The IP experts at GovGrant have revealed the high achieving UK universities that have generated the most spinout companies in the last two decades, including spin-out company valuation, according to the University Spinout Report 2021.
A new report has named the University of Dundee as the UK's 6th most prolific at commercialising innovation, according to research into university spinout companies. 1.5% of the UK's spinouts were started at the university and the spinouts have raised £325.7 million over the last two decades.
The university is commended for generating some of the highest value spinout companies in the UK, with the most successful being Exscientia, currently valued at £784.5 million.
The University Spinout Report 2021 was produced by IP specialists and R&D tax credit experts GovGrant to celebrate the UK’s position as a global leader in innovation. It is based on analysis of just under 1,000 UK spinout companies, a sample that comprises £19.28 billion of capital invested, 4,489 deals and 1,907 investors.
See the full report here: https://www.govgrant.co.uk/university-spinout-report/
One sixth of spinout companies in the UK (16%) originated from Oxford University. This is followed by the University of Cambridge with more than 11% of UK spinout companies and Imperial College London, which has contributed to 9% of the UK total.
The report also provides notable mentions for the universities seeing recent growth in their commercialisation of innovation. When analysing growth data from the last decade, the University of Strathclyde has made strides into the top 10, having come just outside of it prior to 2008. The Royal College of Art also comes in at number eight on the list of the most prolific institutions for commercialising innovation in the UK over the last decade.
Analysing company data, the University of Oxford has six spinouts in the top 10 by value. Spinouts from the university have a total value of £8.1 billion. Imperial College London’s leading spinout is Ceres Power, which comes second in the top 10 and is valued at £1.98 billion. The University of Dundee features fourth on the list with Exscientia, a company valued at £784 million.
In total, the top 10 UK spinout companies by valuation are worth approximately £9.8 billion. Of these 10, eight are in the healthcare industry. Healthcare is the dominant sector for successful UK spinouts, accounting for 45%. IT is the next most successful with 24%, almost half as many as healthcare.
Adam Simmonds, Investment Research Analyst at GovGrant, says:
“This report highlights the huge value to the economy of UK universities, as well as the incredible depth of creativity and talent at our universities.”
“It’s no surprise to see pharmaceutical and biotech spinouts feature prominently: the UK is particularly renowned for innovation in these areas. You only need to look at the recent development of Covid-19 vaccines in the UK to see how accomplished we are in pharmaceutical innovation.”
David Richardson, Chief Entrepreneurial Executive at Heriot-Watt University, says:
“Universities are a rich source of cutting-edge research which enables new learning, discovery, and innovation. Cutting edge research and the ability to develop and understand how new technologies advance industry and society are critical factors for ensuring future prosperity.”
“Success comes from building on research specialisms, and using these to catalyse new collaborations, investment, and jobs through the development of dynamic ecosystems focused on advanced R&D, talent development and commercialisation.”
“In addition to investment, spin-outs attract skilled graduates and high-performing academic researchers from across the globe to the UK. On average, they recruit around 12 employees per company. Between 2016 and 2018 alone , UK university spin-outs employed over 23,000 people.”
University of Dundee
Nobel Prize winning poet and honorary graduate Seamus Heaney has described the University of Dundee as ‘having its head in the clouds and its feet firmly on the ground.’ The ability to be both aspirational and down-to earth and to blend ground-breaking intellectual achievement with practical applications, has given the University its distinctive character.
