- New innovation roadmap will build on decades of work to make the region the world’s foremost scientific and technology cluster
- Cambridge tech companies have raised 62 venture rounds this year with $892m invested so far, with the city on track to overtake 2023’s $1.1bn total
- Innovate Summit taking place today will bring together up to 500 entrepreneurs, decision-makers and key opinion leaders in the region and beyond
Cambridge, 23 October 2024: Cambridge will today set out a plan to supercharge the impact of the Greater Cambridge area by doubling the rate at which it builds unicorns, doubling the venture capital investment the city’s startups receive, and creating twice as many science and innovation companies - all within a 10-year timetable.
The transformative plan is designed to cement Cambridge as a national asset, capable of accelerating the growth of the entire UK economy and is led by Innovate Cambridge, the body overseeing the UK city’s innovation impact. Cambridge’s 10-year vision, which is designed to accelerate the region’s world-class science and innovation while maximising social returns, will be introduced today at the third annual Innovate Summit. Leading companies to be founded in Cambridge in the last 25 years include Arm Holdings, Bicycle Therapeutics, CMR Surgical, Darktrace, Healx and Raspberry Pi, delivering the same amount of economic growth in the next 10 years as achieved in the last 25.
Empowering a world-class innovation ecosystem
Cambridge is firmly established as a global hub for scientific and technological research, boasting over 5,000 innovation-driven companies, 36 research parks, five hospital trusts, two universities, and a thriving startup and investor community. It was recently named the world’s most intensive science and technological cluster by Global Innovation Index for the third year running. The city's tech and life sciences companies have raised over $892 million in venture capital funding this year alone, up 38% compared to 2023, according to Dealroom. Quantum company Riverlane’s $75 million round in August significantly contributed to this growth. This means Cambridge could be on track for its best year for VC since 2021, overtaking 2023’s $1.1bn.
There have been 62 venture capital rounds in 2024 so far, and nearly half (29) of all rounds were raised by founders who studied at the University of Cambridge, demonstrating that talent and ambition are staying in the city and shoring up the university’s status as the number one in Europe for producing spinouts, ahead of ETH Zurich and the University of Oxford.
Unifying growth
The third annual Innovate Cambridge Summit is bringing together up to 500 entrepreneurs, decision-makers and key opinion leaders in the region and beyond. At the summit, Innovate Cambridge will share progress on:
- Establishing an innovation hub to unlock the full potential of the Cambridge ecosystem
- The first pan-UK innovation partnership between Cambridge and Manchester, pioneering a new model of place-to-place collaboration
- Leveraging innovation for social impact and announcement of The Cambridge Pledge
To share the benefits of innovation more widely, a new charity, The Cambridge Pledge, will be announced at the Innovate Cambridge Summit. Inspired by organisations such as The Founders Pledge and Life Science Cares, The Cambridge Pledge will encourage founders to pledge a meaningful percentage of future wealth, and companies and anchor institutions to make charitable donations to tackle inequality in the region.
Kathryn Chapman, Executive Director at Innovate Cambridge, said: “We’re delighted to be hosting the third Innovate Cambridge Summit, particularly when Cambridge has recently been recognised again for its contributions to global scientific and technology research. Innovate Cambridge was founded to empower the city’s companies, institutions and organisations that make it such a hub of innovation, whilst at the same time ensuring this growth and success is for the benefit of the wider community and the UK. Today’s summit is the next stage in realising this mission and I’m looking forward to the discussions and conversations we will share.”
Diarmuid O’Brien, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Innovation at the University of Cambridge and Chief Executive of Cambridge Enterprise said: “World-leading research and innovation is taking place every day across Cambridge in areas such as AI, quantum computing and life sciences. Researchers are developing the technologies and IP that will solve some of the world’s biggest challenges from healthcare to climate change. If we are to create the same level of innovation output that we’ve produced over the last 25 years in the next 10, we have to shift our innovation into a different gear. Never has Cambridge been more ready for business and to take on this challenge. We are joined up and pooling all our resources across business, academia and local government to realise a shared vision of growth for the city and the region to continue to deliver innovation at scale for the benefit of the UK and the globe.”
Michael Anstey, Partner at Cambridge Innovation Capital, said: “Innovation is a fundamental driver of economic growth. Today, the UK is a leader in translating cutting-edge science and technology into transformative businesses, with more than £60 billion in investment across AI, life sciences and infrastructure. Within the UK, the Cambridge ecosystem is home to some of the nation’s fastest-growing companies that are tackling global challenges like climate change, food security, and healthcare. By implementing the strategy that Innovate Cambridge has set out, Cambridge has the potential to be a central pillar in the UK’s growth agenda.”
Cllr Mike Davey, Leader of Cambridge City Council, said: “Cambridge is one of the best places to work in the country and the continued growth of our knowledge-intensive sectors benefits the whole UK economy. However, we cannot take this success for granted. We are committed to working with partners to make sure that innovation benefits our local communities – helping to reduce inequalities by opening up opportunities, and ensuring that future growth is underpinned by investment in infrastructure.”
Professor Diane Coyle, Co-Director at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, said: “Cambridge has an opportunity to lead the way when it comes to inclusive innovation, building on its long tradition of foundational scientific and technical discoveries. The Bennett Institute’s new Inclusive Innovation report demonstrates how data-driven, coordinated approaches can help shape discovery and development in ways that have broad benefits. Increasing the level of funds being invested back into the local deployment of innovation will help Cambridge address the city's deep inequalities.”
Image: L-R: Dr Diarmuid O'Brien - Credit: StillVision, Dr Kathryn Chapman, Michael Anstey
