Morning, Monday, 25th January 2027
Online
This conference will examine next steps for university spin-outs and research commercialisation in the UK. It follows recent reviews of spin-out practice and university-investor relationships, and comes as new measures on early-stage commercialisation, investment and publicly funded IP are developed and introduced. Areas for discussion include spin-out terms and university-investor relationships, proof-of-concept and early-stage support, access to growth capital, strategic technologies, and commercialisation capacity across the UK.
Looking at the Government-commissioned Independent Review of University Spin-out Companies, stakeholders and policymakers will assess progress and priorities following its recommendations on deal terms, proof-of-concept support, founder incentives and access to investment. Delegates will also examine the subsequent Hickson Review published by Research England in February 2026, which identified continuing gaps in pre-seed and scale-up finance, uneven access to investor networks and differences in approach between universities and investors. Sessions will consider what these developments mean for universities, founders, investors, public funders and industry, including the route from research discovery and intellectual property to investment, company formation and growth.
The conference also takes place as measures in UKRI’s Strategy 2026-31 and Delivery Plan 2026-27 move into delivery, including new proof-of-concept support, the Innovate UK Venture Builder pilot and a framework for tracking high-potential spin-outs. Delegates will discuss the scale and targeting of early-stage support, continuity between public funding and private investment, and how these measures interact with existing university and investor activity. UKRI’s review of its approach to intellectual property and the terms attached to publicly funded research will also be discussed, as well as the implications for investment, ownership and the location of economic activity.
Further discussion will consider Research England’s review of Higher Education Innovation Funding in England and what a revised allocation approach could mean for commercialisation capacity and local growth. Attendees will also consider developments in venture and institutional investment, including new routes for pension capital, alongside continuing questions around later-stage finance, international investment and expansion, and differences in access to commercialisation support and investor networks across the UK.
Spin-out terms, IP & university-investor relationships
Sessions will examine developments in spin-out terms and university-investor relationships since the two reviews, areas of continuing variation in practice, and the implications of changes to UKRI’s approach to IP.
Areas for discussion include:
- deal terms & equity: experience of equity and licensing arrangements across institutions and disciplines - founder equity and incentives - implications for subsequent investment
- speed & transparency: time taken from investor interest to completed deals - published spin-out and IP policies - availability of data on terms and outcomes - remaining sources of delay
- public funding & IP:
- UKRI’s IP policy refresh - future terms attached to publicly funded research - implications for investment, ownership and company location
- policy aims for retaining economic value in the UK
- university-investor relationships: timing of investor involvement - commercial expertise and decision-making - differences in approaches to risk and development timescales
Research translation, proof-of-concept & routes to investment
Delegates will consider the support available from research discovery through to first private investment, including the availability and scale of proof-of-concept and pre-seed finance, and access to the commercial expertise needed to develop investable propositions.
Areas for discussion include:
- proof-of-concept & pre-seed:
- availability of early-stage finance relative to demand - support before incorporation and licensing
- UKRI proof-of-concept funding - early experience of the Venture Builder pilot
- technology transfer & commercial support: capacity and resourcing of TTOs - specialist commercialisation expertise - pressures on university finances - partnerships with investors and industry
- founders & researchers: entrepreneurship within academic careers and doctoral training - guidance and support for founders - incentives and recognition - diversity of founding teams
- investment readiness: timing of company formation - access to experienced management and mentoring - investor-readiness support - connections with relevant investor networks
Financing commercialisation, scale-up & international growth
Further sessions will examine the financing path from grant-funded research and first private investment through to later-stage growth capital, including whether newer routes for institutional investment are widening the sources of finance available to research-based companies.
Areas for discussion include:
- early-stage finance: transition from grant funding to private investment - continuity across UKRI, Innovate UK and British Business Bank support - financing gaps between development stages
- growth capital & institutional investment:
- venture and later-stage finance - pension capital and the Mansion House Accord
- British Growth Partnership - development of the proposed UK Scale-up Fund
- international investment & expansion:
- access to overseas capital and markets - international expansion - UK and overseas listing and exit routes
- implications for ownership, investment and the location of high-value activity
- financing research-intensive companies: long development periods and capital requirements - specialist investors - continuity of finance as companies move through successive stages of growth
Strategic technologies & routes to market
The agenda will consider research-based companies in Industrial Strategy growth sectors and other strategically important technologies, where financing requirements, development periods, regulation and routes to market can differ significantly.
Areas for discussion include:
- research-intensive technologies: AI, engineering biology, advanced manufacturing and related fields - capital intensity and development timescales - specialist investment expertise
- sector capability: specialist accelerators and commercialisation support - links between academia, investors and industry - access to facilities and testbeds
- routes to market: regulatory pathways - customer access and early adoption - public procurement where relevant - industry partnerships and international markets
Regional commercialisation capacity & long-term outcomes
The conference will also look at access to investment, networks and commercialisation support across the UK, alongside evidence of growing spin-out activity outside the most established centres and the development of new place-based support. Discussion will also consider how the longer-term outcomes of research commercialisation should be assessed.
Areas for discussion include:
- regional access: investor networks, expertise and capital beyond established hubs - variation in commercialisation capacity - growth in spin-out activity outside the golden triangle
- local capacity & partnerships:
- shared technology transfer and commercialisation support - regional accelerators and partnerships
- Local Innovation Partnerships Fund - links between universities, business and civic institutions
- HEIF in England: review of the allocation formula - commercialisation and local growth - metrics, incentives and transition to future arrangements
- measuring outcomes:
- company formation, survival and scale-up - investment attracted - jobs and wider economic impact
- tracking high-potential spin-outs - returns and value for founders, universities, investors and the wider economy
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Ministry of Defence; Ofcom; and the Office for Investment.
