Who is building what?

Artificial Intelligence

• Arm

  Processor architecture and semiconductor IP company whose designs are licensed into the majority of the world's mobile devices.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Congenica

  Clinical genomics software used to interpret genomic data in diagnostic settings.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• AstraZeneca

  Global pharmaceutical company with its strategic research centre and headquarters in Cambridge.

  Cambridge · Large corporate

• Darktrace

  Cambridge-founded cyber security company applying machine learning to network defence, now under international private ownership.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Quantinuum

  Quantum computing company with significant Cambridge software and research operations within an international group.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Oxa

  Autonomous vehicle software company deploying self-driving systems in industrial and public transport settings.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Google DeepMind

  AI research laboratory founded in London and now the AI research division of an international technology group.

  London · Large corporate

• Wayve

  Develops embodied AI driving software trained end-to-end rather than through hand-coded rules.

  London · Scale-up

• Synthesia

  AI video generation platform used for enterprise communication and training content.

  London · Scale-up

• Quantexa

  Decision intelligence platform used by banks and government for entity resolution and financial crime detection.

  London · Scale-up

• BenevolentAI

  Applies machine learning to target identification and drug discovery.

  London · Scale-up

• Graphcore

  Designs Intelligence Processing Units for machine learning workloads; now part of an international technology group with Bristol operations retained.

  Bristol & Bath · Established company

• XMOS

  Fabless semiconductor company producing multi-core processors for voice and audio edge AI.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Peak

  Applied AI company building decision intelligence software for commercial and supply chain teams.

  Manchester · Scale-up

• Auto Trader

  Listed digital automotive marketplace with a large Manchester engineering and data organisation.

  Manchester · Established company

• Kainos

  Listed digital services and software company headquartered in Belfast.

  Belfast · Established company

• JLR

  Vehicle manufacturer with engineering, electrification and software operations across the West Midlands.

  Birmingham & the West Midlands · Large corporate

Life Sciences

• CMR Surgical

  Designs and manufactures the Versius surgical robotic system for minimal access surgery.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Bicycle Therapeutics

  Develops bicyclic peptide therapeutics, with research operations on the Cambridge biomedical campus.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Congenica

  Clinical genomics software used to interpret genomic data in diagnostic settings.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• AstraZeneca

  Global pharmaceutical company with its strategic research centre and headquarters in Cambridge.

  Cambridge · Large corporate

• Oxford Nanopore Technologies

  Develops nanopore-based DNA and RNA sequencing devices, from handheld to high-throughput.

  Oxford · Established company

• Immunocore

  Develops T cell receptor bispecific immunotherapies, with headquarters in Oxfordshire.

  Oxford · Established company

• Barinthus Biotherapeutics

  Immunotherapeutics company founded on Oxford vaccine research.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Google DeepMind

  AI research laboratory founded in London and now the AI research division of an international technology group.

  London · Large corporate

• GSK

  Global biopharma company headquartered in London with UK research and manufacturing operations.

  London · Large corporate

• BenevolentAI

  Applies machine learning to target identification and drug discovery.

  London · Scale-up

• Open Bionics

  Designs and manufactures 3D-printed bionic arms for children and adults.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Tissue Regenix

  Develops decellularised biological scaffolds for surgical and wound care applications.

  Leeds & West Yorkshire · Scale-up

• AstraZeneca Speke

  Biologics and vaccine manufacturing site in Liverpool.

  Liverpool City Region · Large corporate

• Kromek

  Develops cadmium zinc telluride radiation detection technology for medical, security and nuclear markets.

  Newcastle & the North East · Scale-up

• Creo Medical

  Develops electrosurgical devices for minimally invasive endoscopic procedures.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Scale-up

• Ilika

  Develops solid-state battery technology for medical devices and electric vehicles.

  Southampton & Portsmouth · Scale-up

Advanced Manufacturing

• Vertical Aerospace

  Developing an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, designed and assembled in the South West.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Open Bionics

  Designs and manufactures 3D-printed bionic arms for children and adults.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• ITM Power

  Manufactures PEM electrolysers for green hydrogen production at its Sheffield gigafactory.

  Sheffield & Rotherham · Established company

• Sheffield Forgemasters

  Large-scale steel casting and forging business, owned by the Ministry of Defence, supplying defence and civil nuclear programmes.

  Sheffield & Rotherham · Established company

• AstraZeneca Speke

  Biologics and vaccine manufacturing site in Liverpool.

  Liverpool City Region · Large corporate

• Nissan Sunderland Plant

  Vehicle manufacturing plant producing electric and hybrid vehicles in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• AESC UK

  Battery cell manufacturer operating and expanding gigafactory capacity in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• SeAH Wind

  Offshore wind monopile manufacturing facility on Teesside.

  Teesside & the Humber · Large corporate

• SPTS Technologies

  Manufactures semiconductor wafer processing equipment in Newport within an international group.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Large corporate

• Creo Medical

  Develops electrosurgical devices for minimally invasive endoscopic procedures.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Scale-up

• Thales Belfast

  Defence manufacturing site producing air defence and weapon systems in Belfast.

  Belfast · Large corporate

• BAE Systems Maritime, Portsmouth

  Naval ship support, combat systems and maritime engineering operation in Portsmouth.

  Southampton & Portsmouth · Large corporate

• Rolls-Royce, Derby

  Aero engine and small modular reactor engineering and manufacturing operation in Derby.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

• Toyota Manufacturing UK, Burnaston

  Vehicle manufacturing plant producing hybrid vehicles in Derbyshire.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

• JLR

  Vehicle manufacturer with engineering, electrification and software operations across the West Midlands.

  Birmingham & the West Midlands · Large corporate

Advanced Materials

• Paragraf

  Manufactures graphene-based electronic devices using a contamination-free production process.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Nyobolt

  Develops fast-charging battery systems based on niobium tungsten oxide anode materials.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Tokamak Energy

  Develops spherical tokamak fusion technology and high temperature superconducting magnets.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Oxford PV

  Commercialises perovskite-on-silicon tandem solar cell technology.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Oxford Instruments

  Manufactures cryogenic, imaging and nanofabrication instruments used in quantum and materials research worldwide.

  Oxford · Established company

• Ultraleap

  Hand tracking and mid-air haptics technology company founded on University of Bristol research.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Watercycle Technologies

  Develops direct lithium extraction and mineral recovery from water using membrane and crystallisation technology.

  Manchester · Start-up

• Tissue Regenix

  Develops decellularised biological scaffolds for surgical and wound care applications.

  Leeds & West Yorkshire · Scale-up

• Unilever Port Sunlight R&D

  Materials innovation centre carrying out formulation and materials science research on the Wirral.

  Liverpool City Region · Large corporate

• Kromek

  Develops cadmium zinc telluride radiation detection technology for medical, security and nuclear markets.

  Newcastle & the North East · Scale-up

• IQE

  Supplies compound semiconductor epitaxial wafers to global chip manufacturers from South Wales.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Established company

• Ilika

  Develops solid-state battery technology for medical devices and electric vehicles.

  Southampton & Portsmouth · Scale-up

Quantum Technologies

• Riverlane

  Builds the quantum error correction stack that quantum computers need to run useful workloads.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Nu Quantum

  Develops quantum networking hardware to connect quantum processors into larger systems.

  Cambridge · Start-up

• Quantinuum

  Quantum computing company with significant Cambridge software and research operations within an international group.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Oxford Ionics

  Trapped-ion quantum computing company using standard semiconductor manufacturing, now part of an international quantum group.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Oxford Instruments

  Manufactures cryogenic, imaging and nanofabrication instruments used in quantum and materials research worldwide.

  Oxford · Established company

• Oxford Quantum Circuits

  Superconducting quantum computing company providing quantum computing as a service from UK data centres.

  London · Scale-up

Semiconductors

• Arm

  Processor architecture and semiconductor IP company whose designs are licensed into the majority of the world's mobile devices.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Nu Quantum

  Develops quantum networking hardware to connect quantum processors into larger systems.

  Cambridge · Start-up

• Paragraf

  Manufactures graphene-based electronic devices using a contamination-free production process.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Oxford Ionics

  Trapped-ion quantum computing company using standard semiconductor manufacturing, now part of an international quantum group.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Oxford Instruments

  Manufactures cryogenic, imaging and nanofabrication instruments used in quantum and materials research worldwide.

  Oxford · Established company

• Graphcore

  Designs Intelligence Processing Units for machine learning workloads; now part of an international technology group with Bristol operations retained.

  Bristol & Bath · Established company

• XMOS

  Fabless semiconductor company producing multi-core processors for voice and audio edge AI.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• pureLiFi

  Develops LiFi optical wireless communications technology.

  Edinburgh · Scale-up

• IQE

  Supplies compound semiconductor epitaxial wafers to global chip manufacturers from South Wales.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Established company

• SPTS Technologies

  Manufactures semiconductor wafer processing equipment in Newport within an international group.

  Cardiff & South Wales · Large corporate

Robotics & Autonomous Systems

• CMR Surgical

  Designs and manufactures the Versius surgical robotic system for minimal access surgery.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Oxa

  Autonomous vehicle software company deploying self-driving systems in industrial and public transport settings.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Wayve

  Develops embodied AI driving software trained end-to-end rather than through hand-coded rules.

  London · Scale-up

• Open Bionics

  Designs and manufactures 3D-printed bionic arms for children and adults.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

Space

• AAC Clyde Space

  Designs and builds small satellites and subsystems in Glasgow within a Swedish-listed group.

  Glasgow & the Central Belt · Scale-up

• Spire Global Glasgow

  Satellite manufacturing and space data operation in Glasgow within an international group.

  Glasgow & the Central Belt · Large corporate

• Goonhilly Earth Station

  Commercial deep space communications and satellite ground station operator in Cornwall.

  Cornwall & Plymouth · Scale-up

Clean Energy

• Nyobolt

  Develops fast-charging battery systems based on niobium tungsten oxide anode materials.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Tokamak Energy

  Develops spherical tokamak fusion technology and high temperature superconducting magnets.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Oxford PV

  Commercialises perovskite-on-silicon tandem solar cell technology.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Vertical Aerospace

  Developing an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, designed and assembled in the South West.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Watercycle Technologies

  Develops direct lithium extraction and mineral recovery from water using membrane and crystallisation technology.

  Manchester · Start-up

• ITM Power

  Manufactures PEM electrolysers for green hydrogen production at its Sheffield gigafactory.

  Sheffield & Rotherham · Established company

• Sheffield Forgemasters

  Large-scale steel casting and forging business, owned by the Ministry of Defence, supplying defence and civil nuclear programmes.

  Sheffield & Rotherham · Established company

• Nissan Sunderland Plant

  Vehicle manufacturing plant producing electric and hybrid vehicles in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• AESC UK

  Battery cell manufacturer operating and expanding gigafactory capacity in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• SeAH Wind

  Offshore wind monopile manufacturing facility on Teesside.

  Teesside & the Humber · Large corporate

• Ilika

  Develops solid-state battery technology for medical devices and electric vehicles.

  Southampton & Portsmouth · Scale-up

• Rolls-Royce, Derby

  Aero engine and small modular reactor engineering and manufacturing operation in Derby.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

Engineering Biology

• Bicycle Therapeutics

  Develops bicyclic peptide therapeutics, with research operations on the Cambridge biomedical campus.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• AstraZeneca

  Global pharmaceutical company with its strategic research centre and headquarters in Cambridge.

  Cambridge · Large corporate

• Oxford Nanopore Technologies

  Develops nanopore-based DNA and RNA sequencing devices, from handheld to high-throughput.

  Oxford · Established company

• Barinthus Biotherapeutics

  Immunotherapeutics company founded on Oxford vaccine research.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• GSK

  Global biopharma company headquartered in London with UK research and manufacturing operations.

  London · Large corporate

• Unilever Port Sunlight R&D

  Materials innovation centre carrying out formulation and materials science research on the Wirral.

  Liverpool City Region · Large corporate

• Tropic Biosciences

  Applies gene editing to tropical crops including banana and coffee from a Norwich research base.

  Norwich & the East · Scale-up

Creative Industries

• Synthesia

  AI video generation platform used for enterprise communication and training content.

  London · Scale-up

• Improbable

  Builds large-scale simulation and virtual world technology for entertainment and defence customers.

  London · Scale-up

• Ultraleap

  Hand tracking and mid-air haptics technology company founded on University of Bristol research.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

Financial Technology

• Quantexa

  Decision intelligence platform used by banks and government for entity resolution and financial crime detection.

  London · Scale-up

• Wise

  Cross-border payments company listed in London and operating internationally.

  London · Established company

• Monzo

  UK digital bank built on its own technology platform.

  London · Established company

Defence & Security

• Darktrace

  Cambridge-founded cyber security company applying machine learning to network defence, now under international private ownership.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Improbable

  Builds large-scale simulation and virtual world technology for entertainment and defence customers.

  London · Scale-up

• Sheffield Forgemasters

  Large-scale steel casting and forging business, owned by the Ministry of Defence, supplying defence and civil nuclear programmes.

  Sheffield & Rotherham · Established company

• Kromek

  Develops cadmium zinc telluride radiation detection technology for medical, security and nuclear markets.

  Newcastle & the North East · Scale-up

• Thales Belfast

  Defence manufacturing site producing air defence and weapon systems in Belfast.

  Belfast · Large corporate

• BAE Systems Maritime, Portsmouth

  Naval ship support, combat systems and maritime engineering operation in Portsmouth.

  Southampton & Portsmouth · Large corporate

• Rolls-Royce, Derby

  Aero engine and small modular reactor engineering and manufacturing operation in Derby.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

AgriTech & FoodTech

• Unilever Port Sunlight R&D

  Materials innovation centre carrying out formulation and materials science research on the Wirral.

  Liverpool City Region · Large corporate

• Spire Global Glasgow

  Satellite manufacturing and space data operation in Glasgow within an international group.

  Glasgow & the Central Belt · Large corporate

• Tropic Biosciences

  Applies gene editing to tropical crops including banana and coffee from a Norwich research base.

  Norwich & the East · Scale-up

Mobility & Transport Technology

• Nyobolt

  Develops fast-charging battery systems based on niobium tungsten oxide anode materials.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Oxa

  Autonomous vehicle software company deploying self-driving systems in industrial and public transport settings.

  Oxford · Scale-up

• Wayve

  Develops embodied AI driving software trained end-to-end rather than through hand-coded rules.

  London · Scale-up

• Vertical Aerospace

  Developing an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, designed and assembled in the South West.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Auto Trader

  Listed digital automotive marketplace with a large Manchester engineering and data organisation.

  Manchester · Established company

• Nissan Sunderland Plant

  Vehicle manufacturing plant producing electric and hybrid vehicles in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• AESC UK

  Battery cell manufacturer operating and expanding gigafactory capacity in Sunderland.

  Newcastle & the North East · Large corporate

• Rolls-Royce, Derby

  Aero engine and small modular reactor engineering and manufacturing operation in Derby.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

• Toyota Manufacturing UK, Burnaston

  Vehicle manufacturing plant producing hybrid vehicles in Derbyshire.

  Nottingham & Derby · Large corporate

• JLR

  Vehicle manufacturer with engineering, electrification and software operations across the West Midlands.

  Birmingham & the West Midlands · Large corporate

Digital Technologies

• Arm

  Processor architecture and semiconductor IP company whose designs are licensed into the majority of the world's mobile devices.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Riverlane

  Builds the quantum error correction stack that quantum computers need to run useful workloads.

  Cambridge · Scale-up

• Darktrace

  Cambridge-founded cyber security company applying machine learning to network defence, now under international private ownership.

  Cambridge · Established company

• Synthesia

  AI video generation platform used for enterprise communication and training content.

  London · Scale-up

• Quantexa

  Decision intelligence platform used by banks and government for entity resolution and financial crime detection.

  London · Scale-up

• Improbable

  Builds large-scale simulation and virtual world technology for entertainment and defence customers.

  London · Scale-up

• Monzo

  UK digital bank built on its own technology platform.

  London · Established company

• Oxford Quantum Circuits

  Superconducting quantum computing company providing quantum computing as a service from UK data centres.

  London · Scale-up

• Ultraleap

  Hand tracking and mid-air haptics technology company founded on University of Bristol research.

  Bristol & Bath · Scale-up

• Peak

  Applied AI company building decision intelligence software for commercial and supply chain teams.

  Manchester · Scale-up

• Auto Trader

  Listed digital automotive marketplace with a large Manchester engineering and data organisation.

  Manchester · Established company

• pureLiFi

  Develops LiFi optical wireless communications technology.

  Edinburgh · Scale-up

• AAC Clyde Space

  Designs and builds small satellites and subsystems in Glasgow within a Swedish-listed group.

  Glasgow & the Central Belt · Scale-up

• Spire Global Glasgow

  Satellite manufacturing and space data operation in Glasgow within an international group.

  Glasgow & the Central Belt · Large corporate

• Kainos

  Listed digital services and software company headquartered in Belfast.

  Belfast · Established company

• Goonhilly Earth Station

  Commercial deep space communications and satellite ground station operator in Cornwall.

  Cornwall & Plymouth · Scale-up

Related

Directory last verified: 15 August 2026

Proposed by UKIZ · not a government designation