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£300M fund to power tech innovation in the South West

Joe Bevan
Authored by Joe Bevan
Posted: Tuesday, October 15, 2024 - 11:25

A new £300m investment fund has been launched to accelerate the growth of science and technology spin-outs from universities in the West of England, with backing from the University of Bristol.

The fund is aimed at boosting early-stage capital, expertise, and support for startups working on global challenges such as sustainability, clean energy, and healthcare.

The initiative, developed in partnership between the SETsquared Partnership — a collaboration of six universities including Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton, and Surrey — and regional investment firm QantX, was announced at the Regional Investment and Health & Life Sciences Summit in Bristol. Notable attendees included Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones and Science Minister Lord Patrick Vallance.

While the region has a strong track record in producing spin-out companies, raising early-stage funding has lagged significantly behind the "Golden Triangle" of Oxford, Cambridge, and London. The new fund aims to address this by creating co-investment opportunities, de-risking deep tech startups, and increasing the overall capital pool. The goal is to help turn groundbreaking ideas into thriving companies that will create high-skilled jobs and drive the local economy forward.

QantX co-founder Richard Haycock emphasized the fund’s focus on commercializing the region’s cutting-edge research, with an emphasis on sectors like life sciences and deep tech. "We’re not just funding companies; we’re empowering local entrepreneurs to transform our region into a powerhouse of innovation."

Professor Guy Poppy, University of Bristol Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, said: “Bristol and the South West already receive international recognition for the strength of our entrepreneurship in fields such as quantum tech, advanced materials, future telecommunications and engineering biology. 

“This unique opportunity allows us to build on the proven track record of the SETsquared Partnership as part of our wider innovation ecosystem.

"By helping us nurture early-stage spin-out companies, it will bring ground-breaking research discoveries to market faster, boosting the economic growth of our region and letting us directly tackle questions of global significance.” 

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