Summer Update from CFT
What a season! We began the quarter with the successful close of our $5m funding round and ended it with a toast at the Annual Summer Barbecue. It was brilliant to see so many of you here at The Bradfield Centre from across our global network – and to celebrate together in the presence of the Premier League Trophy!
I’m delighted to update you on all the Q2 highlights from Cambridge Future Tech and our ventures. At CFT, the $5m raise gives us the long-term stability to shift focus to our new sister VC arm: further strengthening our venture building capabilities. In fact, we’re proud to already have been recognised for the investments we make behind the scenes, winning highly commended ‘Early Stage Investor of the Year’ at the UK Green Business Awards this Spring.
We’ve been building out UK and international partnerships, from Cambridge Judge Business School to CERN – the home of the Large Hadron Collider. CFT’s consulting practice continues from strength-to-strength, including work with industry giants AngloAmerican plc.
Meanwhile, the research team have been strengthening relationships with the UK technology transfer ecosystem, spanning corporate, government and academic research groups. Currently they are working with technology transfer offices at Imperial, Kings, Surrey, Hull, Southampton and Cambridge Universities – with conversations ongoing with many more.
The Venture Building team have been especially busy! The Founders Development Day brought together an impressive lineup of experts, from global corporates to investors and exited founders to help our ventures scale. It was a real highlight of the year for us. See photos and read updates from each venture below.
Founders development day
Specifically designed for our ventures, the Founders Development Day brought together 18 speakers and panellists; from exited founders to investors, corporates and product specialists.
The focus of this year’s event was scaling, with particular focus on pre-seed to seed, as well as from prototype to product.
Speakers included Dr Ewan Kirk, Founder of Cantab Capital Partners (exited to GAM Investments for $200m+); John West, CEO of one of the most successful spinout companies from the University of Cambridge; Solexa (exit to Illumina for $600m); Michael Beer, CFT Board Member, CFO at Energy Vault; and Professor Chris Coleridge – the best lecturer we’ve ever had on any subject (Cambridge Judge Business School).
“It’s been a brilliant day of content, helping a lot of these early-stage founders develop the types of skill sets and the experience that they’re going to need as they go from pre-seed up to Series A levels of investment. ”
Annual summer BBQ
We were delighted to host the Premier League trophy and Women’s Super League trophy for the annual Cambridge Future Tech BBQ last week – celebrating a successful season with our friends and founders. It was brilliant to see so many of you there!
In partnership with Barclays Eagle Labs, the event raised money for The Red Hen Project – a local charity working with five primary schools in North Cambridge. Thanks to our sponsors Mishcon de Reya LLP and Mantle Space Ltd.
Read the event in the news here, and watch these fun recaps, filmed by KUCO Tech.
Award winners
Recently…
Early Stage Investor of the Year – Highly Commended, UK Green Business
IP Award, Winners, Cambridge Independent Science and Technology Awards
Startup of the Year, Highly Commended, Cambridge Independent Science and Technology Awards
CEO of the Year, Finalist, Owen Thompson, Cambridge Independent Science and Technology Awards
Announced soon…
SME Finalist – Owen Thompson, Institute Directors ‘Director of the Year’ Awards – October
Sustainability Finalist – Owen Thompson, Institute of Directors ‘Director of the Year’ Awards – October
Entrepreneur of the Year (Under 30) – Xavier Parkhouse-Parker, the British Business Awards – November
Venture news
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Nearing completion on a $6.5M pre-seed funding round
New CTO and new Head of Product joined the team in May
Product strategy progress: focusing on training tools for Tsetlin based AI models, taking customers to the next step in adoption of the technology
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Welcomed new team members: a Bioinformatician and Microbiologist. Now recruiting for an Automation Lead
Completed an accelerated KTP with Newcastle University, laying the foundation for a specialised life sciences LLM
Submitted a proposal to the British Standards Institute’s Challenger fund to create new standards for Engineering Biology, with support from approximately 30 organisations (commercial and governmental)
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Secured UK patent approval for a vascular self-healing agent, with global patent approval imminent
Awarded $1M for the second phase of a pilot project with the Railway Network GCRE
Completed the Deep Tech Labs accelerator program in Cambridge, securing investment
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Closing bridge round and launching seed round. Contact us for details!
Fully integrated three biometric sources (eye tracking, EEG, and heart rate) and tested over 15 emotions
Signed a US-based advertising customer, with more demos scheduled in the simulation, training, and creative industries
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Intensive two-month testing and paid trials during asparagus season, with Letters of Intent from all growers engaged this season
Initiated two new Innovate UK grant-backed projects worth £750K to adapt the asparagus harvester for other markets, including:
Daffodils! Did you know that an enzyme in Daffodils has now been approved to be used as part of treatment for dementia, and the largest growers of daffodils are right here in the UK?
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Launched the second-generation Cam AI model.
Utilised over 500,000 words of unique data from recorded therapy sessions
Began human-to-computer participant trials
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Demonstrated three integrations of the Secure AI platform for Defence applications at the Defence Simulation, Education & Training conference in Bristol
Announced partnerships with Pennant International Group Plc, Aquila Learning, MaxRes, and Evocatus
Delivered Secure LLM capability to the UK Land programme, now used in their Exercise Control
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Achieved significant progress in core tech development, surpassing forecast milestones. Currently in a pre-seed funding round with $380K committed and aiming to raise an additional $800K
Selected for the UK Department for Business and Trade transatlantic accelerator programme for US market entry, graduated from the inaugural HMGCC accelerate programme, and chosen for the 2024 SoCal x UK Space Accelerator with Mandala Space Ventures and the UK Space Agency
Exhibited at the inaugural CogX AI conference in LA
Cambridge Judge Business School
CFT have announced a new partnership with Cambridge Judge Entrepreneurship Centre at CJBS. As long-standing contributors to EnterpriseTECH, we will now support the EnterpriseWOMEN, EnterpriseTECH and EnterpriseTECH STAR programmes.
We recognise the immense potential of women-led ventures and the importance of diversity in the tech industry and beyond. Through this partnership, we are committing ourselves to actively support the next generation of female leaders and innovators, enabling them to access the resources, mentorship, and networks necessary to thrive in this competitive landscape.
Investing in this initiative reflects our dedication to fostering and inclusive and supportive environment where all entrepreneurs, regardless of gender, can thrive and succeed. We aim to not only enrich the entrepreneurial ecosystem but also pave the way for a more equitable and prosperous future.
Japan delegation visit
We were delighted to host an influential delegation from the Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, at The Bradfield Centre. Owen Thompson and Jane Hutchins, Director of Cambridge Science Park, led the presentations, discussing the dynamic and supportive environment that Cambridge offers for startups, particularly in DeepTech. The discussions with Minister Shindo, Japanese Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy, revolved around strategic partnerships and the nurturing of innovation that Cambridge is renowned for.
Deep Tech Investments
As we prepare to launch our VC fund alongside the venture builder, we are engaging in collaborative discussions to create a robust investment strategy that benefits all.
In June Owen hosted the first of our new ‘Dinner Party Series’ events in the Private Dining Room at Garden House Restaurant. The dinner gathered ten key stakeholders from the Cambridge ecosystem for a strategic and collaborative discussion on ‘Shaping the Future of Deep Tech Investments.’
We look forward to the next events in the series with London-based VCs in September, and European LPs in the Autumn.
Coming up: Exclusive Investor Drinks Event at Cambridge Tech Week
A reminder that our first external SPV – Outfield Technologies closes in late July. If you’re interested in joining the SPV on exclusive terms, please get in touch.
Coming up… Quantum!
As part of our venture building work, we consistently monitor the technological trends and scientific breakthroughs that govern company creation in our sectors of interest. Our analysts undertake extensive research and targeted discussions with leading academics, scientists and researchers.
As a result, we have our finger on the pulse of both the private company landscape and the pre-incorporation landscape for quantum and adjacent technologies.
The CFT Quantum Report is coming soon. A detailed view of the UK’s rich pre-incorporation landscape of quantum technologies, broken down by technological sub-sector. If you would like to recieve a preview of the report, please get in touch.
Cambridge Tech Week: 10th September We’re partnering with Tech Week to host a pitch event and an exclusive investor reception on the 10th. Save the date! More information coming soon.
As always, please do reach out to me for further information, invitations and introductions.
Thanks for your support!
Owen Thompson | CEO
