SBRI: Future Telecommunications Challenge – United Kingdom

Deadline: 23 November 2023

Organisations can apply for a share of £28 million, inclusive of VAT in this SBRI competition for the development and commercialisation of cutting-edge telecommunications technological solutions with a foundational role in communication networks.

This is a Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) competition funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and Innovate UK.

The need to grow UK-based ecosystems and commercial offering for Future Telecommunications (including 6G) has been identified as a critical technology area in the recent science and technology framework. The competition aims to drive advancements in telecommunication technologies that can be integrated into functional prototypes and comprehensive system solutions.

You must focus on close to market solutions, prioritising:

performance
coverage
security
resilience
spectrum efficiency
cost-effective deployment
energy efficiency

You must show how your solutions will:

drive advancements in telecommunication technologies
lay the groundwork for the networks of the future
generate protectable UK based intellectual property

Specific Themes

Your project must focus on one or more of the following challenges:
- Network of Networks
  - Solutions for this challenge can include virtualised and software-based solutions:
    - with innovation and technological advancements in networking, developing a system that integrates terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks
    - enabling the delivery of high-speed connectivity to hard-to-reach areas, including densely populated urban areas, remote rural regions and maritime zones
    - leveraging a combination of network segments, including some combination of segments such as terrestrial and non-terrestrial, indoor and outdoor, Wi-Fi and cellular, or public and private
    - addressing the connectivity gaps and provide reliable, high-data-speed network access to underserved areas
    - delivering additional resilience and service consistency to already-served areas
- Advanced Optical Networks
  - Solutions for this challenge must drive innovation and technological advancements in the field of optical networking. They must focus on achieving step-changes in data rates, latency, and energy efficiency in both local and long-haul networks.
  - To support the demand for faster and more reliable communication networks, project outcomes must push the boundaries of optical networking technologies, including beyond fibre, for future generations of networks.
- Next Generation Wireless
  - Solutions for this challenge must drive innovation and technological advancements in wireless communications, especially transformational access techniques. These include technologies such as:
    - sub-terahertz
    - wireless optical
    - massive Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO)
    - optical and sensing domains
  - This can include virtualised and software-based solutions.
  - Next generation wireless solutions will enable new applications in areas such as agriculture, manufacturing, logistics, crisis management. Application software and platform innovators must demonstrate the standardisation and benchmarking of the applications for the target industry as well as the market potentials to apply to other industries.

Funding Information

A total of up to £28 million, inclusive of VAT, is allocated to this competition.
This competition involves up to 20 contracts being awarded to organisations. Up to £7 million inclusive of VAT will be allocated for each contract.

Projects they will not fund

They will not fund projects that:

are not original or in scope
duplicates someone else’s work
do not demonstrate significant support and engagement from potential future customers, setting out a clear route to market, throughout the project
do not address how any potentially negative outcomes (such as on the environment or society) would be managed
do not evidence the potential for their proposed innovation to generate positive economic or societal impact
would directly duplicate other UK government or EU funded initiatives you have already been funded to deliver
are covered by existing commercial agreements to deliver the proposed solutions

Who can apply?

Projects must:
- start by 1 March 2024
- end by 31 March 2025
- have a duration of between 6 to 13 months
To lead a project, you can:
- be an organisation of any size
- work alone or with others from business, research organisations, research and technology organisations or the third sector as subcontractors.
This competition will not fund any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any Russian or Belarusian entity as lead or subcontractor. This includes any goods or services originating from a Russian or Belarusian source.
You are responsible for entering your project costs and completing your Project impact questions in the application.
Contracts will be awarded to a single legal entity only. However, if you can justify subcontracting components of the work, you can engage specialists or advisers. The project and delivery against the project milestones will still be the responsibility of the main contractor.
All research, development and testing must take place within the UK.