A leading global venture capital firm has cautioned that Britain’s flagship tax-incentivised investment schemes are leaving early-stage businesses stranded, with fewer than one in 25 companies funded solely through them ever raising another penny.
Category: Get Funded
British Business Bank backs record-breaking Ineffable Intelligence raise as UK doubles down on superintelligence ambitions
The British Business Bank and the Government’s Sovereign AI Fund have backed David Silver’s Ineffable Intelligence in Europe’s largest-ever seed round, worth $1.1bn.
Bubble Robotics surfaces from stealth with $5m to build the ocean’s autonomous workforce
Bubble Robotics has emerged from stealth with $5m in pre-seed funding to deploy persistent autonomous robots across offshore wind, subsea cables and maritime security operations.
British deep-tech start-up loc.ai raises £1m to break SMEs free from the cloud’s ‘inference tax’
British deep-tech start-up Loc.ai has raised £1m led by Fuel Ventures to shift AI inference off the cloud and onto users’ own devices, easing SaaS margin pressure and bolstering UK data sovereignty.
British Business Bank anchors Northern Gritstone’s £20m rolling close as northern deeptech push gathers pace
British Business Bank commits £10m as cornerstone investor in Northern Gritstone’s £20m rolling close, lifting the VC firm’s permanent capital to £382m to back Northern deeptech and life sciences spinouts.
Bezos’s physical AI lab Prometheus nears $10bn raise at $38bn valuation
Jeff Bezos’s physical AI venture Project Prometheus is closing in on a $10bn funding round at a $38bn valuation, with BlackRock and JPMorgan on board.
Craft Gin Club teeters on brink as Dragons’ Den darling pleads with bondholders
Sarah Willingham-backed Craft Gin Club warns of administration unless lenders approve a CVA wiping £4.2m of debt and ending free gin deliveries to bondholders.
Arrival secures £500,000 to untangle Britain’s broken utilities market for renters
UK fintech Arrival has raised £500,000 in a Fuel Ventures-led pre-seed round to cut tenant utility setup from half a day to under three minutes and tackle £470m in annual rent arrears.
Founders push for ‘repeat entrepreneur relief’ to keep exit capital flowing back into UK start-ups
Entrepreneurs are urging the Treasury to introduce a capital gains tax deferral for founders who reinvest exit proceeds into new UK ventures within 12 months, as lobbying intensifies around repeat entrepreneur relief.
SpaceX woos the small investor as Musk eyes the biggest flotation in stock market history
SpaceX is planning the largest IPO in history, targeting a $2tn valuation with up to 30% of shares reserved for retail investors. Here’s what UK investors need to know.
Monzo co-founder backs pension start-up Compound in £500,000 raise to shake up workplace savings
Workplace pension start-up Compound has raised £500,000 with backing from Monzo co-founder Paul Rippon and Fuel Ventures to challenge legacy providers in a market plagued by poor technology and rising opt-out rates.
Government’s £100m pledge for innovators dismissed as a drop in the ocean after £25bn National Insurance raid
The government has announced £100m in new investment for start-ups and scale-ups through expanded EIS, VCT and EMI schemes, but business leaders say established firms paying higher National Insurance are being left behind.
British Business Bank backs 9fin with $20m as fintech reaches unicorn status
The British Business Bank invests $20m in 9fin as the AI fintech reaches unicorn status in a $170m funding round led by HarbourVest.
WHOOP raises $575m at $10bn valuation to scale global health platform
WHOOP secures $575m in Series G funding at a $10.1bn valuation to expand its AI-powered personalised health platform globally.
Innovate UK names winners of first Agentic AI pioneers prize
Innovate UK announces winners of its Agentic AI Pioneers Prize, awarding funding to startups advancing AI in life sciences, manufacturing and creative sectors.
