ICURe Explore
ICURe Explore
~£35k for 12–16 weeks of full-time customer discovery; designed for PhD researchers commercialising university research.
Why it fits RAIDT
Explore is the single most valuable UK funding for current-stage RAIDT. Pays the researcher to do 100 customer-discovery interviews and validate commercial routes. Output is a route-to-market decision: spin-out, licence, KTP, or pivot. Discover is prerequisite. Cohort 2 closes 18 June 2026.
Graduates of Explore are eligible for follow-on funding (Exploit/Liftoff up to £300k).
Key parameters
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Amount | ~£35,000 |
| Funding rate | 100% |
| Match funding | None |
| Eligible applicants | UK university researchers; Discover prerequisite |
| Project length | 12–16 weeks, full-time |
| Closing date | 18 June 2026 (cohort 2); cohort 3 closes 4 Sep 2026 |
How to apply
- Complete ICURe Discover first (separate application, near-automatic)
- Visit https://iuk-business-connect.org.uk/opportunities/icure-explore/
- Submit full application via Innovation Funding Service portal
Application content needed
- Technology summary and IP position
- Market hypothesis with named segments
- Customer-discovery plan (100 interviews target)
- Two industry letters of support
- Two academic referees
- Detailed budget (~£35k)
- Risk and ethics review (low risk)
Application skeleton
Ready in 02_ICURe_Explore_Application (root file). Use that as the working draft.
Realistic competitiveness
Multiple cohorts per year reduce per-cohort competition. Strong applications with real commercial intent pass; vague academic-flavoured ones are filtered out. Application quality matters more than novelty.
Action plan if pursuing
Notes
- 100 interviews in 12 weeks = ~8 per week. Plan accordingly.
- Most valuable Explore output is not the £35k — it's the structured customer-validation discipline you build.
- Public deliverable (a market report) at end is a force multiplier for inbound conversations.