London Universities Create £500m Fund for Startups

University College London (UCL), Kings College London, and Queen Mary University are in discussions to create a jointly owned investment vehicle, named London Atrium, aimed at supporting spinout companies in sectors like healthcare and cybersecurity. The initiative seeks to raise at least £500 million from third-party investors, reflecting a growing trend among British universities to foster innovation and commercialize academic research. A source familiar with the project indicated that the collective annual research expenditure of the participating institutions exceeds £1.4 billion, positioning them competitively against renowned institutions such as MIT and Stanford. UCL has expressed its commitment to exploring options for a successor to its previous Technology Investment Funds, which have successfully backed numerous spinout ventures stemming from its research initiatives. The London Atrium initiative is expected to attract investments from both British and international pension funds, highlighting the potential of London's academic research ecosystem. This move comes as other universities, like those in the Midlands, have also established spinout vehicles to capitalize on their research capabilities, although the track record of some, such as Oxford Science Enterprises, has been mixed. The proposed fund emerges amid increasing concerns regarding the financial stability of British universities, as noted by the interim head of the universities watchdog. The funding challenges facing the sector are significant, prompting institutions to seek innovative solutions to bolster their financial health and support the commercialization of research.