New R&D Challenge to accelerate innovation in the live events sector

A joint initiative from XR Network+ and MusicFutures aims to accelerate innovation in the live events sector. 

The Future Live Fan Experiences Research and Development Challenge will fund both university-led and SME-led projects to develop the next wave of fan experiences across live music, sport and cultural events.

The Challenge is responding to the rapid transformation taking place in the live events sector driven by advances in immersive technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and next-generation connectivity. Audiences, particularly Gen Z and Gen Alpha, increasingly expect experiences that are highly interactive, participatory, and personalised.

Successful projects will receive grants of up to £25,000 to develop and test innovative R&D prototypes that transform audience experiences. The funding providers are looking for projects that put forward novel approaches to fan engagement across the entire event journey. 

Applicants are encouraged to explore areas including immersive experiences enabled by high-capacity 5G and artificial intelligence-driven audience participation. The funding providers also encourage submissions from projects that investigate scalable participatory technologies and democratic/accessible workflows. 

The XR Network+ strand of funding is for university-led projects based anywhere in the UK. 

The MusicFutures strand of funding is conducted in partnership with the Liverpool Experience Campus (formerly ACC Liverpool) and is for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) based in the Liverpool City Region.

John Rose-Adams, Associate Director Research, Development and Innovation at XR Stories and XR Network+ comments: “The live sector is expanding its offer from passive spectating toward an end-to-end journey of fan co-creation and interactivity. The real challenge is making this transformation available to productions and performances of all sizes. 

We’re looking for projects that use real time, XR and AI technologies to offer new audience experiences, drawing on the best of industry SME-led R&D with Liverpool Music Futures, and academic led R&D with XR Network+”

The deadline for applications for both strands of funding is 1pm on Friday 29 May 2026.

Published on 13 April 2026