The Supercharged Sandbox provides firms with a secure, controlled environment to experiment with advanced AI technologies. Find out more about it and how to apply.
Apply for Cohort 2 of the Supercharged Sandbox on our Innovation Platform.
The Supercharged Sandbox is a cohort-based programme designed to help firms experiment, test and develop AI use cases in financial services.
Participants operate within a secure cloud environment, with access to graphics processing unit (GPU)-enabled infrastructure, high-quality datasets and expert support, helping them to develop and test AI solutions rapidly.
The programme is designed to help firms:
- Develop and test innovative AI-driven solutions.
- Build evidence and understanding through experimentation.
- Accelerate the journey from concept to deployment.
Through this approach, we aim to support safe, responsible innovation while generating insights that can inform future regulatory thinking.
Core features: what the Supercharged Sandbox offers
The Supercharged Sandbox provides a set of integrated capabilities to help firms build, test and iterate on AI use cases in a secure and flexible environment.
GPU-enabled compute
Access high-performance, GPU-enabled infrastructure to help you develop and test advanced AI models, including large-scale and compute-intensive workloads.
Enterprise AI tooling
Work with a suite of enterprise-grade tools and frameworks to support the full AI lifecycle – from data processing and model development to evaluation and deployment.
Synthetic datasets
Access a range of synthetic and curated datasets designed to reflect real-world financial services scenarios, supporting meaningful testing and validation.
Mentorship and expert support
Engage with a network of experts across financial services, AI and regulation to support your testing approach and development process.
Showcase opportunity
Present your work at the end of the programme to an audience of industry, regulatory, and technology stakeholders.
Apply to the Supercharged Sandbox
The Supercharged Sandbox will open for a second cohort in 2026, offering firms another opportunity to test and develop AI use cases.
For our second cohort, we are particularly interested in applications that demonstrate the use of agentic AI, such as agentic payment services, compliance agents, and customer interaction or service agents.
Key dates:
- Applications open: 5 May 2026
- Applications close: 1 June 2026
- Applicants notified of outcome: 26 June 2026
- Cohort launch: 13 July 2026
- Showcase demo day: 26 November 2026
- Sandbox access ends: 31 December 2026
Selected firms will take part in a collaborative programme of development, testing and engagement, culminating in a showcase event later in the year.
Applications are open until 1 June 2026.
Interested firms can apply via our Innovation Platform[4]. You’ll need to:
- Create an account.
- Complete the application form on the Cohort 2 page[3].
Participation in the Supercharged Sandbox does not indicate FCA approval, endorsement, or authorisation of a product or service.
Questions
Email: [email protected].
Assessment criteria
We’ll use the criteria below to assess applications.
Review the criteria carefully before you apply.
A strong application will clearly demonstrate how your proposed solution:
- Aligns with the aims of the Supercharged Sandbox.
- Meets the points covered in the assessment criteria.
Relevance and strategic fit
- Is the solution relevant to financial services, financial market infrastructure, or regulatory/compliance activity?
- Is the applicant engaging, or intending to engage, with the UK market?
- Is the proposed work appropriate for development, testing, or validation within the Supercharged Sandbox?
Degree of innovation
- Is the solution genuinely innovative or materially differentiated from existing market practice?
- Has the applicant clearly articulated how the solution differs from existing products, services, or approaches?
- Does AI play a meaningful and substantive role in the solution?
Feasibility and readiness
- Is the solution at an appropriate stage of development for the Sandbox?
- Has the applicant clearly articulated the support, tooling, data, and/or compute required?
- Is the proposed testing plan realistic and achievable within the cohort timeframe?
- Does the applicant appear to have the capacity and capability to participate effectively in the programme?
Potential impact
- Does the solution have credible potential to deliver positive outcomes for consumers, firms, or markets?
- Are the intended outcomes clearly articulated, realistic, and capable of being assessed?
- Is there a credible pathway to further development, adoption, or live-market testing following the Sandbox?
Need for support
- Is there a clear need for the Sandbox environment, rather than more general innovation support?
- Does the applicant have, or can they reasonably obtain, the data required for the proposed work, including through data available on the platform?
- Is the support required by the applicant within the scope and operational bounds of the programme?
How the programme works
Apply
Submit your application via the online application form.
Assessment
We will review your application against our assessment criteria.
Cohort onboarding
Selected firms will be invited to join the cohort and onboarded onto the programme.
Build and test
Participants work over the cohort period to develop and test their chosen use case.
Showcase
Firms can present their work to industry, regulatory and technology stakeholders.
Cohort 1: September 2025 to January 2026
132 firms applied to join the first Supercharged Sandbox. We selected 22 firms to take part.
During the programme, participants used the Sandbox to develop, test and refine AI-enabled propositions in a structured environment.
Participants worked on use cases across financial services.
These included:
- Personalised financial guidance and education to help close the advice gap
- Identifying and supporting consumers in vulnerable circumstances or at risk of harm
- Improving financial inclusion and broadening access to financial products and services
- Using machine learning and agentic systems to detect, prevent and respond to increasingly sophisticated financial crime.
Video: Supercharged Sandbox showcase
Supercharged Sandbox showcase - Cohort 1
