Collection

Defence and Security Accelerator Themed Competitions

Details of our past themed competitions.

From:
Defence and Security Accelerator and Ministry of Defence
Published
8 December 2016
Last updated
4 November 2025 — See all updates

You can submit a Defence and Security Accelerator proposal either to our Open Call for Innovation or in response to the technical challenges in a specific themed competition.

You can submit your themed competition proposal online once the full detailed competition document is published.

Summary competition documents may be published a few weeks in advance of full competition document releases.

For a list of all open competitions, please see here.

Themed Competitions

Details of all past themed competitions.

Updates to this page

Published 8 December 2016
Last updated 4 November 2025 show all updates

  1. Novel Technology for Intervening in Non-Compressible Haemorrhage now closed and added to collection.

  2. •Added Innovation in Support of Operations - Cycle 6 to past competitions

  3. Now includes Innovation in Support of Operations cycle 5's competition details

  4. Added AUKUS Maritime Innovation Challenge

  5. Competition: Innovation in Support of Operations Phase 2 (Cycle 4) added to the past competitions section.

  6. Added Competition: Innovation in dermal protection against liquid chemicals

  7. Added the competition document for Innovation in Support of Operations Cycles 1, 2 and 3 to past DASA competitions.

  8. Future-proofing biosecurity by strengthening the UK's Microbial Forensic Capability - competition added

  9. PYRAMID Competition added to collection

  10. Added AWE doc to Past Themed

  11. Protecting Physical Assets from UAS Attack Competition added to past competitions list

  12. Added Contemporary Deception competition to past competitions

  13. Competition closed: Delivering operational advantage via improved self-sufficiency

  14. AUKUS EW Challenge added to past competition list

  15. Sample Preservation, Analysis and Attribution added to past themed competitions section.

  16. Small, Lightweight Trace Explosives Detector competition added. Mobile Evidential Drug Testing Instrument (MEDTI) themed competition added.

  17. Rapid Detection of Toxic Gases Competition added

  18. Added competition to the past competition list - Remote Monitoring of Sensitive Sites Phase 2: Security & Resilience

  19. Added the themed competition It's Good for Missiles to Talk (Phase 2) to the past competitions section of Gov.uk

  20. New competition added - Windfarm Mitigation for UK Air Defence Stream 2 Phase 3

  21. Added Engineering Biology for Defence and Security (Phase 2) as it has now closed

  22. Novel Disruptive Science Impacting Future Defence and Security has been added to the list of past competitions.

  23. Reducing Cyber Risk Across Defence has closed, and been added to past themed competitions.

  24. Innovative Research Competition 2023 added to past competitions

  25. Added 2 past competitions, Charlie Drop and Humans in Systems

  26. Affordable and Adaptable Unmanned Air Systems Autonomy has now closed. It has been added to the Past Themed Competitions page.

  27. The Human Augmentation Themed Competition has now closed.

  28. New Competitions added - Intelligent Ship (Phase 3) and Scoping out the Grey Zone: Sub-threshold AI

  29. Populating the World of Training (Phase 1) is now listed

  30. Added Understanding Whole Body Vibration themed competition

  31. Added the closed competition Novel Amphibious Craft to this collection.

  32. Details for themed competition CHERI within Defence and Security, are now listed.

  33. Competition: Disruptive Science and Technology Impacting the Future of Defence

  34. Point of Care Diagnostics at the Front Line Phase 2 has been added to list of past Themed Competitions

  35. Added the Veteran Health Innovation Fund Competition

  36. Added the following Themed Competitions: Engineering Biology for Defence and Security Generation-after-next Wearable Technologies

  37. Themed Competitions - Added Competition: It’s Good for Missiles to Talk

  38. Remote Monitoring of Sensitive Sites competition added

  39. Themed Competitions - Added Advanced Radio Frequency Sensing, Integrated Effects and PNT which closed on April 26th 22

  40. Add Telexistence Phase 2 to the past competitions

  41. Catch the ChemBio SCENT Themed Competition added to Themed Competition collection

  42. Space to Innovate Campaign - Alpha Drop, Look Out! Maritime Early Warning Innovations, Windfarm Mitigation for UK Air Defence Phase 2 and Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle Testbed Competitions added to past competitions collection.

  43. Right on time competition and wireless communications, networking and information theory competition added to the closed themed competitions list

  44. 2 New Competitions added

  45. The Telexistence competition has now closed and been added to the past competitions list.

  46. Added Innovative Research Call 2020 for Explosives and Weapons Detection to past competitions collection.

  47. Update of current competitions

  48. Events have been moved to the DASA events page. Open competitions are now listed in order of closing date on 'Apply for Funding' page

  49. Addition of Competition: developing the Royal Navy's autonomous underwater capability to the Group: Themed competitions (open now for application).

  50. New events added to current list

  51. Updated to include full competition document for tackling knife crime

  52. Addition of knife crime upcoming competition

  53. Maximising Human Performance Market Exploration now open.

  54. Many Drones Make Light Work Phase 3 now open.

  55. Added two new categories, Events and market interest activities (open) and events and market interest activities (closed)

  56. Don't blow it added to themed competitions now open

  57. Stopping it in its tracks competition now open.

  58. Addition of Behavioural Analytics Scoping Workshop document

  59. Submission service reopened.

  60. Submission service has reopened for themed competitions

  61. There has been an update to the submissions service for information.

  62. Submission service status update

  63. Word version of proposal submission form is available so you can draft a proposal now.

  64. Our submission service is temporarily closed due to a technical issue. We are working to resolve this as quickly as possible. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused.

  65. Added Accelerator themed competition: Autonomous last mile resupply

  66. Moved Revolutionise competition to past competitions.

  67. Adding Enduring Challenge competition which is now open for submissions

  68. First published.

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