT challenge your application fits into (not scored)
Official Guidance
You must type in full which challenge area you are applying for: integration of Terrestrial and Non‑Terrestrial Networks (NTN); components or architectures that reduce energy use in connectivity systems; improved used of spectrum; assured Integrated Sensing and Communications (ISAC) systems and integration; advanced Radio Frequency (RF) architectures and components; network enabled sensing, positioning, and timing (PNT); RF interference, spoofing, and jamming resilience; metamaterials and adaptive antenna systems; advanced Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) and physical layer innovation; AI‑native and autonomous network architectures; AI‑enabled RF and circuit design automation. If your challenge area is not listed, explain which area your application fits into.
Costs (not scored)
Official Guidance
What are your costs for the four month programme? How are these costs split between the two stages of this competition? Note the only eligible costs are salary, travel and subsistence. Explain: the total costs for your involvement in this programme; the salary, travel costs within the UK and subsistence costs to specified ACTASAP events required for the programme, that you will incur; how the costs will be split into the value proposition and market validation stages of the programme.
Previous involvement with other accelerator commercialisation programmes, for example CyberASAP (not scored)
Official Guidance
Indicate whether any member of your team has been previously involved in a CyberASAP project with an ACT theme. If so, state who was involved, when, and which project.
Team and resources
Official Guidance
Who is in the project team and what are their roles? You must include: who the project leader is; the roles, skills and experience of all members of the project team that are relevant to the approach you will be taking; the resources, equipment and facilities needed for the project and how you will access them; the person responsible for academic commercialisation who supports this application, such as your Technology Transfer Officer or equivalent role, and include their name and contact details, if possible; any other people directly or indirectly involved or relevant to the research, their roles, skills and experience; if your project is collaborative, the current relationships between project partners and how these will change as a result of the project; any roles you will need to recruit.
Need or challenge
Official Guidance
What is the business need, technological challenge or market opportunity behind your innovation? Explain: the main motivation for the project; the business need, technological challenge or market opportunity; whether you have identified any similar innovation and its current limitations, including those close to market or in development; any work you have already done to respond to this need, for example, if the project focuses on developing an existing capability or building a new one; the wider economic, social, environmental, cultural or political challenges which are influential in creating the opportunity, such as incoming regulations.
Approach and innovation
Official Guidance
What approach will you take and where will the focus of the innovation be? Explain: how you will respond to the need, challenge or opportunity identified; how will you improve on the similar innovation that you have identified; whether the innovation will focus on existing technologies in new areas, the development of new technologies for existing areas or a totally disruptive approach.
Commercialisation
Official Guidance
How do you intend to commercialise your idea? Have you got support from your academic institution’s technology transfer office or equivalent? Describe or explain: what your approach to commercialisation is; what your academic institution’s approach to intellectual property (IP) and commercialisation is. Confirm that you have got support from your academic institution’s technology transfer office or equivalent and that they will engage with the programme including attending the commercialisation webinar.
Market Validation
Official Guidance
What is your plan for market validation? Who do you intend to work with? Explain: your plan for market validation, including objectives, important milestones and how you will measure the success of the market validation; how you will determine whether your target market likes your product or service, or your concept for a product or service; what evidence there is that the market will be willing to buy your product or service; which companies or organisations you plan to approach to ask for support with your market validation; how you will find the right contacts and whether they will give you the necessary access to continue your market validation.