DRIVE35 Innovation Fund – Collaborate & Demonstrate

Overview of the Programme and Its Objectives

The DRIVE35 (Driving Research and Investment in Vehicle Electrification) Innovation Fund is a UK government programme led by the Department for Business and Trade and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK and the Advanced Propulsion Centre. The programme supports late-stage research, development and demonstration projects that strengthen the UK automotive sector’s competitiveness and accelerate the transition to zero emission vehicles.

The fund focuses on projects with strong commercialisation potential that enhance UK manufacturing capability, supply chain resilience and long-term industrial growth.

What the Programme Supports

The combined DRIVE35 call supports two complementary strands:

Collaborate

• Large-scale, late-stage collaborative R&D projects
• Projects targeting post-project commercialisation
• Development and enabling manufacture of strategically important automotive technologies

Demonstrate

• Late-stage demonstration R&D projects
• Development of product or process demonstrators
• Projects showing clear commercial and industrial relevance

Projects must align with at least one DRIVE35 scope theme:

• Zero emission vehicle technologies
• Manufacturing competitiveness
• Future vehicle innovation, including software-defined vehicles and E/E architectures

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Who Can Apply

Eligible applicants must be UK-registered organisations.

Collaborate strand:

• Projects must be collaborative
• Lead applicant must be a UK-registered business
• Consortia must include:
  • A vehicle manufacturer or Tier 1 supplier
  • At least one UK-registered SME claiming grant funding
• Academic institutions cannot lead or apply alone

Demonstrate strand:

• Single applicants or collaborative projects are permitted
• Academic institutions cannot lead or apply alone

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