Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC) is committing at least £100m from its new fund targeting £250m to back spinouts from the University of Cambridge.
In the UK, investment into spinouts — created by commercialising research — grew 240% in the decade to 2023, up from £514m across 259 deals in 2014 to £1.75bn across 420 deals, according to a 2024 report from spinout investor Parkwalk and data platform Beauhurst. Investment into UK spinouts topped £2.6bn in 2024.
Alongside the funding commitment, CIC is launching an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) programme in partnership with the University of Cambridge. It plans to identify research with the potential for commercialisation, supporting academic founders as they build their companies.
The EIR programme will maintain a rolling cohort of up to six EIRs, matching experienced deeptech and life sciences executives — many of whom have achieved significant exits with their previous businesses — with academics and high-potential IP.
The EIR programme aims to increase the number of spinouts coming out of the university, which created 26 spinouts in the year to March 2025.
Andrew Williamson, Managing Partner, CIC, said: “Our new EIR programme will provide academics and researchers with access to the £100m we are committing to University of Cambridge spinouts as they continue to develop breakthrough technologies.”
CIC was one of the first university-affiliated venture funds to be set up in the UK back in 2013, and backs spinouts coming out of the University of Cambridge at seed and Series A.
It’s also seen a number of exits, including Gyroscope Therapeutics, which is developing gene therapies for eye diseases. It was bought by pharma company Novartis in 2021, in a deal worth an initial $800m, with the potential of additional milestone payments of up to $700m.
