SBRI (Small Business Research Initiative)

The Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) is a UK government program operated by Innovate UK that connects innovative businesses and startups with public sector organizations to solve major societal challenges. SBRI provides grant funding of up to £100,000 for proof-of-concept projects and up to £1 million for prototype development, with opportunities to secure public sector contracts. The program has distributed over £470 million to support innovation-driven businesses working on government-sponsored research and development projects.

Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) is another of Innovate UK’s innovation grant programs.

The SBRI programme connects innovative businesses and startups with government institutions to tackle some of society’s big challenges.

Also, to support these projects SBRI typically invests up to £100,000 to test an idea, and up to £1 million to develop a prototype.

Moreover, not only do businesses get funding but they also can win big contracts with public institutions. Indeed, over £470 million worth of contracts have been funded through SBRI since the program’s creation in 2001.

What’s more is that the program primarily benefits SMEs over large companies. Indeed, more than 66% of the funding grants have been funded to SMEs to date.

Is Your Startup Eligible?
SBRI runs multiple innovation grants for different industries. Each has its own eligibility criteria which you can check on their website here.

As of date of writing this article (December 2021), there were 7 different grant applications open across aerospace, mobility, manufacturing, digital security and other industries.

How Much Can You Actually Get?
By participating to one of SBRI’s innovation programs, businesses can receive grants of up to £100,000 to test an idea, and up to £1 million to develop a prototype.