Led · Equity · Jun 2026

Space Forge develops in-space manufacturing capabilities, producing semiconductor materials in microgravity to achieve fewer defects and greater uniformity. The company demonstrated its manufacturing environment with the ForgeStar-1 mission and is now funded to advance Pridwen, a deployable reusable heat shield designed to protect spacecraft during re-entry. The recent £10 million GSTP award from the UK Space Agency via ESA will fund a mission to design, build, launch and return Pridwen and bring the technology to commercial readiness. Space Forge says Pridwen’s deployable design will create a larger protective surface while reducing weight and enabling reuse, which the company believes is critical to enabling frequent returns of manufactured payloads. The company is headquartered in Cardiff and positions its technology as enabling commercial in-space manufacturing for applications in telecoms, computing, defence and clean energy. The funding is intended to help Space Forge move from demonstration toward regular, reliable delivery of products to market.

Led · Seed · Mar 2026

Spotlight Pathology is a Manchester-founded health-tech spin-out building artificial-intelligence software that examines digital pathology images to aid haematopathologists in identifying blood cancers. The platform plugs directly into current NHS workflows, triaging and prioritising cases so specialists can reach decisions faster and start patients on treatment sooner. Co-founded by Consultant Haematopathologist Dr Richard Byers and AI specialist Dr Martin Fergie, the company targets the growing diagnostic backlog caused by a shortage of trained pathologists. Seed funding will be used to secure additional regulatory approvals and to run the first clinical in-use trials. Management plans to scale operations from Daresbury while collaborating with partners across the North West and beyond. Although no revenue or user metrics were disclosed, the team emphasises its goal of transforming blood-cancer diagnostics and improving patient outcomes within the NHS.

Led · Seed · Jan 2026

Founded in 2023 as a spinout from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), MuWave is building commercial high-power microwave sources—specifically next-generation gyrotrons—used to heat fusion plasma and enable applications such as satellite communications, radar, geothermal drilling and medical imaging. The company leverages patents and proof-of-concept prototypes originally created for the UK’s STEP Fusion power-plant programme. With its in-house engineering team and access to UKAEA expertise, MuWave plans to design, manufacture and export high-power microwave products from the UK while also offering consultancy services to fusion and non-fusion customers. The firm’s roadmap includes scaling production to meet anticipated demand from commercial fusion projects worldwide and expanding into adjacent deep-tech markets. Initial capital has been secured to accelerate product development and commercialisation. No operating metrics such as revenue or customer counts were disclosed in the article.

Participated · Seed · Aug 2025

SugaROx develops next-generation crop biostimulants centered on a proprietary form of the natural plant sugar trehalose-6-phosphate (T6P), using patented technology from the University of Oxford and Rothamsted Research. Its platform enables delivery of natural molecules that regulate intracellular pathways in plants via standard agronomic practices. The company has scaled synthesis from laboratory to a pilot facility in the UK and has extended field testing across multiple markets. SugaROx plans to expand field trials to validate performance, generate regulatory data, and pursue commercial launches in the UK, EU and US. Financially, the company recently closed a £2.5M Series A investment with prior seed backing of £400k from The Mosaic Company in 2025. The company is led by CEO Mark Robbins.

Led · Seed · Jul 2024

HutanBio develops HBx, a carbon-negative bio-oil produced from algae grown using CO2 as a feedstock in custom bioreactor farms. The company’s farms are AI‑controlled to optimise yields and are designed to operate on brackish to very salty, non‑agricultural, semi‑arid and arid land without using fresh water. HBx is positioned for maritime and heavy transport decarbonization, claiming high energy density, low sulfur content and the ability to avoid deforestation and peatland loss. HutanBio says its production model can sit adjacent to high CO2‑emitting industrial sites to offer a circular carbon capture‑and‑use solution. The company traces HBx to 10 years of research and the world’s largest marine microalgae bioprospecting programme, and was founded by scientists from Cambridge University and in Malaysia. HutanBio intends to bring several customer sites online by 2027 and to operate at least two mega‑sites by 2030. HutanBio develops HBx, a sustainable high-energy-density, low-carbon, sulphur-free bio-oil produced using CO₂ as a feedstock for algae. The algae are grown in HutanBio-designed bioreactor farms that are controlled by artificial intelligence to optimise yields. Those farms are intended to be built on unproductive and non-agricultural semi-arid and arid land in countries with high levels of sunlight. HBx is designed to blend seamlessly with existing infrastructure and supply chains and requires no engine or vessel modification, enabling immediate adoption without affecting operational efficiency. The company plans to expand its engineering and business development teams in Cambridge and to accelerate commercial deployment of HBx to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. HutanBio was founded in 2019 and is led by CEO Paul Beastall; the company raised £2.25M in funding led by Clean Growth Fund.