Glasgow City Region has launched a £25 million open challenge for transformative local innovation projects that will improve the lives of its residents.

The funding call specifically targets projects within the region’s health and life sciences sectors working on R&D that could deliver real-world benefits, such as accelerating the commercialisation of health research or new product development and prototyping.

Recognising that digital technologies such as AI, data science, and quantum computing are beginning to play a decisive role in health innovations, proposals from businesses in these digitally driven sectors will be welcomed alongside core life sciences initiatives.

Glasgow City Region said its focus on health and life sciences reflects the sector’s enormous future potential, with the eight council areas making up the region accounting for nearly 60% of Scotland’s total turnover in the cluster.

Figures from the Region’s Intelligence Hub reportedly show that local health and life sciences businesses now support over 10,000 jobs, following a 47% increase in employment between 2019 and 2023.

“Health and life sciences are an example of a dynamic sector where Glasgow is at the forefront, one ranked by DSIT as more innovative than comparators in London and the OxCam Cluster,” said Susan Aitken, chair of the Glasgow City Region cabinet and leader of Glasgow City Council.

“Benefitting from an ecosystem with unparalleled access to clinical expertise, the city has become a live testbed for new health technologies and treatments.”

Led by UK Research and Innovation and administered in the City Region, the funding call forms part of the wider UK Government Local Innovation Partnerships Fund (LIPF) that will invest up to £500 million into the development and scaling of high-potential innovation clusters across the UK. 

Along with Manchester and the West Midlands, Glasgow will benefit from a £50 million funding pot from the initiative over five years, first with this £25 million open call for the commercialisation of research, with an additional £20 million set aside for new lab space.

Funding for growing this infrastructure is seen as a crucial part of fostering innovation, with previous studies identifying a lack of lab space in the sector as a key barrier to growth.

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The final £5 million will be used for a complementary skills programme, to be delivered via the Region’s colleges, which will provide career opportunities for residents across the whole Region and meet the growing demand for life and health science professionals.

While applications for this funding call are welcomed from across the sector, they must meet strict eligibility criteria, including private sector match funding of at least 2:1 from non-public sources. 

Applications can be made through the Glasgow City Region Open Call site, and must be submitted by 20th February 2026, with a shortlisting process due to be completed in March 2026.