NRF Singapore CREATE Grant Call 2026 call (internal deadline 12:00 on Monday 2nd February 2026)

The National Research Foundation (NRF), Singapore has launched a CREATE Grant Call 2026 call, which will provide funding of up to 25 million SGD (inclusive of 15% Indirect Costs) for up to 5-year projects

The CREATE Grant Call 2026 seeks to support ground-up ideas that aim to address complex, fundamental questions or solve major societal challenges that offer the possibility for groundbreaking discoveries and positive transformative outcomes. The proposed research must clearly articulate potential for impact in one or more priority areas of relevance to strategic priorities detailed below.

This is a call evaluated in two stages: Selected applicants are required to submit the Stage 1 (Whitepaper, CVs & Slides) to CARES for submission to Élana McNaught, the CARES Coordinator in Cambridge, and Elizabeth MacRae, CARES Chief Operating Officer (Singapore) to allow for endorsement and submission to the funder via email. Submission of Stage 2 (Full Proposal) materials is upon invitation from the Funder only via the NRF Integrated Grant Management System (IGMS).

The proposed AI4S Challenge research programme must clearly articulate potential for impact in one or more thematic area(s) of relevance to Singapore’s strategic priorities, including but not limited to:

• Advanced Manufacturing
• Aviation and Maritime Technologies
• Health and Biomedical Sciences
• Energy and Climate Resilience
• AI and Computing
• Human Potential

There are a number of unique requirements/features of this call:

• The project must be co-led by two PIs and at least one will be a PI based at one of the Singapore public Institutes of Higher Learning (including autonomous universities) or an A*STAR Research Institute.
• Either the Singapore institution or a CREATE (Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise) entity will be the host for financial and administrative purposes: for the University of Cambridge, the relevant CREATE entity is the Cambridge Centre for Advanced Research in Singapore (CARES).
• Further international collaborators may be included as needed but, where included, the team should reflect a balanced composition of Singapore-based and international PIs.
• Cambridge Co-Lead/Team PI(s) are expected to have commit to conducting research activities within Singapore, and contribute to the aims of the project (guideline of at least 20% of time for the duration of the project). This time commitment can be fulfilled by conducting research activity through physical presence in Singapore only.
• PLEASE NOTE (change in previous call terms):  Residency of international PI(s) in Singapore may be budgeted for in the proposal and is supportable by the grant. Eligible items for residency include PI time for stays of 4+ consecutive weeks in Singapore, travel, accommodation, and cost of living allowance (to cover meals, transport, incidentals).
• Reference to Singapore priorities (RIE2030) is strongly recommended.

Further guidance is available from CARES affiliated staff in Singapore and Cambridge. Please contact Élana McNaught, the CARES Coordinator in Cambridge, and Elizabeth MacRae, CARES Chief Operating Officer (Singapore) to discuss any details of the call requirements.

University Internal selection

NRF has allocated each CREATE entity a submission quota of two Whitepapers. Therefore, this call will be managed according to the University’s restricted calls procedure.  To take part in the internal selection, please complete our online form by 12:00 on 2^nd February 2026.  (NB: if asked to log-in, please use your crsID single sign-on details)

Please note that CARES-affiliated PIs may also participate as non-host co-lead PI/team PIs in proposals submitted with other eligible host institutions, which will not count towards the CARES submission quota and therefore do not need to be submitted to the internal selection process. Please note that such applications MUST be reported to CARES as early as possible to Élana McNaught, the CARES Coordinator in Cambridge, and Elizabeth MacRae, CARES Chief Operating Officer (Singapore) to avoid unnecessary delays with endorsement prior to submission.

You will need the following documents and information to complete the form:

• A project summary (max. 1,000 words) addressing the assessment criteria below.
• CVs for both the CARES/UCAM co-lead PI and the Singapore institution co-lead PI.
• A letter of support from the relevant UCAM Head of Department, including confirmation of their support for the PI commit 20% (co-Lead PI) or at least 10% (Team PI) of their time in Singapore over the duration of the project.

Internal Assessment Criteria – the assessment of internal applications will focus on the following core funder criteria:

• Significance of the research and its potential groundbreaking discoveries and positive transformative outcomes to address complex, fundamental questions or solve major societal challenges
• Strategic priority
• Multi-disciplinarity of the project
• Demonstrated capabilities of the individuals performing the project

Funder timeline

Call launch: 20 January 2026
Internal CARES Deadline: 25 February 2026
Stage 1 Funder closing date: 3 March 2026 (16:00 SGT, 8:00am GMT)

If you have any queries about the internal selection process, please don’t hesitate to contact researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk

Posted on 29/01/2026