The UK and Singapore are joining forces to fast-track healthcare innovations, offering up to £500,000 for UK-based projects as part of a cross-border funding initiative aimed at turning promising medical technologies into real-world solutions.

 

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Singapore’s National Health Innovation Centre (NHIC) will launch the joint i4i-LeapX funding opportunity on 14 October 2026, targeting later-stage health technologies with the potential to address unmet clinical needs and improve patient care.

 

The initiative will support projects through critical stages of development, including clinical validation, regulatory clearance, health economics and real-world evaluation — helping technologies build the evidence needed for adoption and commercialisation across both healthcare systems.

 

Projects can receive up to £500,000 for their UK component and SGD $750,000 for the Singapore component over 24 months. Joint applications involving collaborators from both countries are mandatory.

 

The partnership comes as both nations grapple with ageing populations, rising chronic diseases and growing demand for healthcare services.

 

The funding will prioritise innovations aligned with national health strategies, including the UK’s 10-Year Health Plan and Singapore’s Healthier SG strategy.

 

For the UK, priority areas include shifting care from hospitals into communities, moving from analogue to digital services, and placing greater emphasis on prevention. Technologies identified as key priorities include data, artificial intelligence, genomics, wearables and robotics.

 

Singapore’s priorities include preventative healthcare, chronic disease management, community-based care, precision health and healthy ageing, supported by digital technologies and advances in AI, wearables, genomics and robotics.

 

Eligible proposals must address an identified unmet clinical need, with projects aligned to the health priorities of both countries specifically sought under the initiative.

 

Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR and Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), said:

 

"In our 20th anniversary year, this partnership with the NHIC underscores the NIHR’s commitment to driving innovations that transform patient care.

 

"The i4i-LeapX cross-border funding opportunity will directly support the UK’s 10-Year Health Plan by leveraging AI, digital and preventative technologies to shift care from hospitals into the community.

 

"This partnership is an excellent example of international collaboration – together, we are fast-tracking groundbreaking healthtech to get proven treatments to patients faster and improve lives in both nations."

 

Associate Professor Henry Ho, Executive Director of NHIC, said the partnership would build on Singapore’s existing healthtech ecosystem and strengthen international collaboration.

 

“Singapore has made great strides in building a strong, vibrant ecosystem for healthtech innovations to incubate and flourish. Our continued investment in developing, diversifying and sustaining innovations is critical to keeping Singapore at the forefront of healthtech innovation. Through partnerships such as the i4i-LeapX funding opportunity, we can bring together expertise and capabilities across borders to deliver better healthcare outcomes globally.”

 

The programme is open to later-stage medical technologies, in vitro diagnostics (IVDs) and digital health technologies originating from either the UK or Singapore.

 

Applicants must bring together partners from both countries, with funding split between the two components. The UK share will be funded by the DHSC through the NIHR, while NHIC will fund the Singapore component.

 

The 24-month programme is designed to help innovators generate the clinical and commercial evidence needed to navigate regulatory requirements, reduce development risks and support market entry.

 

By linking funding to the health priorities of both nations, the initiative aims to strengthen cross-border collaboration and help promising technologies move closer to clinical adoption.