Contracts for Innovation: industrial human relevant drug models
Innovate UK · United Kingdom
This competition supports organisations to develop innovative, human-relevant drug testing models to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and ethical standards of drug discovery and development.
Summary
Deadline
1 May 2026
Complexity
Medium
Time to apply
20-60 hours
Updated
9 Jun 2026
This competition supports organisations to develop innovative, human-relevant drug testing models to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and ethical standards of drug discovery and development.
Eligibility
Applicant types
Business, Research, Public Sector
Business size
SME, Large
Industries
Life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, biomedical research
Match funding
Needs verification
Requirements
UK-registered organisations including businesses, research organisations, and public sector bodies Single legal entity; UK or international organisation may lead per CfI competition terms. Development of human-relevant drug testing models, including alternatives to animal testing and advanced in vitro or in silico systems
Eligible applicants
UK-registered organisations including businesses, research organisations, and public sector bodies
Funding and scope
Benefit amount
£2,000,000
Total fund available
£2,000,000
Funding intensity
Not specified
Payment type
Reimbursement (in arrears)
Eligible scope
Development of human-relevant drug testing models, including alternatives to animal testing and advanced in vitro or in silico systems
Eligible expenses
- Project delivery costs including staff, materials, and operational costs required for developing proposed solutions
Ineligible costs
- Costs outside CfI industrial human relevant drug models scope.
Application and risks
Application platform
Innovation Funding Service (IFS)
Competitiveness
Closed / Not accepting applications
Decision timeline
Not specified
Assessment process
Applications assessed by independent experts with funding awarded based on scoring and available budget
Application sections
Not specified
Application components
- Online application including project proposal, costs, and organisational details
Required documents
Not specified
Appendices
Not specified
Assessment criteria
- Innovation potential, feasibility, value for money, and alignment with competition objectives
Timeline and partners
Opening date
2 Mar 2026
Project duration
Not specified
Project start
Not specified
Project end
Not specified
Co-funders
Not specified
Collaboration rules
- Not explicitly specified
Consortium requirements
- Contracts awarded to single legal entity; subcontractors as permitted in IFS guidance.
Additional guidance
[{"label":"Key Organisational Requirements","value":"Applicants must be UK-registered and capable of delivering innovation projects aligned with competition scope"},{"label":"Funding Structure","value":"100% funded contracts for innovation projects (no match funding required)"},{"label":"important notes","value":"Delivered as a procurement-style contract; projects are fully funded; strong focus on ethical and scientific advancement in drug testing"}]
Quick facts
- Status
- Closed
- Deadline
- 1 May 2026
- Funding amount
- £2,000,000
- Funding band
- Small (£50k-£500k)
- Funding type
- Grant
- Payment type
- Reimbursement (in arrears)
- Audience
- Business, Research Innovation, Public Sector, Mixed
- Industry
- Life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, biomedical research
- Last updated
- 9 Jun 2026
- Published
- 2 Mar 2026