UCL and WilbeLAB Collaborate to Foster Support for Deep Tech Startups via IDEALondon

The two will expand support available to trailblazing deep tech and digital startups, reflecting changing demands in London and the UK entrepreneurship ecosystem.

WilbeLAB, part of venture operator Wilbe Group that supports academic entrepreneurs, is a scientist-led platform to find, design and run workspaces and laboratories for science, deep tech and engineering companies as they scale. This in turn creates jobs, and transforms lives, sectors and economies.

Through IDEALondon, UCL’s Faculty of Engineering with WilbeLAB will offer startup mentoring, innovation programmes and funding information. Businesses are encouraged to collaborate with UCL’s world-class researchers and students, working on projects such as user testing and hardware prototyping, and can tap into several of the university’s global academic and business technology networks.

Based in the heart of Shoreditch and open to anyone to apply for support, IDEALondon has been home to some of the most ambitious and flourishing new businesses in London’s tech city over the past ten years.

Many companies have gone onto achieve exceptional levels of growth, including:

• Curve, the banking platform now valued at $250 million, with more than 500,000 users;
• Software company Trint, who secured more than £5 million in funding to build a new software category called StoryTech;
• Unibuddy, a platform that allows prospective university applicants to build meaningful connections online with existing students and staff through chat, live events and partnerships.

Dr Robert Thompson, Vice-Dean (Enterprise) for UCL Engineering, said: “As a world-class Engineering Faculty it is important we create excellent opportunities for our research and education to make a real difference. Working with WilbeLAB, and expanding the remit of IDEALondon to encourage deep tech companies to join, will help us better support the breadth of UCL and the tech sector. I’m excited to see the companies and technologies found at IDEALondon flourish and make lasting impact.”

Fabrizio Nicola-Giordano, WilbeLAB Co-founder and CEO added: “We are excited to be joining forces with UCL in delivering IDEALondon, a much-needed workspace gathering scientists and engineers to break through silos of innovation. Our ecosystem fosters cross-pollination and makes the transition from academia to venture as effective as possible.”

IDEALondon was officially opened in December 2013 by then Prime Minister, David Cameron – the first centre of its kind in Tech City, aiming to nurture and grow early-stage start-ups through bespoke support, mentoring and a strategic acceleration programme.

Just over a decade later, the centre has become home to many digital, tech and media startups, which have created over 3,000 jobs and raised more than £340 million funding between them.

UCL also works closely with corporate partners to boost impact at IDEALondon, hosting the Centre For Digital Innovation with AWS and the UCL Centre for Sustainability and Realtech Innovation with PGIM Real Estate.

Dr Kathryn Walsh, Executive Director of UCL Innovation & Enterprise, said: “UCL is committed to driving innovation and economic impact from its strong research base, benefitting society and the economy. This new collaboration will strengthen our capacity to do that, with a particular focus on the rapidly growing areas of digital and deep tech.”

In total, more than 400 new graduate businesses and over 60 new spinouts were started at UCL between 2014 and 2022. These businesses are helping to attract external investment into the UK and drive innovation, collectively raising over £3.2 billion in investment and employing over 3,800 people (*HEBCI 2014-2022).

In 2022, a London Economics Report found UCL’s annual impact of £9.9bn across the UK economy during 2018/19 was comparable to the trade boost delivered by the London 2012 Olympics.