Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MOD) launched an innovation initiative that will establish a new defense and security accelerator. The accelerator will be an innovation hub that will accelerate ideas from conception through to application.

It will help government defense and security departments collaborate with the private sector, academia and important allies to rapidly develop innovative solutions to pressing national security challenges.

Individuals and companies will be invited to pitch to a panel, backed by a fund of around £800m over 10 years. It will involve taking more risks in backing ideas, with a fast-track for truly novel ideas to match the pace of smaller firms.

In August, the MOD also launched a new competition with the Home Office to challenge industry to design unmanned systems – robots and aircraft – that can assess hazardous scenes, such as sites contaminated by chemical and biological hazards.