17 July 2026

AIRTO – the Association of Innovation, Research & Technology Organisations – welcomes the publication of UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) new five-year Strategy and Delivery Plan. AIRTO supports the intention to use the Government’s record £38.6 billion R&D investment to strengthen the UK’s research and innovation system, support regional economic growth and improve public services across the UK.

AIRTO has published a statement recognising the important opportunities it creates for innovation, commercialisation and regional growth. We look forward to continuing to work with UKRI and partners across the research and innovation community to help turn this ambition into action, and maximise impact for the UK’s Innovation, Research and Technology sector.

Read AIRTO’s full Statement here…

ABOUT AIRTO

AIRTO is the Association of Innovation, Research and Technology Organisations. Its membership comprises fifty of the principal organisations operating in the UK’s innovation, research and technology (IRT) sector. The IRT sector has a combined turnover of £6.9Bn, employing over 57,000 scientific and technical staff (equivalent to the academic staff of the Russell Group of universities) and, for comparison, it is larger than the network of Fraunhofer Institutes in Germany in size and scope of activities. The sector contributes £34Bn to UK GDP.  AIRTO’s members work at the interface between academia and industry, for both private and public sector clients in the UK and overseas. Members cover a very wide range of industries and technologies. These include agriculture and food, pharma and bio, energy generation and distribution, manufacturing and the built environment. They may be industry specific or have cross-sectorial technology and expertise. Members include Independent Research and Technology Organisations, Catapult Centres, Public Research Establishments, National Laboratories or and privately owned innovation organisations.