92 active accelerators, incubators, grants and VCs across the UK. We check them weekly and flag the deadlines closing soon.
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Run by: Imperial College London·Backed by: Imperial College London
£100K prizes — no equity
Seed-stage startups with deep technology from Imperial College London research or the broader Imperial ecosystem. Focus on hard science and engineering.
3-month programme (Aug-Nov 2026) for Imperial students/alumni/ECRs; 25 teams; £100k prize fund
Run by: Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) at Oxford Saïd·Backed by: Oxford Saïd Business School
None (no standard cash; objectives-based) — no equity
Science-based ventures in quantum, space, climate, health, or computational biology. Technical founders with deep IP or breakthrough technology.
First European CDL location (2019); streams across AI, Climate, FinTech, Space, Advanced Therapies; 80+ ventures/year
Run by: University of Warwick·Backed by: University of Warwick
None (no cash) — no equity
AI and data-driven startups at pre-seed or seed stage. University of Warwick affiliated or in the West Midlands ecosystem preferred.
Kick-off 17 Sept 2026; for UK-registered AI/data-science companies; in-person at Warwick Innovation District
Run by: Innovate UK
Up to £150K per spin-out — no equity
Funder: Innovate UK. Backs deep-tech university spin-outs created in the last 24 months that have completed ICURe; IP from a UK research org.
Run by: UCL (University College London)·Backed by: UCL
None (no cash) — no equity
UCL students, staff, and recent alumni with early-stage ventures. Any sector. Must demonstrate innovation and commitment to building a company.
2-year equity-free incubator; Autumn 2026 cohort starts 15 Oct 2026; intakes twice yearly
Run by: Conception X·Backed by: XTX Markets, Barclays
TBD for TBD
PhD researchers and postdocs building deep-tech ventures from their research. AI, quantum, advanced materials, synthetic biology, or computational science.
9-month programme; ~100 PhD founders/yr; 191 deeptech companies built; 3 exits
Run by: Seedcamp
$350K-$1M for 7-10%
Pre-seed founders with big ideas tackling large markets. Sector-agnostic but strong interest in B2B SaaS, fintech, AI/ML, and developer tools. European focus.
550+ portfolio companies; $100bn+ enterprise value; rolling intake
Run by: Entrepreneur First (EF)·Backed by: Reid Hoffman, Matt Clifford
Up to $250K for 8%
Outstanding individuals before they have a company. Deep technical talent, domain experts, and ambitious operators ready to find a co-founder and build from scratch.
Rolling early/regular deadlines; equity-free grant + up to $250k investment
Run by: Oxford University Innovation·Backed by: University of Oxford
£10K for 5% (Phase 2)
Startups licensing or spinning out University of Oxford research and IP. Any sector — typically deep tech, biotech, medtech, or AI.
Incubator for Oxford spin-outs and founded IP; 350+ companies created since 1987
Run by: SETsquared Partnership·Backed by: University of Bristol, Bath, Surrey, Exeter, Southampton
£172-£230/month membership fee — no equity
Tech startups in the South West of England. Preference for deep tech, cleantech, healthtech, and space. Pre-seed to seed stage.
270 members; £500M+ raised; ranked #1 UK university incubator by FT
Run by: SETsquared / Innovate UK·Backed by: Innovate UK
Up to £35K — no equity
Researchers from UK universities ready to validate the commercial potential of their research through customer discovery. UKRI-funded research preferred.
3+ month customer-discovery programme; lean start-up methodology; Innovate UK funded
Run by: Scottish Enterprise·Backed by: Scottish Enterprise, £15M fund
From £15M Scottish Enterprise fund for Varies
Tech startups based in Scotland at pre-seed to seed stage. Sector-agnostic but strong interest in fintech, healthtech, and creative industries.
18-month venture-building programme; 116 companies supported; £51M+ raised
Run by: Superseed·Backed by: British Business Bank (BBB-backed NPIF II)
Seed-stage for Seed equity
Pre-seed European startups in B2B SaaS, infrastructure, and deep tech. Looking for exceptional technical founders with unique domain insights.
Pre-seed/seed VC backing applied-AI founders; rolling investment model
Run by: Birmingham City University (BCU)·Backed by: BCU, ERDF
None (no cash) — no equity
Creative and digital startups in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Makers, designers, and creative tech founders with physical or digital products.
Rolling monthly applications (3pm last day of month); pre-incubator and incubator at Birmingham City University
Run by: University of Cambridge / Cambridge Enterprise·Backed by: University of Cambridge
£30K-£100K for SAFE (20% discount)
University of Cambridge students and researchers exploring entrepreneurship. Very early stage — idea or research with commercial potential.
Part of Founders at the University of Cambridge; £30k upfront + up to £70k match; alumni raised £14m+
Run by: Cylon Ventures
Angel-scale for Angel-scale equity
Cybersecurity startups at pre-seed to seed stage. Products addressing enterprise security, identity, cloud security, IoT/OT security, or threat intelligence.
Rolling investments
Run by: DASA·Backed by: Ministry of Defence (MOD)
£30K-£500K grants — no equity
Innovative companies and researchers with solutions for UK defence and security challenges. Open to any stage, from concept to commercial product.
Proposal-based funding; now part of UK Defence Innovation
Run by: Digital Catapult·Backed by: Digital Catapult, Invest NI
None (no cash) — no equity
Digital twin, IoT, and simulation technology startups. Smart city, infrastructure monitoring, or industrial digital twin applications.
UK Digital Twin Centre: research, SME adoption and industry accelerator programmes
Run by: Google·Backed by: Google
None (no cash) — no equity
AI-first startups building transformative products. Must demonstrate innovative use of AI/ML. Google Cloud credits and mentorship provided.
12-week hybrid accelerator for Seed-Series A UK tech startups; equity-free
Run by: Backed VC
$500K-$5M for Seed equity
Pre-seed and seed-stage European B2B software companies. Strong technical founders building for large enterprise markets. Sector-agnostic.
Seed-stage fund; 100+ portfolio companies across fintech, blockchain, healthtech
Run by: Innovate UK / EPSRC
£50K–£100K — no equity
Funder: Innovate UK / EPSRC. 3–6 month feasibility studies for innovative advanced-materials technologies with industrial relevance.
Run by: Imperial College London·Backed by: Imperial College London
£30K prizes — no equity
Women and non-binary entrepreneurs from the Imperial community. Very early stage — idea to MVP. Any sector with technology component.
6-month programme (Jan-Jun 2026) for women-led teams; £30k equity-free prize fund
Run by: Innovate UK·Backed by: UKRI / UK Government
£50K-£2M grants — no equity
UK-based innovative businesses with strong IP, validated technology (TRL 5+), and a clear path to commercial scaling. All sectors, £25K–£50K grants.
Rolling/continuous funding for early-stage UK businesses; most recent round closed Feb 2026
Run by: NATO DIANA·Backed by: NATO
€100K-€400K — no equity
Dual-use startups addressing NATO priority areas: energy resilience, secure communications, sensing, space, or emerging disruptive technologies. Must have defence/security application.
Challenge-call based; last call closed mid-2025; next challenge call expected summer 2026
Run by: Plexal·Backed by: DSIT (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
None (no cash) — no equity
Cyber security startups at any stage addressing critical national infrastructure, cloud security, or digital identity. Must be UK-based.
UK's largest cyber accelerator; streams Grow/Scale/Ignite/CNI; cohort one had 48 startups
Run by: Royal Academy of Engineering·Backed by: Royal Academy of Engineering
£20K grant — no equity
Engineering and technology ventures in underrepresented UK regions. Must have novel engineering innovation with commercial potential.
6-month pre-accelerator; £20k equity-free grant; 186 founders supported
Run by: Seraphim Space
Varies for Small equity stake (varies)
Space and geospatial technology startups at seed stage or later. Satellite data, launch, in-orbit services, Earth observation, or space-enabled applications.
120+ alumni across 30+ countries; $695M raised; 85% raise within 12 months post-programme
Run by: Baltic Ventures / LCRCA·Backed by: Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA)
£25K-£100K for ASA 20% discount
Startups in the North East of England, particularly Newcastle/Gateshead. Creative, digital, and tech sectors. Pre-seed to seed stage.
3-month in-person cohort Sept-Nov 2026 in Liverpool; up to 12 companies; £25k initial, up to £100k total
Run by: Cambridge Judge Business School·Backed by: University of Cambridge
Free — no equity
Cambridge-affiliated entrepreneurs at idea to early-revenue stage. Must have a connection to the University of Cambridge ecosystem.
11-week structured programme; 498 ventures supported since 2013, 110 funded, £781m+ raised
Run by: University of Edinburgh·Backed by: University of Edinburgh
£8K stipend — no equity
AI and data science startups with novel approaches. Scotland-based or willing to relocate. Strong technical founding team required.
6-month equity-free programme + £8k stipend; Cohort 10 closed; next cohort Sept 2026