NHMRC–Swiss National Science Foundation Joint Research Programme 2026

Funding available: Maximum per grant: $500,000
Activity period: Fixed four-year grant term commencing 1 May 2027
Applications close: June 18 2026

The 2026 NHMRC–Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Joint Research Programme supports collaborative health and medical research projects between Australia and Switzerland. This targeted competitive funding opportunity focuses on the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare for populations of diverse sex, gender, sexual orientation, or other underrepresented population groups.

The program aims to advance knowledge, develop innovative and equitable AI-enabled healthcare solutions, and improve decision-making in clinical practice. Funded projects must demonstrate strong international collaboration, interdisciplinary research approaches, and practical pathways to implementation. Proposals are expected to address challenges such as data bias, diversity in training datasets, ethical and privacy risks, transparency, and equitable access to AI-driven healthcare technologies.

Key Requirements

Australian–Swiss collaboration Projects must involve a clearly defined Joint Research Project with at least one Australian-based and one Swiss-based research partner.
Focus on AI in healthcare equity Research must address the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare for populations that are underrepresented in conventional datasets, including considerations of sex, gender, sexual orientation, disability, socioeconomic status, or geographic location.
Scientific excellence and feasibility Applications are assessed on scientific relevance, originality, methodological rigor, feasibility, investigator capability, and collaborative strength.
Ethical and inclusive research design Proposals must consider equity, safety, privacy and ethics-related risks, and demonstrate culturally informed and inclusive approaches.

What is eligible for funding?

Development and evaluation of AI tools for healthcare decision-making involving underrepresented population groups
Addressing bias in medical training datasets used for AI applications
Research on transparency, interpretability, and trust in AI-based healthcare tools
Interdisciplinary research combining health sciences, AI, ethics, and policy
Collaborative research activities across Australian and Swiss institutions, including reciprocal researcher visits
Salary support for eligible Australia-based researchers and research support staff (subject to NHMRC rules)

What companies are eligible for funding?

Applications must be submitted by an NHMRC Administering Institution
Chief Investigator A must be
- An Australian or New Zealand citizen, permanent resident, or hold an appropriate visa
- Based in Australia for at least 80% of the funding period
Australian-based researchers may apply as Chief Investigators or Associate Investigators
A Swiss-based collaborator must be listed as part of the joint research team
Researchers from any discipline may apply, provided eligibility criteria are met

Is this grant competitive or entitlement based?

Competitive. Your application will be assessed among other applications by a judging panel.

How can I increase my chances of winning this grant?

By engaging an accredited government grants consultant, such as Avant Group.

Competitive grants often require significant business case development and project analysis to support the application, this may include detailed presentations supporting the project’s merit, projected sales, cost-benefit analysis and more.

As part of your engagement with Avant Group, your account manager will assess the required documents and will provide the following as needed to support your grant submission.

Grant application writeup including a detailed presentation illustrating how the grant funding will contribute to your project, how the funding will contribute to the project’s budget, a project milestone plan, delivery timeline, impact on employment if applicable and a breakdown of the management and leadership team for the project

Industry analysis presentation
Competitor Analysis Presentation
Marketing and Sales Analysis Presentation
3-5 year Cashflow Forecast
3-5 year Balance Sheet Forecast
Cost-Benefit Analysis of Grant Funding
End-to-end grant application including information collating, analysis and application writing
CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) cost-benefit analysis
Stakeholder relations and Risk Mitigation Plans
Any other relevant forecasting that will support your application

How can I get help with my application? Or know if I’m likely to win funding?

Avant Group offers a no-obligation assessment of your eligibility for funding and will assess your likelihood of a successful grant application.

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