4 tech Unicorns in the South East of England

Published by

Stephen Emerson

Oxford Nanopore is one of the four Unicorns in the South East of England

According to a recent report by financial advisory company i5invest, UK tech companies accounted for 38% of European unicorns in 2021, the highest sum on the whole continent.

The report, titled The 2022 European Unicorn & Soonicorn Report, found that 41 new British start-ups reached a value of more than $1 billion last year – the benchmark to reach ‘unicorn’ status – which is some feat when you consider the country was still firmly in the grasp of Covid uncertainty. In comparison, Germany placed second on the list with 25 unicorns.

While London remains the central hub of activity when it comes to start-ups gaining the coveted unicorn status, there is still a vast sum of unicorns scattered across the country.

Here are five to watch that reside in the South East of England.

Oxford Nanopore Technologies

Oxford Nanopore Technologies, whose staff are pictured above, is a public company founded in 2005 as a spin-out from the University of Oxford. The biotech firm sells portable and industrial-sized products to sequence DNA and RNA.

On World Tuberculosis Day on March 23rd, Oxford Nanopore announced that it has co-developed a new rapid workflow shown in a Phase I study to identify DR-TB which, when validated, could help clinicians tackle the disease globally in the future.

Ceres Power Holdings

Ceres Power Holdings creates low-cost next-generation fuel cell technology to help companies deliver clean energy at scale. Based in Horsham in West Sussex, Ceres aims to play a central role in the global transition to clean, affordable energy to help tackle climate change and air pollution.

In early March, the firm announced an agreement with HORIBA MIRA, a European automotive engineering and testing consultancy, to expand the UK’s delivery of new fuel cell and hydrogen technology at scale to international markets.

Adaptimmune

Based in Abingdon in Oxfordshire, Adaptimmune focuses on TCR T-cell therapy, designing and delivering novel cancer immunotherapy products. The company uses the human body’s T-cell to target and destroy cancer cells.

In September 2021, Adaptimmune entered a strategic collaboration and license agreement with Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, to develop and commercialise allogeneic cell therapies to treat multiple oncology indications. The collaboration has two parts; the development of allogeneic T-cell therapies for up to five shared cancer targets, and the development of personalised allogeneic T-cell therapies.

Exscientia

One of the biggest tech deals of 2021 was the £396 million Series D raise by Oxford-based AI drug discovery company Exscientia, helping to boost the company to unicorn status. The company believes that actively applying AI to precision engineer medicines more rapidly and efficiently will enable people to live more healthy and productive lives.

Last month, Exscientia and the University of Oxford Target Discovery Institute announced the formation of Xcellomics, a programme designed to source cellular functional assays from the global academic community to develop novel screens and identify targets and therapeutic candidates for unmet medical needs.

Stephen Emerson

Stephen Emerson is the Managing Editor of The Business Magazine and is responsible for the publication's print publications and online properties including the newly launched Biz News websites in Hampshire and Dorset. Stephen has been a journalist for 20 years and has worked at local, regional and national publications and led a team which made The Scotsman website one of the fastest growing news sites in the UK with over eight million monthly users. He has a keen interest in technology, property and corporate finance and telling the stories of the people behind the successful firms in these sectors.