Freight Innovation Fund Accelerator 2024

Apply by 26 November 2023 to accelerate the adoption of commercially ready solutions into the freight sector.

The Department for Transport (DfT) through Connected Places Catapult has opened applications for the Freight Innovation Fund Accelerator 2024, a multi-faceted programme which will accelerate the adoption of commercially ready solutions into the sector.

The Accelerator will support up to 10 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to trial their solutions in real-world environments to help solve pressing challenges within the freight sector. The SMEs will be selected by DfT and Connected Places Catapult to join a 6-month programme, where each of them can access up to £150,000 of grant funding to trial their solutions.

SMEs have two options when applying to the programme:

Apply to be matched with an industry partner

Connected Places Catapult will work with industry partners, who will provide access to testing environments and internal expertise. They will also play an active role in the SME selection as part of the due diligence process.

The industry partners supporting the accelerator programme are Maritime Transport, Freightliner, Wincanton, FedEx Express, Portsmouth International Port and Port of Tyne.

Apply with your own Industry Partner

Applications are welcomed from SMEs who already have a partner they wish to trial their solutions with and can offer access to testbed facilities.

Find out more about the Freight Innovation Fund Accelerator 2024 and how to apply.

Application Support Webinar

An application support webinar will be held on Wednesday 1 November with  DfT, which will include an overview of the programme, challenges, guidance on the application process and a live Q&A - register for the webinar now.

First published 23 October 2023