Deadline Date: February 16, 2026
The Deeptech Enterprise Fellowships programme equips university researchers and recent graduates with the skills, confidence, and expertise to become successful technology entrepreneurs.
The programme focuses on leadership and operations, business modelling, value proposition and strategy, marketing, sales and customers, finance and funding sources, and network building with peers, investors, and industry leaders. Participants receive tailored training, coaching, and mentoring, alongside funding to develop their startups or spinouts.
The Enterprise Fellowships provide a grant of up to £75,000 for 12 months, allowing participants to focus entirely on their business. Fellows take part in 15 days of structured training over six months, totaling approximately 105 hours of interactive workshops designed to challenge founders at all levels of business acumen. Each Fellow is paired with a business coach for six months and receives mentoring from leading technology entrepreneurs over a 12-month period. Graduates of the programme join the Enterprise Hub, gaining lifetime access to the network of entrepreneurs, corporates, experts, and investors. The programme is open to UK-based university researchers wishing to spin out from their institutions and recent graduates aiming to develop a startup. Eligible participants must have a protectable engineering or technology innovation, ambition to lead the business as CEO or COO, and a technology validated in a lab or relevant environment.
Eligibility for the Deeptech Enterprise Fellowships is limited to researchers working at a UK or Irish university or Public Sector Research Establishment (PSRE) who hold a PhD or equivalent experience, at any level of seniority from PhD students to professors. PhD students must have completed their viva before the start of the Fellowship, otherwise the offer will be withdrawn. Applicants must be part of a university or PSRE that intends to form a spinout in which they will serve as CEO or COO, at least in the immediate future, as this programme is designed for those who have already decided to pursue spinout commercialisation rather than simply exploring the option. While participation in the programme does not legally oblige a researcher to spin out, this must be the applicant’s clear aim. Additionally, the host university or PSRE should not retain an equity stake exceeding 50% unless they can demonstrate additional private investment in the spinout beyond standard grant funding or typical technology transfer office support.
For more information, visit Royal Academy of Engineering.
