Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition 2026: Up to £60,000 for UK Defence Robotics Research
UK Defence Innovation is offering up to £60,000 for up to three months of early-stage UK research and development that moves novel robotics or autonomous-systems ideas beyond TRL 1 or 2.
Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition 2026: Up to £60,000 for UK Defence Robotics Research
The Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition is a new UK Defence Innovation (UKDI) call for early-stage science and technology that could change how defence robotics and autonomous systems operate on land, at sea, or in the air. It is run on behalf of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) Autonomy Programme Incubator. The competition is aimed at ideas that are still early in development, rather than finished products seeking a routine procurement contract.
Phase 1 can fund up to £60,000 excluding VAT for a project lasting no more than three months. The work must begin below Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3 and show a TRL increase during the project. The competition document describes Phase 1 as feasibility and early development, with an expectation that a project may progress from TRL 1 or 2 toward TRL 2 to 4. Funding is awarded on a 100% basis, so the call does not require match funding.
There is an important timing issue. Stage 1 is an outline-proposal screen with a deadline of 12:00 midday BST on 11 August 2026. At the time this guide was checked, that deadline was still the current Stage 1 deadline. UKDI says applicants should submit at least one hour early because there will be no extension for a late or technically delayed submission. Only applicants invited from Stage 1 can submit the fuller Stage 2 proposal, which is due by 12:00 midday BST on 15 September 2026.
Key details
| Detail | Official information |
|---|---|
| Opportunity | Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition, Phase 1 |
| Administrator | UK Defence Innovation, for Dstl’s Autonomy Programme Incubator |
| What it funds | Early-stage, novel robotics and autonomous-systems science and technology |
| Phase 1 value | Up to £60,000 per proposal, excluding VAT |
| Funding rate | 100% of eligible Phase 1 funding; no match funding requirement |
| Project length | Up to three months |
| Technology starting point | Below TRL 3, normally TRL 1 or 2 |
| Stage 1 deadline | 12:00 midday BST, 11 August 2026 |
| Stage 2 deadline | 12:00 midday BST, 15 September 2026, by invitation only |
| Intended start | November 2026 |
| Delivery location | All research work must be undertaken in the United Kingdom |
| Phase 2 possibility | Up to £200,000 over 12 months; dates to be confirmed |
| Application route | UKDI Online Submission Service |
| Official contact | [email protected], quoting the competition title |
The Stage 1 deadline is unusually close. If you are reading this after the deadline, the Stage 1 route should be treated as closed unless UKDI publishes a correction or extension. The Stage 2 date is not an alternative entry route: it is only for applicants selected after the Stage 1 screen.
What the competition is designed to support
UKDI is looking for novel ideas that could improve future Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) capability for defence. The scope is broad, but the idea must be more than an incremental improvement or an existing product given a new label. The official examples include physical robotics such as propulsion, power storage, sensors, communications, actuators, effectors, structural components, and new overall design approaches.
The scope also includes the way autonomous systems handle information. Examples include navigation, combining information from different sources, functioning when sensors disagree, recognising objects in difficult conditions, and improving range or efficiency. Other possible areas include high-level autonomous behaviour, system intelligence, human-machine interaction, coordination among multiple systems, and swarming.
Survivability is another relevant direction. An idea might improve ruggedness, resilience to attack, stealth, or graceful degradation when a component or information source fails. These examples are guidance rather than a closed list. The test is whether the proposal presents a genuinely novel technology or concept with a plausible route to improved future defence RAS capability.
The call is not suitable for a standalone software architecture, process design, standard, or code improvement that is not connected to another novel development. It is also not intended for a rebadged existing product, an incremental enhancement, or an idea that cannot be applied to defence robotics and autonomous systems. The competition document separately directs applicants to the UK Government’s position on lethal autonomous weapon systems for questions involving lethal or strike effectors.
Who can apply and where the work must happen
The competition is open to academia, sole traders, small and medium-sized enterprises, and larger organisations. A bid may come from one organisation or from a consortium. UKDI asks for one submitting entity that will raise invoices for the work. That lead organisation is responsible for arranging payment to consortium members or subcontractors.
The central location rule is strict: the actual research work must be undertaken in the United Kingdom. Overseas components and consumables may be purchased. Overseas people may advise on work that is carried out in the UK, but the competition document says payment to an overseas consultant would not be permitted. This means an international collaboration may be possible in a limited supporting role, but it should not be presented as an overseas delivery project.
People involved in the work will need to be security checked, although applicants do not need a specific security clearance simply to apply. The team details are requested at Stage 2. Organisations should therefore identify the people who would carry out the work and check that their availability, right location, and ability to complete the checks are realistic before submitting an outline.
How the two-stage application works
Stage 1 is an initial innovation screen. The outline should explain the technology or capability, the novelty of the approach, its potential relevance and value to defence, and an outline of the technical plan. The purpose is to let UKDI and Dstl identify promising ideas without requiring every applicant to prepare the full financial and technical package at the outset.
All Stage 1 and Stage 2 proposals must be submitted through the UKDI Online Submission Service. Applicants who do not already have an account should allow time to register and navigate the service. UKDI says only proposals submitted through that service will be accepted. A Stage 1 outline is not the same thing as an Innovation Outline: the latter is an optional route for discussing an idea with a regional UKDI Innovation Partner.
UKDI plans to release Stage 1 decisions on 18 August 2026. An invited applicant can then prepare the detailed Stage 2 submission by 15 September. The full proposal must include a detailed description of the Phase 1 work, a structured work plan with milestones and deliverables, a detailed financial breakdown, and the expected technical outcomes and TRL progression.
The competition document also requires a written final report of 15 to 20 pages and an in-person presentation with slides to a Ministry of Defence board. Travel and subsistence for that presentation should be included in the Stage 2 bid. The intended contract start month is November 2026, and the project itself must be no longer than three months.
What costs and project plans need to show
Stage 1 does not require the full detailed costs. If invited to Stage 2, however, the applicant must break the proposal into labour, capital, materials and consumables, overheads, travel and subsistence, and subcontracting. The maximum proposal value is £60,000 excluding VAT, and UKDI states that funding is awarded on a 100% basis with no match requirement.
The short project length makes credible sequencing especially important. A good plan should show what the team will establish first, what experiment or demonstration will test the key uncertainty, what evidence will indicate a TRL increase, and how the work will culminate in the report and MOD presentation. The plan should not rely on a future, unfunded phase to deliver the main Phase 1 result.
Several costs are explicitly excluded, including bid-preparation costs, patent costs, publication and conference costs unrelated to the competition, and work unrelated to the competition’s needs. The call uses the UKDI Innovation Standard Contract. Payment is expected after completion, in accordance with the terms, within 30 days of a valid and undisputed invoice. Applicants should make sure they can finance delivery until that payment point.
How reviewers are likely to distinguish a strong idea
Stage 1 is reviewed by the Dstl competition team for alignment with the call, the chance of successful delivery, and the extent to which the idea meets a defence customer need. That means a technically interesting invention is not enough on its own. The outline should connect the novelty to a specific RAS problem and explain why the proposed approach could matter in a land, maritime, air, or cross-domain setting.
For Stage 2, proposals are assessed against UKDI’s standard Desirability, Feasibility, and Viability criteria by subject-matter experts from MOD, Dstl, other government partners, and front-line military commands. The pre-sift also checks that the bid is within scope, includes financial, project, and resourcing plans, contains the required report and presentation, starts below TRL 3, and shows a TRL increase.
Evidence should be proportionate to an early-stage project. A useful outline can state the technical assumption that is not yet proven, the test that will challenge it, the measurable result that would count as progress, and the defence consequence if the result is positive. Claims about autonomy, reliability, resilience, or range should be tied to a mechanism and a proposed evaluation method. Avoid presenting a speculative end-state as if it were already demonstrated.
The proposal should also show that the team understands its limits. If the concept needs an approval, ethical review, specialist facility, or unusual supply-chain dependency, identify the issue and explain how it will be managed. UKDI’s pre-sift says the proposal must confirm that there is no need for MODREC and no need for Government Furnished X, so applicants should examine those requirements rather than leave them implicit.
Intellectual property, confidentiality, and cyber preparation
The competition uses DEFCON 705 for intellectual property. The official clarification says IP generated by the contractor is vested in that organisation, while MOD receives rights to use the information in confidence for government purposes described in the contract. Applicants should read the contract terms before submission and obtain internal commercial approval where required.
Stage 1 information is retained confidentially within UKDI for 12 months and then destroyed. Stage 2 is also handled confidentially for assessment, but the title, Proposal Value Proposition Statement, and short abstract may be used by UKDI and Partners Across Government to describe the project. Those public-facing fields must not include information that would compromise intellectual property.
Successful innovators and subcontractors must demonstrate cyber resilience before a contract is awarded. The competition uses risk reference RAR-SLWSHVL, Level 1. UKDI encourages applicants to complete the Supplier Assurance Questionnaire early, although doing so before submitting is not stated as mandatory. The questionnaire requires a D-U-N-S number and a GOV.UK One Login. Sorting out those organisational details in advance can prevent a fundable technical bid from stalling at contracting.
A practical preparation checklist
Before submitting, an applicant should be able to answer five questions in plain language:
- What is genuinely new about the technology or system concept?
- Which future defence RAS capability could it improve?
- Why is the idea currently below TRL 3, and what specific evidence will demonstrate progress?
- Can the proposed team complete the work in the UK within three months?
- Can the project produce the required written report and in-person MOD presentation within the funding and schedule limits?
For an urgent Stage 1 submission, keep the outline focused on fit, novelty, technical risk, and a credible route to learning. Do not use the optional Innovation Outline as a substitute for the actual Stage 1 submission. For a future Stage 2 invitation, build the detailed work breakdown and costs around milestones rather than around a list of equipment. Include travel for the final presentation, separate eligible project work from excluded patent or bid costs, and ensure the lead organisation is prepared to invoice and manage any consortium.
Common mistakes to avoid
The most serious mistake is missing the time-zone deadline. The closing time is 12:00 midday BST, not midnight, and UKDI says no extensions will be made. Submit early and retain the service confirmation.
Another mistake is applying with a mature commercial product or an incremental feature. The call is aimed at novel, low-TRL ideas. A proposal should explain the unresolved technical question rather than pretend that the concept is already production-ready.
Applicants can also lose fit by describing a general AI, software, or data project without showing the novel robotics or autonomous-systems development around it. Defence relevance must be more specific than a general claim that the technology might be useful to government. Finally, do not assume that a large organisation is preferred: UKDI says ideas from primes, SMEs, and academia are considered against the competition requirements, irrespective of organisation type.
Frequently asked questions
Can a university apply?
Yes. The official clarification lists academia among the eligible organisation types. A university may apply alone or as part of a consortium, subject to the UK delivery and invoicing arrangements.
Is match funding required?
No. Phase 1 funding is awarded on a 100% basis, and the competition document says there is no match funding requirement.
Can an overseas company lead the work?
The call allows overseas components and advisory input in limited circumstances, but all research work must be undertaken in the UK and payment to an overseas consultant is not permitted. The safest structure is a UK lead entity with UK-based delivery.
Can I apply directly to Stage 2?
No. Stage 2 is by invitation only after the Stage 1 outline-proposal review.
Is Phase 2 guaranteed?
No. UKDI describes a possible Phase 2 of up to £200,000 over 12 months, with dates to be confirmed. Phase 1 should stand on its own and should not assume that Phase 2 funding will be awarded.
Where can I ask questions?
Competition questions, including technical, commercial, process, and intellectual-property questions, should be sent to [email protected], quoting “Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition.” UKDI also recommends contacting a regional Innovation Partner through its service.
Official links and next steps
Read the full Novel Autonomy and Robotics Competition Document on GOV.UK before deciding whether the idea fits. The same document contains the competition scope, pre-sift rules, assessment criteria, contract information, IP clarification, and contact details.
If the Stage 1 deadline has not passed, register or sign in to the UKDI Online Submission Service and submit the outline before 12:00 midday BST on 11 August 2026. If the deadline has passed, do not treat the 15 September date as an open application: that date is reserved for Stage 2 invitations. Monitor UKDI and Dstl announcements for any later competition or a confirmed Phase 2 route.