Participated · Grant · Apr 2026

StirLight develops StirSense, a proprietary real-time process-monitoring and quality-assurance platform for friction stir welding, and also offers consulting and contract manufacturing services. The platform captures and analyses process-specific data to detect in-process anomalies and produce traceable quality records for each joint. The company serves R&D engineers and production teams in nuclear, aerospace, defence, automotive and energy sectors. StirLight has been trading since March 2024 and is already generating revenue from FSW services and contract manufacturing. Following the recent funding, the company plans pilot deployments with industrial partners, to hire engineering and data science talent, and to continue development of its core technology. The leadership team comprises co-founders Toby Savage-Yu (CEO), Dr Jeroen De Backer (CTO) and Dan Lord CEng (COO).

Led · Grant · Nov 2025

Founded in 2021, OXCCU is developing proprietary catalysts and reactor designs that directly hydrogenate CO₂ to create hydrocarbon syncrude branded as OXFUEL, which can be refined into jet-fuel-grade SAF. Its single-step, iron-based Fischer-Tropsch process eliminates the RWGS stage and reduces hydrogen demand, promising lower capital and operating costs than competing e-fuel pathways. The company operates from Begbroke Science Park and London Oxford Airport, where its OX1 demonstration plant was validated in 2024. OXCCU is positioning OXFUEL to help the UK meet its target of 10% SAF in jet fuel by 2030 and is now researching how its fuel can limit non-CO₂ warming effects such as soot-induced contrail formation. Financially, the start-up secured €20.6 million of initial funding in June 2023, followed by a €23.7 million round in September 2025, and most recently obtained a €2 million grant from the ATI Non-CO₂ Programme. These funds support technology scale-up, commercial deployment and climate-impact validation, underscoring OXCCU’s emergence as a leading UK climate-tech innovator.

Led · Equity · Jun 2025

Intelligent Energy develops and manufactures hydrogen fuel cells for sectors including automotive, aerospace, power generation, telecoms, materials handling and UAVs. Its core product for aviation is a modular 300kW fuel cell platform (IE-FLIGHT 300) being scaled for eVTOLs and short-range commuter aircraft. The company emphasises patented direct water-injection thermal management and air-cooled condensers to reduce heat exchanger size and improve power density for aircraft integration. Intelligent Energy is privately owned, was founded in 2001, holds about 600 patents and is headquartered in Loughborough, UK, with activities in the UK, US, China, South Korea and Japan. It plans IE-FLIGHT 300 to enter early service in Part 23 aircraft by the end of the decade and to scale to Part 25 regional aircraft in the 2030s. IE estimates the total market value (sales and servicing) at £19.6 billion, says fuel-cell adoption could cut CO2 emissions by up to 25.6 million tonnes annually, and is expanding UK operations including a new £7.1m fuel cell test centre in Northamptonshire. Intelligent Energy develops proprietary, highly efficient power cores and fuel-cell technologies designed for integration into high-volume, mass-market products. The company says its power cores have received commercial approval from significant global brands and are targeted at the motive, consumer electronics and stationary power sectors. Intelligent Energy recently formed a joint venture with Suzuki — SMILE FC System Corporation — to develop and manufacture air-cooled fuel cell technologies, with both companies taking a 50% stake; the JV is led by Osamu Honda. The company announced a funding round that raised in excess of $35 million (£22 million) via a placement and values the business at approximately $0.5 billion on a fully diluted basis. Management says the proceeds will increase the pace of commercialisation within the consumer electronics and stationary power markets. The company highlighted market opportunity sizes of around $410bn for consumer electronics and $150bn for stationary power.