Deadline: October 31, 2025
High Speed 2 Limited (HS2), supported by Connected Places Catapult and in partnership with the Department for Transport, has launched its eighth accelerator programme to identify and support innovative small businesses developing technology business cases and funded pilot projects for the rail scheme.
The focus of HS2 Accelerator 8.0 is on Data and AI themed challenges, specifically Data led safety management, Smarter cost verification, and Unlocking value from site & asset data. Data led safety management aims to harness data, AI, and predictive analytics to anticipate reportable incidents on HS2 by identifying patterns, precursors, and risk factors; unlock predictive safety intelligence with historical data, near-miss reports, conditions, and behaviours; identify leading indicators to catch early warning signs before harm occurs; enhance situational awareness through real-time site, sensor, and digital data; support targeted interventions with timely deployment of resources, training, and controls; and drive cultural change by embedding predictive insights into daily decision-making. Smarter cost verification focuses on enabling faster decision-making by finding contextual insights from previously inaccessible documents, reducing the number of false positives commercial managers must review, extracting meaningful data from different formats using AI and OCR, and seamlessly moving into Microsoft Fabric for scalable insights. Unlocking value from site & asset data seeks to capture and integrate real-time site data, validate progress by comparing planned vs. actual delivery, track workforce and equipment productivity, link site activity to costs for financial alignment, automate assurance with design-validation, align contractor delivery plans with schedules, and use AI/ML to detect anomalies and boost reporting confidence.
Since its launch in 2020, the HS2 Accelerator has supported 37 small tech firms, delivering 33 pilot projects that achieved more than £50 million in cost savings across the HS2 baseline. Alumni firms have secured over £240 million in funding and investment, expanded their workforce by over 580 jobs, and continue to work across the HS2 supply chain.
The accelerator will follow a multi-phased structure this year. In Phase One, 36 applicants will engage in rapid proposal development supported by Exploration Day and virtual interviews. In Phase Two, up to 12 finalists will each secure £5,000 to create small-scale demonstrators using real HS2 data. Phase Three will support up to 6 winners for 12 weeks, each receiving up to £50,000 in funding along with bespoke mentoring, investor readiness support, business development opportunities, and end-of-programme showcasing.
Eligible applicants must be SMEs based in the UK or Europe, with data, software, or digital-focused businesses that are revenue-generating or have a late-stage MVP. They must demonstrate experience in handling complex datasets and have a 12-month financial runway or a credible plan for sustaining operations.
The deadline for applications is Friday, 31 October 2025, at 11:59 pm.
For more information, visit Connected Places Catapult.
