Notice Information
Notice Title
ARIA Opportunity Seeds: Programmable Plants
Notice Description
Breakthroughs require finding people who think differently about what's possible - and empowering them to follow their vision. To support scientific and technological breakthroughs, outside of programmes, ARIA Programme Directors can award opportunity seeds to support ambitious research aligned to the opportunity spaces they've identified. To understand how opportunity seeds work within our model, see how we're working here (https://aria.org.uk/how-we-fund).
Lot Information
Lot 1
Programme Director Angie Burnett's opportunity space, 'Programmable Plants', (https://www.aria.org.uk/opportunity-spaces/programmable-plants) asks "how can we programme a plant to do anything we want it to do?". We're looking to fund high potential proposals with up to PS500k each. We're looking for bold ideas that could challenge assumptions, open up new research paths, or provide steps towards new capabilities. If you have an important idea you're obsessed with, but you don't currently have the resources or support to take it forward, we'd like to hear from you. Ideas could come from anywhere, so we welcome applications from individuals and teams who are early in their career or who have atypical backgrounds. We care more about your idea and your intrinsic motivation than we do about your CV. To help you decide if this is the right funding call for you, below is some guidance on the scope. In scope: Ideas that sit within the ''Programmable Plants' (https://www.aria.org.uk/opportunity-spaces/programmable-plants) opportunity space. By this, we mean your proposal should show how your idea either aligns with or challenges the assumptions of the Summary, Beliefs, or Observations in the opportunity space document (https://www.aria.org.uk/media/uqrjp3wp/aria-programmable-plants.pdf). Both land plants and aquatic plants (including green algae) are in scope. Microorganisms influencing plants are in scope, provided that they are being used to alter an aspect of a plant's form or function The opportunity space document outlines examples of ideas that we are interested in, but there are many more possibilities not mentioned in the document that we would be excited to fund. Ideas that could change the conversation about what is possible or valuable. Ideas that range from early stage curiosity-driven research through to pre-commercial science and technology. Out of scope: Ideas that target Angie Burnett's goal of Synthetic Plants (https://www.aria.org.uk/opportunity-spaces/programmable-plants/synthetic-plants/), as described in her programme thesis (https://www.aria.org.uk/media/teli101l/aria-synthetic-plants-for-a-sustainable-future.pdf) and programme funding call (https://www.aria.org.uk/media/fq1fybgx/aria-synthetic-plants-call-for-proposals.pdf) (applications for the programme funding call have now closed). Cyanobacteria. Ideas that are undifferentiated or that are likely to happen without ARIA support. Commercial or close-to-commercial stage products. Beyond this scope and our evaluation criteria outlined in the opportunity seed call for proposals document on ARIA's website here, we don't have preconceptions about what ideas you might send our way. You don't need to contort your project to fit our goals: we want to hear what you really want to do.
Options: The estimated total funding value is the maximum budget available. We expect to fund multiple applicants. Funding is anticipated to be award via both contracts and grants. Additional funding, scope and duration could be added to any contracts awarded.
Notice Details
Publication & Lifecycle
- Open Contracting ID
- ocds-h6vhtk-04d556
- Publication Source
- Find A Tender Service
- Latest Notice
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/002159-2025
- Current Stage
- Tender
- All Stages
- Tender
Procurement Classification
- Notice Type
- Tender Notice
- Procurement Type
- Standard
- Procurement Category
- Services
- Procurement Method
- Selective
- Procurement Method Details
- Competitive procedure with negotiation
- Tender Suitability
- Not specified
- Awardee Scale
- Not specified
Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)
- CPV Divisions
73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services
-
- CPV Codes
73110000 - Research services
Notice Value(s)
- Tender Value
- Not specified
- Lots Value
- Not specified
- Awards Value
- Not specified
- Contracts Value
- Not specified
Notice Dates
- Publication Date
- 22 Jan 20251 years ago
- Submission Deadline
- 9 Apr 2025Expired
- Future Notice Date
- Not specified
- Award Date
- Not specified
- Contract Period
- Not specified - Not specified
- Recurrence
- Not specified
Notice Status
- Tender Status
- Active
- Lots Status
- Active
- Awards Status
- Not Specified
- Contracts Status
- Not Specified
Buyer & Supplier
Contracting Authority (Buyer)
- Main Buyer
- ADVANCED RESEARCH AND INVENTION AGENCY
- Contact Name
- Not specified
- Contact Email
- clarifications@aria.org.uk
- Contact Phone
- Not specified
Buyer Location
- Locality
- LONDON
- Postcode
- NW1 2DA
- Post Town
- North West London
- Country
- England
-
- Major Region (ITL 1)
- TLI London
- Basic Region (ITL 2)
- TLI3 Inner London - West
- Small Region (ITL 3)
- TLI36 Camden
- Delivery Location
- Not specified
-
- Local Authority
- Camden
- Electoral Ward
- Regent's Park
- Westminster Constituency
- Holborn and St Pancras
Further Information
Notice URLs
Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)
View full OCDS Record for this contracting process
The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.
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