Notice

Competition Document: Humans in Systems: Accelerating Interaction Innovation

Updated 21 June 2023

1. Introduction: Accelerating Interaction Innovation

This Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) competition is seeking proposals that enhance innovations in Human Machine Interaction (HMI); and interface technologies and approaches to support teamwork and collaboration. In order to ensure operational capability and task effectiveness is maintained, it is essential the interface between humans and machines is optimised for future capabilities, platforms, and systems.

This competition seeks proposals under three challenge areas

• Challenge Area 1: HMI innovations within the constrained space/environment.
• Challenge Area 2: AI assistive task support, AI enabled decision support tools, and novel interface modalities
• Challenge Area 3: Enhancing Teamwork and Collaboration

This competition is funded by Dstl

2. Competition key information

2.1 Submission deadline

19 July 2023 12 midday (BST)

2.2 Where do I submit my proposal?

Via the DASA Online Submission Service for which you will require an account. Only proposals submitted through the DASA Online Submission Service will be accepted.

2.3 Total funding available

The total possible funding available for Phase 1 of this competition £1,000,000 (excluding VAT).
This call is looking to fund several individual proposals. These will be from across all three Challenge Areas.

The call is interested in funding both small ‘seedling’ project (up to £50 thousand) as well as larger ‘development’ project (up to £150 thousand). The exact number of small and development projects will be determined subject to responses. However it is likely to be in the order of approximately 5 seedling and 5 development projects.

Additional funding for further phases to increase TRL may be available. If there will be a future phase, it will be open to applications from all innovators and not just those that submitted Phase 1 successful bids.

2.4 Supporting events

Dial-in session

24th May 2023 – A dial-in session providing further detail on the problem space and a chance to ask questions in an open forum. If you would like to participate, please register on the Eventbrite page.

3. Competition Scope

3.1 Background: Optimised Future Human-System Interactions

The Future Operating Environment is likely to be highly complex and challenging. Rapid technological change, especially in AI, is reshaping societies, enhancing capability and transforming the character of warfare, for the UK and our allies, as well as our adversaries. As UK Defence, we are committed to adopt Generation After Next technologies in a way that is ambitious, safe and responsible. The roles, tasks and activities undertaken by defence personnel are also likely to evolve and adapt.

Interactions between human and machine can be achieved through a wide variety of interface technologies and interaction approaches, selection of which will depend on the nature of the task and wider context and environment within which it is conducted. The effectiveness of these interactions has a significant impact on task performance, operator workload, error, training demands and a variety of other factors.

3.2 Operational Context

To maintain operational capability and task effectiveness, it is essential the interface between humans and machines is optimised for future capabilities, platforms, and systems. Interfaces must be efficient to interact with, providing assistance and facilitation wherever possible, to ensure humans’ maintain meaningful system relationships, that humans maintain the necessary situation awareness, with speed and agility to deliver task performance at optimal levels.

Dstl wishes to fund innovations in Human Machine Interface (HMI) technologies and interaction approaches to support improvements in human machine interaction and to support computer mediated teamwork and collaboration (across both human-human, and human-machine teams).

3.3 Scope: harnessing HMI innovation across all defence domains

This call is not focused upon one single Defence domain (Maritime, Land, Cyber, Space or Air); rather it is interested in harnessing innovations that could be employed across some or all of these domains. Furthermore this call is not constrained to one particular type of defence role; therefore deployed operational environments, vehicle platform environments, control rooms and Headquarters are all within scope. It is recognised that each domain and role has unique constraints (such as lighting, vibration, available space) which can influence the nature of HMI design and we welcome innovations that address the HMI challenges thereby make a substantive positive impact on task performance.

With regards to this DASA call, the specific project research theme is Exploiting innovations in Human Machine Interaction (this might include new technologies and/or approaches) and technologies to support teamwork and collaboration between distributed teams (Aligning to a key project research outcome). This theme is concerned with accelerating and de-risking (for MOD) the requirement specification and development, of Human Machine Interface technologies for future defence capabilities likely to feature within Next-Generation and Generation After Next platforms, systems and capabilities.

3.4 Definition of Human Machine Interfaces (HMI)

In terms of this DASA call, HMI concerns: either the software or graphical/non graphical user interface, the hardware and physical interface; or in all likelihood both.

3.5 Technology Readiness Level (TRL)

Specifically this call is interested in supporting innovation at two different maturity levels:

• Supporting the development and exploitation of emerging low Technology Readiness Level (TRL) HMI (TRL 2-4)
• Harnessing higher maturity innovation - We also see the value of technologies that may have been developed at higher TRLs in other industries sectors which could be repurposed for a Defence environment where the TRL would be up to TRL6.

4. Competition Challenges

This competition has three challenges. All three are of equal interest, and of equal importance.

4.1 Challenge 1: HMI innovations within the constrained space environment

This challenge seeks to enhance the interaction between people and systems within physically constrained and environmentally challenging environments. This might include: the provision of and interaction with large quantities of information and the control or interaction with un-crewed semi-autonomous or remotely controlled platforms and sensor systems from within another vehicle.

Ideas that might help solve this challenge area may include:

• Foldup displays and rapidly deployable interfaces
• Wearable displays; including Helmet Mounted Augment, Mixed, or Virtual reality (VR) interfaces

4.2 Challenge 2: AI assistive task support, AI enabled decision support tools, and novel interface modalities

This challenge seeks to unlock task performance improvements through the provision of novel interface technologies and interaction approaches and tools to support users in areas such as: control inputs, improving situational awareness, interacting with information, making decisions.

Ideas that might help solve this challenge area may include:

• Contextually aware hardware & software which adapts the display, interface functionality and user interaction to suit the task and environmental situation.
• Multi-model interfaces, especially natural dialogue or gesture based.
• Interaction technologies that support mobile users i.e. not constrained to a fixed workstation

4.3 Challenge 3: Enhancing Teamwork and Collaboration

This areas is focused on tools which may benefit both co-located and distributed teams engaged in collaborative and co-operative working. Often teams operate within constrained systems, architectures, and workstations; where the introduction and implementation of new team aids is prohibitive.

Ideas that might help solve this challenge area may include:

• novel technologies are of interest which can be used to support shared situational awareness, which task collaboration might work alongside and yet independently of core systems.
• collaboration tools within Virtual and Augmented Environments (e.g. exploiting and applying knowledge from the METAverse, and other VR and SE based collaboration environments).

4.4 We are interested in…

We want novel and innovative ideas to benefit end-users working in UK Defence and Security. Your proposal should include evidence of:

• theoretical development, method of advancement or proof of concept research, which can demonstrate potential for translation to practical demonstration in later phases are also welcomed;
• innovation or a creative approach

and

• new knowledge, as well Tools, Techniques (e.g. Rapid User Experience (UX), and methods to support design and development of the above technical areas.

or

• new Technology development, and low TRL HMI Technological innovations (prototype hardware, software, and novel interfaces) that are directly aligned to the above technical areas, and warrant further development. This might include novel hardware that solves a conventional display problem (e.g. Brain Computer Interfaces which free up the visual sense modality).

Proposals should clearly demonstrate how the work or innovation applies to any defence and security context. A demonstration of technologies or ‘Wizard of Oz’^{[footnote 1]} approaches would be welcome to show the potential benefits, but this is not a necessity.

4.5 We are not interested in…

We are not interested in proposals that:

• describe innovations focused specifically on Training.
• are High maturity (defence) technologies naturally more aligned to events such as Army Warfighting Experiment (AWE).
• proposals that are not focussed on the human machine interfaces. General AI based proposals could be relevant to the current Artificial Intelligence IFA competition and Scoping out the Grey Zone: Sub Threshold AI
• constitute consultancy, paper-based studies or literature reviews which just summarise the existing literature without any view of future innovation (which therefore cannot be extended into possible follow on Phases).
• are an unsolicited resubmission of a previous DASA bid.
• offer demonstrations of off-the-shelf products requiring no experimental development (unless applied in a novel way to the challenge).
• offer no real long-term prospect of integration into defence and security capabilities.
• offer no real prospect of out-competing existing technological solutions.

5. Accelerating and exploiting your innovation

It is important that over the lifetime of DASA competitions, ideas are matured and accelerated towards appropriate end-users to enhance capability. How long this takes will depend on the nature and starting point of the innovation.

5.1 A clear route for exploitation

For DASA to consider routes for exploitation, ensure your deliverables are designed with the aim of making it as easy as possible for collaborators/stakeholders to identify the innovative elements of your proposal.

Whilst DASA recognises that early identification and engagement with potential end users during the competition and subsequent phases are essential to implementing an exploitation plan, during the competition phase there should be no correspondence between suppliers and DASA other than via the DASA helpdesk email at accelerator@dstl.gov.uk, or their local Innovation Partner.

All proposals to DASA should articulate the expected development in technology maturity of the potential solution over the lifetime of the contract and how this relates to improved capability against the current known (or presumed) baseline.

5.2 How to outline your exploitation plan

A higher technology maturity is expected in subsequent phases. Include the following information to help the assessors understand your exploitation plans to date:

• the intended defence or security users of your final product and whether you have previously engaged with them, their procurement arm or their research and development arm
• awareness of, and alignment to, any existing end user procurement programmes
• the anticipated benefits (for example, in cost, time, improved capability) that your solution will provide to the user
• whether it is likely to be a standalone product or integrated with other technologies or platforms
• expected additional work required beyond the end of the contract to develop an operationally deployable commercial product (for example, “scaling up” for manufacture, cyber security, integration with existing technologies, environmental operating conditions)
• additional future applications and wider markets for exploitation
• wider collaborations and networks you have already developed or any additional relationships you see as a requirement to support exploitation
• how your product could be tested in a representative environment in later phases
• any specific legal, ethical, commercial or regulatory considerations for exploitation

5.3 Is your exploitation plan long term?

Long term studies may not be able to articulate exploitation in great detail, but it should be clear that there is credible advantage to be gained from the technology development.

Include project specific information which will help exploitation. This competition is being carried out as part of a wider MOD programme and with cognisance of cross-Government initiatives. We may collaborate with organisations outside of the UK Government and this may provide the opportunity to carry out international trials and demonstrations in the future.

6. How to apply

6.1 Submission deadline

19 July 2023 12 midday (BST)

6.2 Where do I submit my proposal?

Via the DASA Online Submission Service for which you will be required to register.

Only proposals submitted through the DASA Online Submission Service will be accepted.

6.3 Total funding available

The total funding available for Phase 1 of this competition is £1,000,000 (excluding VAT).

6.4 How many proposals will DASA fund

• Proposals for ‘seedling’ projects of the order of £50 thousand and 4 months activity are welcome. Approximately 4 projects of this nature will be funded directly from this ‘Humans In Systems‘ themed call.

Also;

• Proposals for ‘deeper’ project of the order of £150 thousand and 9-12 month activity are welcome. Approximately 6 projects of this nature will be funded directly from this ‘Humans In Systems‘ themed call.

Additional funding for further phases to increase TRL may be available. Any further phases will be open to applications from all innovators and not just those that submitted Phase 1 bids.

6.5 For further guidance

Click here for more information on our competition process and how your proposal is assessed.

Queries should be sent to the DASA Help Centre – accelerator@dstl.gov.uk

6.6 What your proposal must include

• the proposal should focus on the Phase 1 requirements but must also include a brief (uncosted) outline of the next stages of work required for commercial exploitation
• when submitting a proposal, you must complete all sections of the online form, including an appropriate level of technical information to allow assessment of the bid and a completed finances section
• completed proposals must comply with the financial rules set for this competition. The upper-limit for this competition is £175 thousand (excluding VAT). Proposals will be rejected if the financial cost exceeds this capped level
• you must include a list of other current or recent government funding you may have received in this area if appropriate, making it clear how this proposal differs from this work
• a project plan with clear milestones and deliverables must be provided. Deliverables must be well defined and designed to provide evidence of progress against the project plan and the end-point for this phase; they must include a final report
• you should also plan for attendance at a kick-off meeting at the start of contract, a mid-project event and an end of project event at the end of contract, as well as regular reviews with the appointed Technical Partner and Project Manager; all meetings will be in the UK. Meetings may also take place virtually.
• your proposal must demonstrate how you will complete all activities/services and provide all deliverables within the competition timescales (12 months). Proposals with any deliverables (including final report) outside the competition timeline will be rejected as non-compliant

6.7 What your resourcing plan should include

Your resourcing plan must identify, where possible, the nationalities of proposed employees that you intend to work on this phase.

If your proposal is recommended for funding

In the event of a proposal being recommended for funding, the DASA reserves the right to undertake due diligence checks including the clearance of proposed employees. Please note that this process will take as long as necessary and could take up to 6 weeks in some cases for non-UK nationals.

You must identify any ethical / legal / regulatory factors within your proposal and how the associated risks will be managed, including break points in the project if approvals are not received.
MODREC approvals can take up to 5 months therefore you should plan your work programme accordingly. If you are unsure if your proposal will need to apply for MODREC approval, then please refer to the MODREC Guidance for Suppliers or contact your Innovation Partner for further guidance.

All proposals submitted that contain animal work will be reviewed by a Dstl veterinary surgeon and will be considered non-compliant without inclusion of appropriate information. For UK locations that are proposing use of animals under ASPA (Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986) as part of work under DASA, the location must demonstrate that they hold a Project Licence that covers the work proposed, and Establishment Licence for the location and Personal Licences for anyone carrying out the regulated procedures. International innovators proposing animal work under AAALAC should provide the equivalent documentation. For locations outside of the UK that do not have AAALAC, proposal assessment will need to include a Dstl veterinary surgeon making custom assessment of the location’s applicable national regulations, any other accreditations held by the location and the local governance systems for the location.

Requirements for access to Government Furnished Assets (GFA), for example, information, equipment, materials and facilities, may be included in your proposal. DASA cannot guarantee that GFA will be available. If you apply for GFA, you should include an alternative plan in case it is not available.
Failure to provide any of the above listed will automatically render your proposal non-compliant.

6.8 Cyber risk assessment

Supplier Assurance Questionnaire (SAQ)

On receipt of a ‘Fund’ decision, successful suppliers must prove cyber resilience data before the contract is awarded. The start of this process is the submission of a Supplier Assurance Questionnaire (SAQ). The SAQ allows suppliers to demonstrate compliance with the specified risk level and the corresponding profile in Def Stan 05-138, and the level of control required will depend on this risk level.

To expedite the contracting time of successful suppliers we ask all suppliers to complete the SAQ before they submit their proposal. The SAQ can be completed here using the DASA Risk Assessment RAR-864729040 and answer questions for risk level “Very Low”.

6.9 Defence Cyber Protection Partnership

The Defence Cyber Protection Partnership (DCPP) will review your SAQ submission and respond with a reference number within 2 working days. The resulting email response from DCPP should be attached (JPG or PNG format) and included within the DASA submission service portal when the proposal is submitted. You will also be asked to enter your SAQ reference number. Please allow enough time to receive the SAQ reference number prior to competition close on 19 July 2023 at 12 midday (BST).
If the proposal is being funded, the SAQ will be evaluated against the CRA for the competition, and it will be put it into one of the following categories:

1. compliant – no further action
2. not compliant – if successful in competition and being funded, the innovator will be required to complete a Cyber Implementation Plan (CIP) before the contract is placed, which will need to be reviewed and agreed with the relevant project manager
   Innovators can enter a proposal without all controls in place, but are expected to have all the cyber protection measures necessary to fulfil the requirements of the contract in place at the time of contract award, or have an agreed CIP.

The CIP provides evidence as to how and when potential innovators will achieve compliance. Provided the measures proposed in the CIP do not pose an unacceptable risk to the MOD, a submission with a CIP will be considered alongside those who can achieve the controls. A final check will be made to ensure cyber resilience before the contract is placed. Commercial staff cannot progress without it. This process does not replace any contract specific security requirements.

Further guidance for completing this process can be requested by emailing the DASA Help Centre:accelerator@dstl.gov.uk.

Additional information about cyber security can be found at: DCPP: Cyber Security Model industry buyer and supplier guide.

6.10 Public facing information

When submitting your proposal, you will be required to include a title and a short abstract. The title and abstract you provide will be used by DASA, and other government departments, to describe your project and its intended outcomes and benefits. They may be included at DASA events in relation to this competition and in documentation such as brochures. The proposal title will be published in the DASA transparency data on GOV.UK, along with your company name, the amount of funding, and the start and end dates of your contract. As this information can be shared, it should not contain information that may compromise Intellectual property.

6.11 How your proposal will be assessed

At Stage 1, all proposals will be checked for compliance with the competition document and may be rejected before full assessment if they do not comply. Only those proposals that demonstrate compliance against the competition scope and DASA mandatory criteria will be taken forward to full assessment.

6.12 Mandatory Criteria

The proposal outlines how it meets the scope of the competition	Within scope (Pass) / Out of scope (Fail)
The proposal fully explains in all three sections of the DASA submission service how it meets the DASA criteria	Pass / Fail
The proposal clearly details a financial plan, a project plan and a resourcing plan to complete the work proposed in Phase 1	Pass / Fail
The proposal identifies the need (or not) for MODREC approval	Pass / Fail
The proposal identifies any GFA required for Phase 1	Pass / Fail
Maximum value of proposal is £175 thousand	Pass / Fail
The proposal demonstrates how all research and development activities / services (including delivery of the final report) will be completed within 12 months from award of contract (or less)	Pass / Fail
The bidder has obtained the authority to provide unqualified acceptance of the terms and conditions of the Contract.	Pass / Fail

Proposals that pass Stage 1 will then be assessed against the standard DASA assessment criteria (Desirability, Feasibility and Viability) by subject matter experts from the MOD (including Dstl), other government departments and the front-line military commands. You will not have the opportunity to view or comment on assessors’ recommendations.

DASA reserves the right to disclose on a confidential basis any information it receives from innovators during the procurement process (including information identified by the innovator as Commercially Sensitive Information in accordance with the provisions of this competition) to any third party engaged by DASA for the specific purpose of evaluating or assisting DASA in the evaluation of the innovator’s proposal. In providing such information the innovator consents to such disclosure. Appropriate confidentiality agreements will be put in place.

Further guidance on how your proposal is assessed is available on the DASA website.

After assessment, proposals will be discussed internally at a Decision Conference where, based on the assessments, budget and wider strategic considerations, a decision will be made on the proposals that are recommended for funding.

Innovators are not permitted to attend the Decision Conference.

Proposals that are unsuccessful will receive brief feedback after the Decision Conference.

6.13 Things you should know about DASA contracts:

DASA terms and conditions

Please read the DASA terms and conditions which contain important information for innovators. For this competition we will be using the Innovation Standard Contract (ISC), links to the contract: TERMS and Schedule . We will require unqualified acceptance of the terms and conditions; if applicable, please ensure your commercial department has provided their acceptance.

Funded projects will be allocated a Project Manager (to run the project) and a Technical Partner (as a technical point of contact). In addition, the DASA team will work with you to support delivery and exploitation including, when appropriate, introductions to end-users and business support to help develop their business.

We will use deliverables from DASA contracts in accordance with our rights detailed in the contract terms and conditions.

For this competition, £1 million is currently available to fund proposals. There may be occasions when additional funding may become available to allow us to revisit proposals deemed suitable for funding. Therefore, DASA reserves the right to keep such proposals in reserve. In the event that additional funding becomes available, DASA may ask whether you would still be prepared to undertake the work outlined in your proposal under the same terms.

7. Phase 1 key dates

Dial-in	24 May 2023
Competition closes	19 July 2023 at 12 Midday (BST)
Feedback release	6 October 2023
Contracting	Aim to start November 2023 and end 12 months later in November 2024

8. Help: Contact the DASA Help Centre

Competition queries including on process, application, commercial, technical and intellectual property aspects should be sent to the DASA Help Centre at accelerator@dstl.gov.uk, quoting the competition title. If you wish receive future updates on this competition, please email the DASA Help Centre.

While all reasonable efforts will be made to answer queries, DASA reserves the right to impose management controls if volumes of queries restrict fair access of information to all potential innovators.

9. Clarifications arising from Humans in Systems Launch Webinar

9.1 DASA Process

Q. What will assessments of proposals look like? Will the assessors be drawn from the pool of potential end-users?

A. Proposals are assessed based on their technical feasibility, desirability and the viability of that project. Assessors will be drawn predominantly from DSTL lab. Click here for further details on the assessment process.

Q. How will assessors represent the different services? Will they be drawn evenly across the different services and defence areas?

A. Assessors come from DSTL so based on availability but the pool covers a wide range of defence and government areas.

Q. Can the same organisation submit 2 different proposals addressing the same challenge?

A. Yes, if they are 2 different ideas. They need to be run independently from each other.

Q. We have applied to previous calls with proposals that fit each of these topics. Can we choose one topic, or should we submit each one separately?

A. You cannot resubmit a previous proposal if it has received a “No Fund” outcome. Similar proposals that are modified and meet the scope of this call can be submitted. It is your choice to decide if a single proposal can cover more than one area or you can submit individual proposals for each separate area. Refer to the answer for question above

Q. Can two companies collaborate to create a joint application?/Can two or more companies collaborate and/ or a consortium be formed to formally apply?

A. Yes. A single lead organisation and contact is needed for the application.

Q. Can an Australian university submit an entry on its own?

A. Absolutely.

Q.Is there a minimum size of business who can apply?

A. There are no limits as to business size for DASA funding.

Q. What response documents do you require for our submissions?

A. There is a link on the competition document to the submission form. The information required for the submission process should be self-explanatory, but you can submit an enquiry form to [DASA] (mailto:accelerator@dstl.gov.uk?subject=%3CHumans%20in%20Systems%20Competition%3E) if anything is unclear on the competition document.

Q. Can the team be composed of research staff only or we must include non-academic partner(s)?

A. Can be any or both.

Q. Are researchers at postdoctoral level eligible to apply for this challenge?

A. Yes

Q. Are academic institutions expected to collaborate with a commercial entity for funding?

A. No. Submissions form academic institutions are allowed

Q. Can organisations from different countries collaborate with a UK university? If yes, who would be the Project Lead?

A. Yes. Any individual organisation/body can be the designated lead.

Q. If we’ve previously engaged with the US DoD on our proposed innovation and received initial validation (but not started work), will that strengthen our chances?

A. Each proposal would be judged on its individual merits. The proposal should include references to previous validation in the viability and feasibility sections. US DoD has no special weight – any 3rd party validation would be relevant.

9.2 Technical Clarifications

Q. For Challenge 2 on AI, does the AI have to be the main part of the project, or can it be part of a solution that includes vital hardware?

A. No, it doesn’t have to be a main part of the project.

Q. Clarification on challenge 2: is it just the interface or interaction technology that is of interest, rather than the underlying software/agent/tool?

A. The competition is focused more on the interface and interaction.

Q. Are you looking for data fusion from multiple sources in different formats to facilitate the task support that is needed for operators and decision makers?

A. Yes - This is covered in Challenge area 2.

Q. For challenge 3 are you interested in software that will help map out key relationships and identify support needed, rather than realise the collaboration?

A. Yes.

Q. Challenge 3: novel tech & tools are highlighted. At low TRL is there interest in e.g. models of human-agent team behaviour that help optimise these in abstract environments?

A. Potentially, yes. The interest for this competition is what this might mean for the HMI; what might be the operational and functional innovation afforded through such modelling.

Q. Do you prefer a focus on one of the Challenge Areas, or are you happy for innovations that try and target all three, 2/3 etc.?/ Is the project proposal expected to address all 3 challenge areas together to get funded or can proposals focus on one challenge area at a time?

A. All 3 challenge areas are of equal interest. It is not necessary to cover all 3 challenge areas in a single proposal.

Q. “We are not interested in proposals that: describe innovations focused specifically on Training”. But it seems the competition has been made to enhance training in DASA?

A. The competition is more focused on the delivery of operational tasks rather than the training environment.

Q. When you talk about people & systems do you mean specifically front-line operators in the field and back-end decision makers interacting with the system?

A. Both, support and capability that can be afforded by people in back office when ops are deployed will be integral part of future defence.

Q. Whilst it was noted that these are cross-domain, would it be helpful to have a specific domain in mind for exploitation?

A. Yes

Q. It is assumed that some sort of power delivery is available from the local system which can be used to facilitate the new HMI system?/ Can we tap into the local user power are you expecting a universal power input of AC/DC?

A. We are not seeking to explore this.

Q. Assuming this competition advances to phase 2, what would the timeline for that look like?

A. At the moment, there are no confirmed phase 2 plans. If it goes ahead (dependant on funding), a call will go out when phase 1 is concluded.

Q. Are you interested in off the shelf hardware systems which use novel software?

A. If the innovation is about novel software being developed, this would be of interest.

Q. Is it required to provide the research and design aspects of the proposal development

A. Yes. Seeing where the innovation has come from adds value and technical viability.

Q. Is it your vision that deployable interfaces required to enable the HMI system comprise of suitable hardware/software with AI & ML built in capability?

A. Not necessarily.

Q. What is the risk appetite for high-risk high-innovation ideas; especially for TRL 2-4?

A. Very high.

9.3 Commercial Clarifications

Q. The ISC liability limit (£5M) presents significant risk (avg. contract value ~ £100k). Will liability be limited to a percentage of contract value in future competitions?

A. The Limit of Contractor’s Liability is commonly set at £5 million to ensure that, during the performance of the contract, a contingent liability is not formed if anything goes awry. We have conducted our own risk assessment for this competition and have agreed internally that the limit of £5 million is sufficient to ensure that no contingent liability shall occur.

Q. What is average/typical duration/timeframe for 1)£50k and 2) £170k grant?

A. 12 months maximum. £50k 4 months. £170k 9-12 months.

Q. For projects at TRL4 that might take slightly longer than 4 months / need slightly more budget than 50k - will you consider projects that slightly go over these limits?

A. Yes.

Q. Is there any industry or business sector that are more favourable for the competition, such as cybersecurity ?

A. There are other competitions more focused on cyber. For this competition, it is in the mix but not overly valued as a domain area.

Q. Can the project be split up to bid on different aspects of the funding call e.g., Concept work bid, Development work bid for different areas of theme funding

A. Yes in principle. Each stage should be fully described in the proposal

Q. Could you comment on how the projects are run regarding stage gates etc.?

A. Proposals should describe individual milestones, and in particular, identify payment deliverables. Payment will only be made after successful delivery of the described milestone

Q. Does TRL6 traction need to include revenue, or other types of development, or public industry recognition?

A. Reference within your submission.

1. Wizard of Oz is a design technique which enables the development of limited functionality prototypes - which can be used for early testing and evaluation - with missing functionality provided through human intervention. (Alan Dix, Janet Finlay, Gregory D. Abowd, Russell Beale (2004). Human Computer Interaction. 3rd Edition. Pearson Education Ltd. Harlow: Essex) ↩