The aim of this competition is to develop digital therapeutic extended reality (XR) solutions to provide mental healthcare services. These solutions will optimally be applied and trialled following an R&D cycle of between 12 to 18 months. Solutions must have the potential to be adopted at scale to form part of the UK’s formal mental healthcare ecosystem.
Your project must undertake industrial research and development in the application of extended reality (XR), to provide mental healthcare therapeutic solutions. Your proposal must include the design and features of your solution and how it will be applied.
To lead a project or work alone, your organisation must be a UK registered business of any size.
Your project must:
- have total eligible costs between £200,000 and £300,000 (up to 70% of costs can be covered)
- last between 12 to 18 months
- carry out all of its project work in the UK
- intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
- start by 1 July 2025
- end by 31 December 2026
Your project must focus on the following:
The application of extended reality
A digital therapeutic for mental health through the application of Extended Reality (XR) which includes creative technologies, virtual reality, networked or augmented reality, mixed reality, haptics, holograms, immersive software and immersive audio.
Solutions for moderate and severe mental health conditions
Solutions for those living with moderate (where the condition makes daily life difficult) and severe (where conditions make daily life extremely difficult) mental health illness. Specifically, XR therapeutic solutions that positively improve the impairment, disability and distress experienced by those living with mental health difficulties at any point in their life course. Solutions are strongly encouraged, in particular, where the mental health difficulties have an impact on education, employment and daily life.
Solutions that can be applied at all clinical levels
Solutions for use at any point in the care pathway, at all clinical levels, which have the ambition to seek regulatory approval, adoption and scale, as and where appropriate.
Innovate UK Business Connect will be holding two supporting online events: a briefing on Tuesday 29 October at 10am and a collaboration building event on Tuesday 12 November at 10am. The deadline for applications is 15 January 2025.