Tech South West (TSW) is embarking on a three-month investment drive for the region. TSW will team up with Great South West, heading to the UK’s major infrastructure and property investment summit, UKREiiF in Leeds in May.
The investment will showcase standout opportunities at high growth companies and major innovation infrastructure projects.
The regional tech cluster has revealed a regional showcase to take place in London, during London Tech Week in June
It has also announced support for the new Somerset Ignite Investment Summit, also in June. This will set out a host of investment and supply chain opportunities including the new Agratas EV gigafactory in Bridgwater. Recently, the UK’s first EV factory received a £380m investment boost from the Government.
At UKREiiF, the Great South West Pavilion will be busy spotlighting maritime infrastructure, the electric battery supply chain and other investment opportunities across sectors including defence and cleantech, as well as key innovation hubs such as Exeter Science Park and Bournemouth’s new Talbot Innovation Village venture.
Tech South West’s own Investment Summit saw investors and founders gather at Sandy Park in Exeter in March, including the Ministry of Defence, Babcock International, Inductive Power Projection, Nautexe, Voxmar and Latent Drive, for pitches, talks and panel discussions focusing on the region’s defence sector opportunities.
New accelerator programmes have also been launched, including cleantech, healthtech and a UK-wide marine autonomy accelerator, in partnership with Babcock International and the University of Plymouth. Companies from as far as Scotland and Newcastle have applied.
Dan Pritchard, founder of Tech South West, said: “We are at a pivotal moment for the UK economy which is wholly relevant to our region. Geopolitical shifts, the global energy transition, and the accelerating convergence of defence, marine, and clean technology have reshaped industrial priorities, putting the South West at the heart of the UK’s growth opportunity for the next decade.
“We have a genuinely world-class concentration of capability in defence and dual-use technology, marine autonomy, drone technology, cleantech, EV battery tech, critical minerals and agri-food innovation. Over the coming weeks we’ll be taking that message far and wide.”
As part of Tech South West’s investment drive, Tech South West will be using the Great South West’s High Growth Tracker to spotlight investment opportunities across key economic sectors. This includes at its London showcase on Tuesday, 9 June.
Karl Tucker, chair of the Great South West Partnership, said: “The Great South West is home to a concentration of high-performing, high-potential businesses. These are companies already delivering for the UK economy, in clean energy, defence, advanced manufacturing and beyond.
“With the right support, they can go even further. Aligning investment, innovation, and business support, across programmes like the TSW Growth Forge Accelerator, targeting investors at UKREiiF and the TSW London Showcase, will help shine a light on the opportunities to unlock long-term growth for the region and the country.”