Alan Turing Institute

The Alan Turing Institute, established in 2015 as the UK's national institute for data science and artificial intelligence, is a not-for-profit charity founded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and leading universities including Cambridge, Edinburgh, Oxford, UCL, and Warwick. Named after computing pioneer Alan Turing and based at the British Library in London, it drives world-class multidisciplinary research to tackle national and global challenges in trustworthy AI, climate security, biomedical innovation, defence, national security, financial services, public policy, and societal wellbeing. Guided by values of excellence, collaboration, public benefit, and integrity, it positions the UK as a global leader through initiatives like the AI for Science and Government programme, AI UK forum, and partnerships with entities such as the Gates Foundation, GCHQ, and Roche.

It funds academic-led research consortia, pilot studies, fellowships, PhD enrichments, knowledge exchange, skills development, and public engagement in data science and AI, supporting blue-skies theory to applied projects with real-world impact for academia, government, industry, and civil society. Beneficiaries include UK universities and research organisations; it does not directly fund voluntary sector charities unless as collaborators.

Eligible applicants are UK-based academic institutions or registered PhD students affiliated with them; smaller groups must partner with eligible hosts, with no strict income thresholds but preference for research-active bodies. Applications are via the Flexi-Grant portal for competitive, time-limited calls only—no unsolicited proposals, core costs, capital, or unrestricted funding. Typical grants range £40,000–£70,000 for projects (e.g., Knowledge Graphs call), with PhD awards at £1,000 and major fellowships up to £4.5 million; next deadline is 10 March 2025 (PhD Enrichment, 12:00 GMT), decisions in 2–3 months. Distinctively, it leverages government backing for high-risk, high-impact interdisciplinary work aligned to UK strategic priorities like defence, fostering ethical AI advancement beyond individual institutions' capacity.