Europe’s longest serving programme for late-stage tech companies, the latest edition of the Future Fifty from Tech Nation features nine initial public offerings (IPOs) and 30 mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
The programme aims to support these companies, encouraging their growth and the creation of jobs and opportunities for talent in the UK, as well as inspiring future entrepreneurs.
“As one of Europe’s longest and most successful scaling programmes for late stage scale-ups with 163 companies collectively raising £6.1Bn so far on Tech Nation’s Future Fifty, I’m thrilled to see such an impressive array of companies,” said Gerard Grech, chief executive at Tech Nation.
“The companies joining Future Fifty 8.0 today have already raised over £1.4bn, and already employ nearly 6,000 people – Tech Nation’s ambitions for what they can achieve are as big as the entrepreneurs themselves.”
How does the government fund and support UK tech startups?
In regards to the sectors that the new joiners are in, fintech firms made up 25%, followed by software-as-a-service (SaaS) (18%), and healthtech & biotech (14%).
The list is as follows:
Atom Bank
Location: Durham
Sector: Fintech
Mark Mullen, CEO at Atom Bank, said: “To be selected for the 8th edition of Future Fifty is a huge honour. We’re a fast growing entrant from the North East and we’re proud of our roots.
“We’re excited to get started and to build a network with the country’s most successful tech companies. As the UK’s most trusted bank on Trustpilot, and one that’s recently re-platformed to Google Cloud and will use a cutting-edge technology stack and practices, we look forward to sharing our expertise and learning from others in the cohort.”
Babylon Health
Location: London
Sector: Healthtech
Dr Ali Parsa, CEO & founder of Babylon, said: “Babylon’s mission is to put an accessible and affordable health service in the hands of every person on earth, a huge ambition which can only succeed by working with others.
“The UK tech industry is changing the world and one look at the brilliant companies involved in Future Fifty shows why – we are humbled to be among them.”
Beamery
Location: London
Sector: Enterprise & cloud computing
Abakar Saidov, CEO of Beamery, said: “We’re proud to be recognised by Tech Nation as one of the most successful late-stage UK tech companies, and excited to join the next cohort of the Future Fifty.
“It’s a great opportunity for our team to network and build relationships with other top businesses in the UK, as well as connect with some of the program’s illustrious alumni.”
BenevolentAI
Location: Cambridge
Sector: AI
Baroness Joanna Shields, CEO of BenevolentAI said: “BenevolentAI could not be more excited or proud to be part of the cohort in 2020. We are a great British business and we have an important and purposeful mission to push the boundaries of technology to understand the underlying cause of diseases and to use AI and machine learning to develop more effective medicines for patients.
“We are delighted to have Future Fifty by our side for the journey ahead.”
Callsign
Location: London
Sector: Cyber security
Sarah Whipp, CMO and head of go to market strategy at Callsign, said: “To be recognised alongside these other fantastic organisations in the Future Fifty cohort is a real honour, and we are looking forward to helping further boost the UK’s amazing technology sector with these brilliant companies.
“Callsign aims to solve the issues associated with digital identity abuse, including fraud. As we ramp up our activity and strive to help people’s day-to-day lives flow without interruption we are excited to be involved with creating a solution to a global challenge which has the potential improve society in the future.”
Tech Nation’s national cyber security growth programme revealed
ComplyAdvantage
Location: London
Sector: SaaS
Charlie Delingpole, CEO and founder at ComplyAdvantage, said: “We feel honoured to have made the Future Fifty list and to be recognised alongside such an outstanding cohort who are having an incredible impact on the financial future of the UK.”
Crisp
Location: Leeds
Sector: AI
Adam Hildreth, founder and CEO of Crisp, said: “It’s great to be a part of the Tech Nation Future Fifty programme. At Crisp, we’re solving a high growth, truly global problem that affects brands, social platforms, democracy and society, and we’re looking forward to sharing our experiences and learning alongside some amazing companies.
“We’re pleased to be representing the Yorkshire tech sector. Crisp is a global-facing company, but our foundations are in Leeds, and the strong regional tech eco-system has enabled us to scale successfully.”
Cytora
Location: London
Sector: Fintech
Richard Hartley, CEO of Cytora, said: “We’re proud to be included in this year’s Future Fifty, alongside such an impressive cohort for 2020. The insurance industry is undergoing a fundamental technological shift, which we’ve seen transform other vertical industries like commercial banking in recent years, and which makes this a really exciting time for Cytora.
“As we continue to deepen our partner network and scale into new markets, we’re looking forward to learning from and supporting other successful companies at a similar juncture.”
Decibel
Location: London
Sector: SaaS
Ben Harris, CEO and co-founder of Decibel said: “Since Decibel’s founding, we’ve been committed to providing global brands with the crucial AI they need to improve customer experiences on their websites and apps.
“We’re honoured that our journey has been recognised by Tech Nation, and thrilled to be established as one of the UK’s most successful businesses by the Future Fifty.”
Duco
Location: London
Sector: SaaS
Information Age identifies the top tech startups in the UK by sector
Eigen
Location: London
Sector: AI
Dr Lewis Z. Liu, co-founder and CEO at Eigen, said: “There is real momentum right now in the European tech sector. From a global perspective, I believe European tech as a whole has come of age in the last couple of quarters.
“Organisations like Tech Nation do brilliant work in supporting this drive and ambition, so we are truly honoured to have been selected to be in the latest Future Fifty cohort.”
Elder
Location: London
Sector: Healthtech
Elvie
Location: London
Sector: Healthtech
Tania Boler, founder and CEO of Elvie, said: “We are really proud and excited to be recognised in Tech Nation’s Future Fifty programme. It has supported some of the biggest names in UK tech, such as Deliveroo and Farfetch, who have all benefited massively from inclusion on the programme.
“It comes at a great time for us at Elvie and is a testament to the team’s hard work and joint passion to transform women’s lives through smarter technology.”
gohenry
Location: London
Sector: Fintech
Louise Hill, co-founder and COO at gohenry commented: “We’re delighted to join Tech Nation’s Future Fifty programme alongside such established alumni.
“As we scale up our UK and US operations and build on our mission to help millions of kids to be good with money, we’re looking forward to working with Tech Nation to further establish gohenry as a leader in the UK tech industry – as well as a champion for Gen-Z and the youth economy.”
Healx
Location: Cambridge
Sector: Healthtech
Dr Kate Hilyard, COO at Healx, said: “At Healx, we are committed to transforming the lives of rare disease patients by harnessing the power of AI to discover and develop new treatments.
“To be accepted to the Future Fifty 8.0 programme is a great validation of Cambridge’s thriving tech ecosystem and their support of mission-driven companies that are developing tech to positively impact society.”
Laying the foundations to future-proof our NHS and power UK HealthTech
Hutch
Location: London
Sector: Digital entertainment
Peter Hansen-Chambers, CFO of Hutch, said: “It is great to join the Future Fifty programme, especially amongst such impressive company. We’re excited to begin contributing to the network.”
Landbay
Location: London
Sector: Fintech
Matillon
Location: Altrincham
Sector: Data analytics
Matthew Scullion, CEO of Matillion, said: “Matillion is proud to be recognised for our sustained, rapid growth with acceptance into the Future Fifty program for the UK’s leading late-stage technology companies.
“As a pillar in the tech ecosystem in the North West, we look forward to learning from the experiences of other powerhouses in the Future Fifty network as we continue our own contribution to the global tech economy.”
Monterosa
Location: London
Sector: SaaS
Tom McDonnell, CEO of Monterosa, said: “For media companies, sports organisations and brands, developing and retaining fans has never been a higher priority.
“Monterosa is a leading light in fan engagement and interaction, providing pioneering technology that delights fans and satisfies an increasing appetite for businesses to generate tangible value from attention.
“Joining the Future Fifty is a tremendous accolade for the team at Monterosa and our customers. We’re proud to be counted alongside an incredible alumni and to be given such an opportunity to learn.”
Ometria
Location: London
Sector: AdTech
Ivan Mazour, CEO and founder of Ometria, said: “The past year has been full of milestones for Ometria – completing our Series B, opening our New York and Southampton offices, growing our team to over 100 Ometrians – to name a few.
“It’s an honour to have that progress recognised with our inclusion in the Future Fifty, and we’re really excited to be in such great company.”
The Plum Guide, London, E-commerce
Location: London
Sector: E-commerce
Privitar
Location: London
Sector: Data analytics
Jason du Preez, CEO of Privitar, said: “Privitar is providing the leading platform for sensitive data management to the world’s largest organisations.
“Our ability to deliver the latest data privacy capabilities at scale, and with enterprise complexity has driven rapid growth over the past 5 years, and we are honoured to be recognised as one of the UK’s leading late-stage technology startups.”
Gartner: 5 trends shaping analytics and business intelligence
Thought Machine
Location: London
Sector: FinTech
Soldo
Location: London
Sector: Fintech
Carlo Gualandri, founder & CEO of Soldo, said: “We are delighted to have been selected for Tech Nation’s Future Fifty programme. Soldo has experienced huge growth over the last 12 months and we have invested heavily in developing the best technology on the market that gives businesses of all sizes the possibility to automate company cash flow in a smart way.
“We have raised a total of $81 million from notable international investors, and our team is growing fast to support high demand from companies eager to start unifying every piece of the business spending jigsaw into one elegant future-ready platform.”
Twinkl, Sheffield, Edtech
Location: Sheffield
Sector: Edtech
Jonathan Seaton, CEO and co-founder of Twinkl, said: “Twinkl was born with the mission ‘to help those who teach’, and this is still at the heart of everything that we do today. We are immensely proud that, as a digital business, our resources are available anywhere in the world, carrying our mission to help those who teach across the globe.
“We are honoured to work with and support teaching communities internationally, but we recognise that there are still more teachers to help. The Future Fifty programme will help us to secure our position as a leading digital publisher and provide us with a platform whereby we can discuss and work with others to continue expanding our reach and the support we offer.”
Vizolution, Swansea, SaaS
Location: Swansea
Sector: SaaS
Bill Safran, CEO of Vizolution, said: “As a scale up that has enjoyed considerable success so far, we decided to enter Future Fifty to expedite our expansion and are delighted to have been selected in this year’s growth programme.
“The Wales technology sector is well established, with a very supportive ecosystem, so we are incredibly proud to be the only Welsh technology company on the list. We very much look forward to sharing insights with other members and participating in the upcoming events and roundtable discussions.”
wejo
Location: Chester
Sector: Tech for good
Richard Barlow, CEO of wejo, said: “We are proud of our North West roots. We started as a small team based near Chester and now innovate on a global scale, in an industry that’s typically led by the Silicon Valley pack.
“wejo is powered by brilliant people, focused on unlocking the value in our journeys. We are only as good as our team is, which is why we opened an office in Manchester to tap into the thriving tech talent pool.”
“We are excited to be selected to join the Future Fifty 8.0 programme, alongside an impressive cohort.”
Zego
Location: London
Sector: Fintech
Previous editions of the Future Fifty have included Deliveroo, Funding Circle and Skyscanner.
