Last month, the Financial Times and Statista released their annual startup rankings, showing that the Enterprise Hub had climbed to the number one spot in the UK.
The Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Hub's Director, Ana Avaliani reflects on this achievement, how we got here, and why it matters.
The Enterprise Hub mission
Our mission has always been ambitious, yet simple: unlock the potential of bold engineers and innovators, and remove the barriers that stop world-changing innovation from becoming world-impacting businesses.
Engineering sits at the centre of solutions to the most complex environmental, economic and societal challenges of our time. If the UK is to lead in deep tech we must ensure engineering founders are supported to start, endure and scale their businesses.
We back IP-rich engineering and technology ventures from ideation through to scaleup. But programmes alone are not the answer.
What sets the Enterprise Hub apart is our long-term commitment and founder centric approach. When a founder joins one of our programmes, they become a Hub Member for life. Entrepreneurship is not linear. The real challenges often appear years after launch, during scale, market entry, regulatory navigation, and international expansion.
Our role is to:
- Provide trusted technical and commercial insight
- Unlock access to patient capital
- Connect founders to informed investors who understand deep tech timelines
- Convene policymakers, industry leaders and Academy Fellows
- Offer a community that continues long after grant funding ends
Through the Academy’s convening power, we open doors that would otherwise remain closed. Those relationships are often transformational.
Ana Avaliani, Director of Enterprise at the Royal Academy of Engineering
We set out to build a deep tech ecosystem where innovation thrives, and this achievement shows what’s possible when exceptional talent is given the right platform to grow.
It reflects the strength of our community, the bold ambition of our portfolio, and the dedication of our mentors, partners, and team.
We also work beyond individual ventures to address systemic barriers. Reports such as State of UK Deep Tech and Spotlight on Spinouts combine data with founders’ lived experience to inform investors, universities, industry and government. Evidence led insight helps shape the conditions engineering-led companies need to thrive.
We take no equity, no fees and no IP. That independence matters. It allows us to focus on excellence, responsibility and long-term impact not short-term return.
Dorian Haci, Founder of MintNeuro. Hub Member
The Enterprise Hub transformed my research into a venture, providing mentorship, funding and networks that made MintNeuro possible.
Why a ‘beyond programme’ approach matters to the UK ecosystem
Over the past decade, we have:
- Supported 600+ engineering entrepreneurs
- Awarded £19m+ in grant funding
- Helped create 6,100+ jobs
- Enabled £3.8bn+ in follow-on investment
But the real impact is broader. Engineering-led startups are capital intensive, technically complex and strategically important. When they succeed, they strengthen national resilience, boost productivity, anchor supply chains, and generate high-value regional jobs.
That's why place matters
Through our growing regional Enterprise Hub network central to the Academy’s 2030 strategy, we are embedding a place-based model of innovation across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Thriving regional ecosystems are essential to the UK’s long-term prosperity. Innovation does not happen in isolation. It happens in communities.
Engineering a better future for the UK
Being recognised as the UK’s top startup hub is something we are immensely proud of. But we don’t see it as the destination.
Our ambition is to enable innovation that delivers inclusive economic growth and sustainable societal impact. We are bridging the gap between engineering expertise and commercial acumen, scaling engineering innovations into successful global businesses. We are on a mission to engineer a better future for the UK.
Dr Katerina Spranger, CEO and founder of Oxford Heartbeat. Hub Member
The Enterprise Hub has been invaluable, providing mentorship, networking, and strategic support, accelerating Oxford Heartbeat's growth and real-world clinical impact.
Tom Fleming, CEO and founder of Arctoris. Hub Member
The Enterprise Hub has been a home and my support for six years; the impact on Arctoris has been transformative.
Learn more about the Enterprise Hub
State of UK Deep Tech report 2025
The Royal Academy of Engineering’s latest annual report provides the definitive overview of the state of deep tech in t…
Programmes
We work with a range of engineering and technology entrepreneurs to help them startup, spinout and scale-up. As a chari…
Enterprise Hub locations
Find out more about our regional network of Enterprise Hubs located across the UK.