UK tech captured more than a third of the total (£89.5 billion) investment into Europe in 2021, with £29.4 billion raised by UK start-ups and scale-ups. With more money than ever flowing into UK tech – £29.4 billion in 2021, up from 2020 £11.5 billion in – almost £9 billion of all venture capital investment went into start-ups and scale-ups outside London and the South East. The regions are home to nine of the 29 unicorns formed in 2021.
The combined value of UK tech companies founded since 2000 is now £540 billion, after the biggest year-on-year increase since 2013/14. The UK is more attractive to international investors than ever, with 63% of tech investment in 2020 coming from overseas, up from 50% in 2016.
Artificial intelligence (AI)
There are now many applications of AI across a wide range of sectors, from healthcare to manufacturing. The UK is a powerhouse of European AI, home to a third of Europe’s AI start-up companies, twice as many as any other European county.
The UK now has more than 1,300 AI companies - a 600% increase in the number of firms over the last decade - with a collective turnover of almost £1.47 billion. Over the last decade, venture capital investment rocketed from £88.4 million to more than £1.47 billion. Investment in UK deep tech continues to rise, with £2.3 billion invested in 2020, representing a 291% increase over the last 5 years.
Robotics and autonomous systems (RAS)
It's estimated that the total economic impact of the application of RAS within UK industries is estimated at £6.4 billion by 2035, based on current adoption trends.
Significant growth is predicted over the next decade with the rise of mobile robots, with a projected compound annual growth rate of 40% per annum between 2020 and 2030. The total market for UK RAS is expected to be worth £3.5 billion by 2030.
Fintech
The UK is the third-quarter largest destination for investment in financial technology services, holding 10% of the global market share. With over 1,600 firms in the sector, a figure that is projected to double by 2030, the UK Fitch sector contributes £7 billion to the economy annually.
There is an increasing demand for contactless transactions and branchless mobile banking services. The UK has one of the highest consumer Fintech adoption rates in the world, with 71% utilizing Fintech services.
Cybersecurity
The UK’s cybersecurity sector generated £8.9 billion in revenue during 2020 and attracted record investment, despite the economic uncertainty during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Advances in digital used services and online retailing have been matched by a significant increase in the rate of cybercrime, resulting in much greater investment in cybersecurity. In 2020 there were a record 82 investments in digital security, valued collectively at £981 million.
R&D capability
The UK boasts a thriving research and development scene. The UK’s artificial intelligence (AI) research has the third-highest rate of AI publication citations per capita globally. The Alan Turing Institute is the UK’s National Center for AI and Data Science and has a partnership with 13 of the UK’s most internationally recognized universities carrying out R&D in AI.
In September 2021, the UK government announced its National AI Strategy, with long-term plans for increased investment to increase the frequency and scale of AI discoveries in the UK.
The UK is home to 19 universities that are recognized as academic centers of excellence in cybersecurity research, accredited by the National Center for Cybersecurity Security. Each center has a proven track record of impactful cybersecurity research, published in leading journals and conferences worldwide.
The UK Robotics and Autonomous Systems (UK-RAS) network coordinates collaboration across the broader robotics industry and provides academic leadership. World-class institutions such as the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London live among their members.
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