UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund

The UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (formerly known as The Rainbow Seed Fund) is a £27.1m early-stage venture capital fund building and growing technology companies stemming from the UK’s research base.

We help build companies from great science developed in: public laboratories, science and technology campuses and synthetic biology.

We hold investments in some of the UK’s most innovative companies, in areas as diverse as novel antibiotics, research into Alzheimer’s disease, “green” chemicals and airport security.

UKI2S Investments

We’re prepared to invest early and help build a commercial proposition around a technology to attract additional investment needed to get to market.

UKI2S Investment Criteria

In order for the Fund to consider investing into your company you must meet at least one of the following criteria:

1. Projects and companies arise from world-class research carried out in our partner laboratories across the UK, including those at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (STFC), Babraham Institute (BBSRC) and Porton Down (Dstl).

2. Companies are based at our partners’ national science and innovation campuses in Harwell Oxford, Babraham Cambridge, Daresbury Warrington, Norwich, Rothamsted, NOC Southampton, or at one of the Centres for Agricultural innovation.

3. UK Companies working in the field of synthetic biology: Synthetic biology is the design and engineering of biologically-based parts, novel devices and systems and the redesign of existing, natural biological systems.

4. Members of the Fund, who must be working with one of our partner laboratories.

5. Companies working with a Catapult centre under a competitively awarded funded programme or based on intellectual property licensed from a Catapult centre.

Economic Value Generated By The Fund Since Its Creation In 2002

A key part of our value in economic terms is in the pivotal early role we play in getting technology companies off the ground, often whilst they are still in the laboratory and before they are ready to spin out. Many of our companies might never have made it, if it had not been for our support and the technologies and services they offer would not have progressed beyond an interesting concept.

What We And Our Companies Have Already Achieved

We have helped to create over 30 high technology start-up companies in sectors such as health, environmental services, international development and security.
We have leveraged over £190 million of private investment into our portfolio companies. This represents a ratio of over £20 for every £1 invested from UKI2S.
Over and above co-investment, we have helped generate wider economic impact in the form of salaries, taxes and economic activity in suppliers. Known as “Gross Value Add” (GVA), this measurement, at £5 of GVA for every £1 invested by UKI2S, already shows the benefit of early stage investment, and is forecasted to grow substantially as the companies mature and grow.
We have bolstered the UK’s exports – an overwhelming majority of sales in UKI2S companies are overseas and total sales have already reached over £70m.
We have helped to create over 240 high value technology-related jobs, a figure that is rising rapidly as the companies accelerate and transition from research into production and sales.
The Fund has already had four successful exits and has recycled the funds into new investments. It still holds significant stakes in some very promising companies that we expect to realize in coming years.

In recognition of these achievements, in November 2013 the UKI2S received an additional £10M investment to support the commercialisation of synthetic biology technologies.

This funding was in response to the Synthetic Biology Roadmap, which sets out plans to harness opportunities in the field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology is one of the eight great technologies highlighted by the UK government as an area of wide-ranging significance and potential economic importance, and in which the UK’s research base is particularly strong.