Delivery Lead, Strategic Assets Grants and Visas - Sovereign AI Fund

Sovereign AI:  

AI is not a sector like any other. It is becoming the substrate on which future economic growth, scientific discovery and national resilience are built. Countries that control their own compute, talent and frontier capability will shape the next decade of geopolitics and prosperity. Countries that don't will rent it from someone else. 

Backed by up to £500 million, the Sovereign AI Fund exists to turn ambition into action, supporting high-potential AI startups and scaleups to become national champions and strengthening the UK’s sovereign capability in frontier AI. 

The Team:  

The Sovereign AI Fund is setting up two new, high-profile funding programmes to strengthen the UK’s AI capabilities and support the growth of high potential UK AI companies:  

1. Strategic Assets Programme – a grant programme funding the creation of shared, strategically important AI assets (e.g., high value datasets, automated laboratory infrastructure).  
2. Visa reimbursement – a grant programme reimbursing the visa fees for hires in our portfolio companies, helping them to access the talent they need to scale in the UK. 

We are looking for a strong and experienced Delivery Lead to take on the day-to-day management of these schemes. You will play a central role in managing grants and contracts, supporting competitions and assessments, and ensuring robust governance, financial control and assurance across both programmes. This is a unique opportunity to be at the centre of one of the UK Government's most high-profile and globally significant initiatives, as we build the Sovereign AI Fund.  

The Role: 

You will work closely with policy, commercial, financial and legal teams to execute the following initiatives. 

Programme design and delivery:  

• Own and lead the end-to-end delivery of grant competitions, from launch through assessment, contracting and project delivery.  

• Lead on the design and operation of clear, proportionate delivery processes to deliver value for money and strong customer service.  

• Manage the rolling application process, coordinate assessment panels, prepare Investment Committee (IC) recommendations and oversee grant and contract awards.  

Project assessment:  

• Lead the selection process to ensure that it identifies high-impact projects which will deliver strategic results, applying a high level of challenge to identify risks and impact, in a field with a high level of technical complexity. 

• Build and maintain a detailed understanding of the UK AI sector’s requirements for strategic assets and the support required to attract talent to the UK 

Grant and contract management:  

• Lead the management of a portfolio of live grants and contracts, including:  

• Monitoring progress against milestones, deliverables and spend. 

• Reviewing reports, claims and evidence submitted by funded organisations. 

• Escalating risks, issues and underperformance appropriately. 

• Maintain accurate records to support audit, assurance and evaluation requirements. 

Financial management and assurance:  

• Lead financial management of programme budgets, working with finance colleagues to track commitments and spend.  

• Ensure funding is used for eligible, auditable activity and in line with Managing Public Money and departmental guidance. 

What success looks like:  

Strategic Assets 

• First 6 months: Prove we can find and fund strategic assets that the market won't deliver by itself and show that founders see the programme as a valuable part of the wider Sovereign AI offer. 

• 6-12 months: Get assets into use and demonstrate that they're solving real constraints for UK AI companies, from data to infrastructure and research capability. 

• 12+ months: Create assets that become part of the UK's long-term AI advantage, helping strategically important companies build, scale and stay in the UK. 

Visas 

• First 6 months: Launch a trusted and effective scheme, process the first reimbursements successfully, and demonstrate that founders see visa support as a valuable part of the wider Sovereign AI offer. 

• 6-12 months: Get support flowing smoothly to the right companies and demonstrate that visa support is working alongside other Sovereign AI interventions to support company growth in the UK. 

• 12+ months: Build a strong evidence base on talent barriers facing UK AI companies and use it to shape the future evolution of Sovereign AI support for our growing portfolio of companies. 

What You'll Bring: 

• AI & Deep Tech Experience - You have experience in AI, deep tech or science-based companies, or a demonstrable understanding of how these companies operate, the constraints they face, and what they need to scale in the UK.  
• Purpose - You care about emerging technologies and are genuinely motivated by the opportunity to strengthen the UK's sovereign capability in frontier AI. You have prior experience, personal projects, or a demonstrable curiosity about how funding, technology and national strategy come together. 
• Delivery - You may have experience delivering grants or R&D programmes end-to-end, from designing competitions through to managing live awards. You have owned a scheme from launch through assessment, contracting and delivery, rather than just one stage of the process. 
• Budget Fluency - You understand the mechanics of grant funding: assessment criteria, panel processes and milestone-based delivery management.  
• Organisation - You use structure and systems to stay on top of complex, fast-moving work. You have managed multiple grants or contracts simultaneously, tracking milestones, spend and risk without losing sight of deadlines or dropping quality. 
• Sound Judgement - You know when to make a decision independently and when something is too ambiguous to assume, choosing to escalate rather than guess. You exercise sound judgement in fast-paced environments, particularly where processes were still being built or precedent didn't exist. 
• Communication - You communicate clearly and concisely, whether preparing IC recommendation papers, briefing senior stakeholders or drafting applicant correspondence. You produce outputs that others have relied on to make decisions or move things forward. 
• Communicating to Non-Specialist Audiences - You can translate technical and commercial information into clear advice for decision makers who may not share your specialist background. 
• Rigour with Process - You have strong attention to detail and can work confidently with guidance, processes and documentation, using them as scaffolding rather than a constraint e.g. maintaining audit-ready records or managing compliance-heavy processes. 
• Familiarity with innovation, R&D, or technology focused programmes - You have worked on programmes designed to support innovation, R&D or technology-driven growth, and understand the challenges of funding activity that is inherently uncertain or exploratory.   
• Experience working with financial information - You are comfortable working with budgets, claims and spend tracking, and can evidence this through prior experience managing financial data as part of a grant, contract or programme role, e.g. reconciling spend against milestones or reviewing financial claims for eligibility. 

Selection Process:

Application: You will be asked to submit your CV & and answer 4 application questions

Interview 1: Experience and motivation interview

Interview 2: Task and Behaviour interview (task details will be sent ahead of the interview)

Interview 3: Interview with Senior Leadership