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Accelerator programmes help startups and small businesses hone their business plans and start making money. We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 accelerator programmes in London – from those that provide mentorship to those that offer seed funding, this is a great place to start if you have an idea for a business and want to test it out.
Top 10 Accelerator in London
1. Startupbootcamp
Startupbootcamp is a global network of industry-focused startup accelerators that provides investment and mentorship services.
Startupbootcamp facilitates this mentorship-driven model by providing startups with essential tools during a 3-month accelerator program. The company provides €15,000 towards living expenses for the team during theprogram, 6 months co-working space, over €450,000 in sponsored services and the platform to pitch to over 400 investors at Investor Demo Day.
Startupbootcamp was founded in 2010 and operates in cities such as Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Copenhagen, Miami, New York, Cape Town, Dubai, Istanbul, London, Chengdu, Rome and Mumbai
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Website: www.startupbootcamp.org
Founded: 2010
Top Industries active in: Software, Financial Services and Information Technology.
Number of Investments: 541
Exits: 37
Startupbootcamp's most notable exits include Relayr, Sunrise, and DolphinChat.
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2. Entrepreneur First
Entrepreneur First is the place where the ambitious come together to build globally important technology companies. Through our platform running in 6 cities across 3 continents, we invest in high-potential individuals to help them meet their co-founder, develop their ideas and secure funding from leading investors in the shortest possible time.We have built over 300 companies from scratch; have over 5000 alumni worldwide; and our portfolio is valued at over $5bn.
EF companies include Tractable (Computer Vision, currently valued at $1bn as of June 2021), Magic Pony Technology (AI, acquired by Twitter for a reported $150m), Represent (social commerce, acquired by CustomInk), BloomsburyAI (acquired by Facebook), Cleo (fintech), OpenCosmos (space), CloudNC (manufacturing), Transcelestial (satellite communications) and many more.
We're backed by some of the world's best tech founders and investors, including Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn), Greylock Partners, Founders Fund, Demis Hassabis (Google Deepmind) and Taavet Hinrikus (Wise). For more information about Entrepreneur First, visit www.joinef.com.
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Website: www.joinef.com
Founded: 2011
Top Industries active in: Artificial Intelligence, Software and Machine Learning.
Number of Investments: 363
Exits: 23
Entrepreneur First's most notable exits include Credit Kudos, Passfort, and Adbrain.
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3. Bethnal Green Ventures
Bethnal Green Ventures (BGV) is Europe’s leading early-stage tech for good VC.
BGV invests in ambitious teams using technology to tackle pressing social and environmental challenges, helping them launch and scale their businesses through their flagship Tech for Good programme and providing opportunities for follow-on funding and life-long support. Since 2012, BGV invested in over 140 businesses, of which more than half are still active, successfully blending purpose with profit, tackling 15 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
Bethnal Green Ventures is a certified BCorp based in London, fuelling the maturing movement of Tech for Good.
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Website: www.bethnalgreenventures.com
Founded: 2012
Top Industries active in: Health Care, Software and Education.
Number of Investments: 195
Exits: 1
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4. Outlier Ventures
Established in 2014, Outlier Ventures was one of the first VC firms dedicated to investing in the emerging crypto ecosystem. Since launching its Base Camp accelerator in 2019, Outlier Ventures has received over 5,000 applications for its highly sought after virtual accelerator and has helped raise over $350 million in seed funding for its growingportfolio of 100+ high-profile projects from across the world, such as Crucible and Biconomy.
In addition, Outlier Ventures has supported the launch and growth of several billion-dollar crypto economies including Fetch.ai, Boson Protocol, Secret Network, Blox Move, Swash and DIA Data. Their portfolio includes notable projects across DeFi, NFTs and blockchain infrastructure with a focus on emergent Metaverse use cases such as NFT-based digital couture fashion brands, avatar marketplaces, decentralized music publishing platforms, play-to-earn games, augmented reality social positioning protocols, and more.
In the last year, Outlier Ventures has expanded its Base Camp program to partner with leading protocols such as Filecoin / IPFS, Polygon, and Polkadot to host dedicated accelerator programs for these Web3 ecosystems. Through its blockchain agnostic approach, Outlier Ventures has achieved record growth, doubled its cohort intake year after year, and is on target to accelerate well over 100 startups in 2022, making it one of the most active investors in the space by deal volume and the most active Web3 accelerator globally and top 3 crypto investor globally by volume of investment.
Since its inception, Outlier Ventures has always viewed its portfolio as an open stack of technologies that contribute to a new web paradigm, referred to as Web3, based on principles that prioritize the sovereignty of the user, their data and digital wealth, over platform and shareholder supremacy. In January of 2021, Outlier Ventures published its thesis on the imminent arrival of the Metaverse, outlining how Web3 would serve as an operating system for an Open Metaverse.
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Website: www.outlierventures.io
Founded: 2014
Top Industries active in: Blockchain, Software and Information Technology.
Number of Investments: 167
Exits: 2
Outlier Ventures's most notable exits include Evernym and BlockFraud.
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5. Future Fifty
Future Fifty is a leading programme that enables the UK’s most successful late-stage tech companies to come together, build a powerful and supportive network, and problem-solve with peers.
With the help of the tech community, the programme supports these companies in achieving their global ambitions, creating jobs and opportunities across the UK,and inspiring the next generation in their tech ecosystem. It’s free to join, and they don’t take an equity stake in your business either.
From fintech to online shopping, telematics to edtech, the Future Fifty offer a glimpse into the UK’s digital future. So without further ado, check out this year’s exceptional cohort.
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Website: www.futurefifty.com
Founded: 2013
Top Industries active in: Software, FinTech and E-Commerce.
Number of Investments: 169
Exits: 67
Future Fifty's most notable exits include Box, Funding Circle, and Huddle.
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6. Techstars London Accelerator
The Techstars Accelerator program in London focuses on a wide range of tech startups. Home to a thriving international community of tech, founders, innovators and investors, London is an epicenter of startup activity. Ranked as the #6 strongest startup ecosystem in the world, London is known as a powerful location for startups. Founders are flocking to London to start their business and to learn from the incredible mentor community there.
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Website: www.techstars.com
Top Industries active in: Software, Artificial Intelligence and Information Technology.
Number of Investments: 121
Exits: 5
Techstars London Accelerator's most notable exits include EnjoyHQ, datasine, and PlayCanvas.
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7. Founders Factory
As the world's leading venture studio and accelerator, Founders Factory builds and scales technology startups solving global problems.
Founded in 2015 by Brent Hoberman, Henry Lane Fox and George Northcott, Founders Factory combines capital and bespoke support from a team of over 100 specialists with a broad network of corporates and established entrepreneurs.
The Founders Factory portfolio includes over 200 category-defining tech companies globally, 45+ of which have been built from scratch in its Venture Studio. Their partners include Aviva, L’Oreal, Guardian Media Group, easyJet, Reckitt, Marks and Spencer, Chinese private equity firm CSC Group and Standard Bank.
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Website: www.foundersfactory.com
Founded: 2015
Top Industries active in: Software, Information Technology and Health Care.
Number of Investments: 119
Exits: 13
Founders Factory's most notable exits include Feedr, Flourish, and TapTrip.
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8. London Co-Investment Fund
The stated aim of LCIF is not to fund London tech businesses that otherwise would not get funded but rather to enable those who can raise, to raise significantly more so that they have a sufficient money, time and resources to prove their business model. This way London based tech startups will be more able to raise their next round of funding and thereafter become the great tech companies that London so wants and requires. The London Co-Investment Fund was launched by the Deputy Mayor of London on the 4th December at City Hall. LCIF six co-investment partners has been selected based on their excellent track records of investing and supporting early stage tech businesses in London.
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Website: www.massatloan.org
Founded: 2014
Top Industries active in: Software, Health Care and Artificial Intelligence.
Number of Investments: 117
Exits: 9
London Co-Investment Fund's most notable exits include BridgeU, Desktop Genetics, and City Pantry.
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9. Upscale
Upscale helps the UK’s most promising tech companies to accelerate their growth and unlock the key to scaling successfully.
Based on the values of honesty, intimacy and trust, this established, curated programme is designed to reflect companies’ scaling journeys, exploring fundamental growth challenges, such as hiring, maintaining company culture and international expansion.
Companies on the Upscale programme will benefit from open conversations, peer-to-peer learning opportunities, meetups and workshops, delivered by expert scale coaches and seasoned entrepreneurs who have been through it all. It’s free to join, and they don’t take an equity stake in your business either.
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Website: www.technation.io
Founded: 2011
Top Industries active in: Software, SaaS and E-Commerce.
Number of Investments: 108
Exits: 17
Upscale's most notable exits include Decibel, Veeqo, and Zesty.
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10. Pario Ventures
Pario works with entrepreneurs, CEOs, and business owners to identify and implement an exit strategy for the founder or shareholder.
Pario Ventures is also active in investment for the startup, scale phase, and then pre IPO.
It was founded in 2010 by Kevin Doyle and David Murray-Hundley and is based in London, England, the United Kingdom with also an office in New York and Brussels.
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Website: www.parioventures.com
Founded: 2010
Top Industries active in: FinTech, Financial Services and Automotive.
Number of Investments: 96
Exits: 15
Pario Ventures's most notable exits include Atlis Motor Vehicles, Datadog, and Rivian.
