Turing AI Global Fellowships

Opportunity status: Open Funders: Funding type: Fellowship Total fund: £24,500,000 Maximum award: £4,500,000 Publication date: 7 November 2025 Opening date: 18 November 2025 9:00am UK time Closing date: 12 March 2026 4:00pm UK time Last updated: 17 November 2025 - This fellowship funding opportunity is for exceptional Artificial Intelligence (AI) researchers currently based outside of the UK. The fellowship offers funding to relocate to the UK, establish a highly skilled team and undertake transformational AI research. You must have been based outside of the UK for at least 24 months prior to applying and be hosted by a UK research organisation which meets the eligibility criteria set out in the guidance. The total cost to EPSRC for your project can be up to £4.5 million. Further information set out in the guidance. Fellowships can last up to five years, starting by 1 February 2027. UK research organisations intending to support a candidate for this funding opportunity must meet the eligibility requirements detailed in the ‘Who can apply’ section and submit an with supporting evidence by 9 January 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. Who can apply This funding opportunity is open to organisations with standard eligibility. . In addition, to lead a project, you must be hosted and supported by a UK organisation that meets the additional criteria outlined in the Research Organisation eligibility section. Who is eligible to apply Applicant eligibility This prestigious fellowship funding opportunity is looking to support exceptional, world-class AI experts from outside the UK who are either established international leaders in AI or who can demonstrate outstanding potential to shape the future of AI research globally. This fellowship funding opportunity welcomes applications from researchers who conduct research into AI at a fundamental, foundational, or theoretical level, as well as those working at the interface between AI and other disciplines where the application context drives novel model development or theoretical insight. There are no standardised eligibility criteria for this fellowship due to the diversity of career paths in AI. We define established researchers for this funding opportunity as those who have experience of: strategical leadership and management of programme(s) leading and managing team(s) and resources having established, or are in the process of establishing, a clear research specialism having a high or rising international standing in AI who can contribute to the growth and development of the UK’s AI community and economy Residency requirement You must have been based outside of the UK for at least 24 months prior to submitting an application and have the support of an eligible UK research organisation, that will be your host organisation if successful, for the time committed to the fellowship. There is no nationality requirement. You may or may not have UK citizenship. If you require a visa, then your host organisation will advise and support you in securing a once your award is issued. Host organisations are welcome to contact about the documentation required for route 3 (UKRI-endorsed Global Talent visa) applications ahead of submission to the Home Office. In line with standard grant terms and conditions, before you start your fellowship grant, you must have physically relocated to the UK and be considered a UK resident and an academic employee – lecturer or equivalent – of an eligible organisation for this opportunity. This is in line with . We encourage applications from all career paths and sectors including non-academic sectors such as: industry government the third sector Joint positions The fellowship can be held by applicants with a joint position between an eligible organisation and another sector, such as industry, in line with subsidy control and visa requirements. However, the eligible organisation must function as host organisation for the duration of the fellowship and the Turing AI Global Fellowship should be the applicant’s main research focus. You must also spend at least 50% full time equivalent (FTE) commitment on the fellowship. You should ensure that you are aware of and comply with any internal institutional deadlines that may be in place. We recommend you start your application early, liaising with your host organisation who may also be able to provide additional advice and guidance. Research organisation eligibility Fellowships must be held at a UK-based research organisation that meets all of the following criteria: be a UK-based organisation currently registered as both and included on the evidence of a minimum of £25 million of active funding in AI research from either UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funding only or a combination of UKRI and non-UKRI funding. Further detail on what is considered AI research is provided below in the ‘AI Research Funding’ section agreement to meet EPSRC’s expectations that the host organisation will work with their candidates during the application stage to agree a tailored and substantial support package AI research funding Eligible organisations must be able to demonstrate a minimum of £25 million of active funding in AI research from either UKRI funding only or a combination of UKRI and non-UKRI funding. UKRI funding must have been competitively awarded. Infrastructure funding and algorithmic funding to the organisation, such as and , are not eligible. Non-UKRI funding must be in the form of cash awards. In-kind support is not eligible. Eligible sources of non-UKRI funding can include, but is not limited to, other government funders, international funding, charities, direct industry investment, or private investment where it can be directly attributed to an AI-specific activity. You can only include grants which are live at the point of Expression of Interest survey submission, where the research organisation is the lead institution and the funding is for a research or training grant, the majority of which is: developing novel AI methodologies by addressing the fundamental, foundational, theoretical or mathematical challenges in AI or developing novel AI methodologies to address challenges present in, or across, other disciplines or sectors where the work also leads to advances in core AI understanding or capabilities Projects which seek to apply existing AI methodologies to an application area, without contributing new AI techniques or insights, cannot be included. Funding for innovation or impact activities is only eligible if the activities advance the AI state of the art, such as generating new AI techniques, models or theoretical insights. Where the nature of the funding is not clear from project titles you will be given the opportunity to provide a brief narrative justifying the level of core AI research within the programme. Examples of eligible UKRI AI research funding include but are not limited to EPSRC , , UKRI , in scope responsive mode funding, and . Application limits Eligible research organisations are permitted to submit a maximum of two applications to this funding opportunity as lead organisation, that is the organisation submitting the application through the UKRI Funding Service. This reflects the level of investment available and manages the impact on the community. Expression of Interest survey Research organisations intending to support a candidate for this funding opportunity must submit an to provide evidence against the above eligibility criteria. Research organisations must also submit a statement describing the inclusive process you will use to select your chosen candidates. Information provided will not be used in the assessment or outcome of the funding opportunity. The EoI survey must only be submitted by the research organisation and not the applicants. Completed must be submitted by 9 January 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. EPSRC will review each EoI survey and confirm eligibility to support candidates before the end of January 2026. Please note: Applicants and host organisations should not wait for eligibility to be confirmed to start developing fellowship applications and should co-create applications in parallel to the eligibility confirmation process. Full proposals submitted by host organisations that are not deemed eligible to apply will be rejected prior to peer review. Research organisations should have a process in place to ensure that no more than two applications are submitted. However, this funding opportunity is anticipated to be highly competitive and as such research organisations should not feel obliged to fill their quota. Research organisations are encouraged to ensure the applicant(s) they support can demonstrate their ability to meet the expectations detailed within ‘What we are looking for’. Candidate selection Research organisations are expected to actively use an inclusive approach to selecting and maximising the diversity of the candidates they intend to support. UKRI expects that host organisations consider diversity broadly to include discipline, backgrounds, career paths, thought and approach as well as protected characteristics. See . Research organisations must submit a statement in the submission detailing the inclusive selection approach they have taken to select their candidates. The information submitted will be used to increase understanding of inclusive selection processes used by host organisations, inform future UKRI interventions and feed into thinking on Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) in AI. Information provided will not be used in the assessment or outcome of the funding opportunity. As guidance, it is suggested that research organisations consider the following points in designing and describing their inclusive selection process: the processes used to identify potential and final candidates how these processes may enable diversity and inclusion in the selection of potential and final candidates the steps taken to mitigate unconscious bias in the selection process the alignment of the approach taken with the research organisation’s equality diversity and inclusion policies support for and consideration of flexible working including part-time working, career breaks and caring responsibilities the inclusion of candidates with different career paths Who is not eligible to apply Those not eligible to apply are: individuals who are currently, or have been, a resident of the UK in the 24 months prior to submitting an application individuals not supported by an eligible research organisation individuals whose proposed work does not aim to advance the AI state of the art and strengthen the UK’s AI community and economy International researchers As EPSRC is the lead funder for this funding opportunity, international researchers can only apply as ‘project co-lead (international)’ as part of an application making use of the or the . You should include all other international collaborators (or UK partners not based at approved organisations) as project partners. Resubmissions We will not accept uninvited resubmissions of projects that have been submitted to UKRI or any other funder.