United Kingdom startup ecosystem
The UK — and London in particular — remains Europe's deepest capital market for startups. World-class universities, a strong financial services sector, and a dense network of experienced operators make it a magnet for fintech, AI, and biotech ventures. Despite Brexit-related shifts, the UK continues to produce more unicorns than any other European country. The directory currently lists 306 organisations across 20 cities.
Showing 201–220 of 306 United Kingdom
Cities in United Kingdom
Types in United Kingdom
United Kingdom results
-
Northern FinTech Summit 2026
FinTech North's pan-northern flagship, celebrating the fintech ecosystem across the North of England at the Guildhall in York. Useful for a Northern fintech founder wanting cross-regional investor and corporate connections in one summit rather than a single-city conference.
-
Northzone
Northzone is a prominent European venture capital firm with Scandinavian roots, known for early bets on companies like Spotify and Klarna. Founded in 1996 in Oslo (and now headquartered in Stockholm with a big presence in London), Northzone is an evergreen VC fund that has raised 9 funds to date. It invests from Seed and Series A up to Growth (Series B/C), typically focusing on consumer internet, fintech, and B2B SaaS. Northzone rose to fame as the earliest institutional investor in Spotify – it led Spotify’s $21M Series A in 2008 and remained a major shareholder until IPO. It was also an early backer of Klarna (led the $8M Series A in 2010) and other Nordic breakouts like iZettle (payments, acquired by PayPal) and Avito (Russian classifieds, acquired by Naspers). Over the years, Northzone expanded its geographic focus to include the UK, Benelux, and the US East Coast (they’ve invested in Wallapop in Spain, Personio in Germany, and Secret Escapes in UK, among others). The firm’s investment approach is relatively hands-on – partners often take board seats and leverage Northzone’s network for business development of their portfolio. With approximately €1.5 billion under management, Northzone typically writes initial checks of €2–10M and can follow on with much larger amounts. In 2022, Northzone raised a new €1B+ fund, reflecting growing LP interest in European tech. The team blends operational experience and finance acumen; notable partners include Pär-Jörgen Pärson (who led the Spotify deal) and Michiel Kotting (who sits on Personio’s board). Northzone often leads or co-leads rounds and likes to syndicate with US VCs when scaling globally. Beyond fintech and music tech, they have investments in healthtech (Kry), edtech (Kahoot!), crypto (Sovereign), and more – showcasing a broad thesis of “transformative tech.” Northzone’s steady success over 25+ years – producing multiple billion-dollar exits – has cemented its reputation as one of Europe’s top-tier venture firms, bridging the vibrant Nordic ecosystem with the rest of the continent.
-
Nothing
Design-led consumer electronics brand behind transparent Android smartphones and earbuds. Nothing is a startup based in London, United Kingdom at the growth stage. The company operates in the Consumer Electronics, Hardware space. Learn more at their website.
-
Notion Capital
Notion Capital is a London-based venture firm founded in 2009 by the team behind MessageLabs and Star — Jos White, Ben White, Stephen Chandler, Chris Tottman and Ian Milbourn — who built MessageLabs before its $700M sale to Symantec. The firm invests exclusively in European B2B software and fintech, with a sweet spot at Series A (companies at or near product-market fit, typically $1M+ ARR) and initial cheques of €1–8M. Across five venture funds and three growth vehicles Notion has raised over $1bn in total AUM; Fund V closed at its €300M hard cap in 2023 and Growth Opportunities III added $130M in 2025 to back the firm's best companies longer. Its thesis spans four software categories — Knowledge (AI-enhanced SaaS), Money (fintech), Labour (services-as-software) and Machines (software in physical environments, including defence). Marquee outcomes include Currencycloud (acquired by Visa for ~$963M, 2021) and GoCardless (acquisition by Mollie announced at ~$1.1bn, 2025), with a portfolio that also features Paddle, Mews, Quantum Systems, Workable, TestGorilla and Upvest.
-
Nscale
Nscale develops and operates AI-native infrastructure, including modular data center capacity optimized for high-density GPU workloads. The company focuses on sovereign and energy-efficient compute supply for enterprise and model providers, and has expanded rapidly through large infrastructure financing and strategic partnerships.
-
Nyobolt
Cambridge, UK battery company developing extreme fast-charge technology using tungsten-based anode chemistry. Its cells recharge to 80% in under five minutes, targeting industrial EVs, power tools, and consumer electronics. Raised a $60M Series C in 2024 at a reported $1B valuation.
-
OakNorth
OakNorth is a London-based fintech founded in 2015 that operates as a profitable digital bank and credit intelligence software provider. Its OakNorth Credit Intelligence platform uses AI and machine learning to help commercial lenders make better decisions for mid-market businesses, the segment typically underserved by traditional banks. The bank itself has lent over GBP 10 billion since launch and has been consistently profitable. OakNorth raised $1 billion from investors including SoftBank, reaching a valuation of $4.7 billion. The software platform is licensed to banks globally.
-
Ochre Bio
Ochre Bio is an Oxford-based biotech startup combining computational genomics, machine learning, and RNA therapeutics to develop treatments for chronic liver diseases. Founded in 2019, the company uses human donor livers and large-scale transcriptomic data to identify novel drug targets, then designs RNA-based therapies to address conditions such as NASH and liver fibrosis. Ochre Bio has raised significant venture funding and works with transplant centers to validate its candidates in perfused human organs.
-
Omnea
Omnea is a London-based procurement and spend management software company founded in 2022 by ex-Tessian executives Ben Freeman (CEO) and Ben Allen (CTO). Its AI-native platform provides a single front door where employees can make procurement requests in natural language, then orchestrates workflows across finance, legal, risk and IT, automating the full supplier lifecycle from intake and approvals to third-party risk management and renewals. The platform includes no-code workflow builders, supplier onboarding portals, RFx event management and integrations with hundreds of systems. Customers include Spotify, Wise, MongoDB, Adecco and PayPal.
-
Onfido
Onfido is a London-based identity verification company founded in 2012 that uses AI and biometric technology to help businesses verify user identities remotely. The platform combines document verification with facial biometrics to enable onboarding for financial services, sharing economy, healthcare, and other regulated industries. Onfido was acquired by Entrust in 2024 for approximately $400 million. Before the acquisition, the company had raised over $200 million and served customers including Revolut, Zipcar, and Bitstamp across 195 countries, processing millions of identity checks annually.
-
Open Banking Expo
Organiser of Open Banking Expo, the UK and Europe dedicated Open Banking, Open Finance and Smart Data event, alongside a global community, awards and content programme. The show convenes banks, fintechs, regulators and investors shaping data-driven financial services.
-
Open Banking Expo UK & Europe 2026
The UK and Europe's dedicated Open Banking, Open Finance and Smart Data show at the Business Design Centre in London. Four content stages plus a workshop theatre, an Innovation Zone and 40+ exhibitors bring together banks, fintech founders, regulators and investors shaping data-driven finance.
-
Orbital Materials
Orbital Materials is a London-based AI startup applying foundation models to materials science, with a focus on designing novel carbon-capture sorbents, thermal management materials, and clean-energy components. Founded by former DeepMind researchers, the company developed LINUS, a large-scale generative model for atomic structures that can predict material properties and propose new compositions. Orbital has raised over $22 million from investors including Khosla Ventures and Radical Ventures. The company bridges the gap between AI research and physical-world climate technology, representing a new class of UK deep-tech ventures using machine learning for industrial decarbonization.
-
Overmind
Overmind provides a security and control layer for agentic AI deployments in enterprise systems. The platform supervises autonomous agent behavior in live workflows and intervenes when actions appear unsafe, adversarially influenced, or outside policy constraints.
-
Paddle
UK Merchant-of-Record platform handling payments, sales tax, compliance and billing across 300+ markets for SaaS and digital-product businesses; serves 10,000+ customers.
-
Passion Capital
Passion Capital is an early-stage London VC founded in 2011 by Eileen Burbidge, Stefan Glaenzer, and Robert Dighero. The fund backs European early-stage technology companies, with a portfolio that has included Monzo, GoCardless, and DueDil. Passion is recognised for hands-on founder support and has been an influential voice in UK tech-policy discussions for over a decade.
-
Paul Polman
Dutch business leader who was CEO of Unilever from 2009 to 2019, where he launched the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan and dropped quarterly earnings guidance. He co-authored Net Positive and co-founded the London-based foundation IMAGINE, advocating sustainable and equitable business.
-
Paul Taylor
Founder and CEO of Thought Machine, the cloud-native core-banking platform. He previously founded a speech-technology company acquired by Google, where he built voice systems before turning to banking infrastructure.
-
Philippe Botteri
Partner at Accel investing in cloud, SaaS, AI and security across Europe and Israel. He authors Accel's influential annual Euroscape report tracking the region's cloud and AI momentum.
-
PhysicsX
PhysicsX applies machine learning and generative AI to advanced engineering simulation across aerospace, automotive, and energy systems. The platform accelerates design loops by reducing simulation time for fluid, thermal, and structural modeling, helping industrial teams move from concept to validation faster.
