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White City Incubator comes of age

Imperial White City Incubator marked its milestone 18th birthday in June with a special showcase celebration held at its Scale Space base in White City Innovation District. The event drew together entrepreneurs, academics and Incubator graduates for an inspiring look back at almost two decades of nurturing early-stage businesses within this unique ecosystem – which has helped to deliver significant achievements across innovation, entrepreneurship and multidisciplinary research.

From its earliest beginnings in 2006 as a bio-incubator at Imperial’s South Kensington campus to its relocation in 2016 as White City Campus’s first occupants, Imperial’s core innovation hub for deep science start-ups has built an impressive track record of success in propelling emerging businesses in their commercial journey. The Incubator has supported over 100 companies who, to date, have raised over £1BN in funding, driving job creation and continuing to attract further investment in White City Innovation District and now the wider WestTech Corridor. Beyond their fund-raising success, many of these businesses are actively contributing towards building a better world – working to create solutions to some of our biggest global challenges, spanning advances in green energy, sustainable and advanced materials, artificial intelligence, agriculture and healthcare.

The Incubator offers flexible facilities, laboratory and office space – plus, crucially a ready-made innovation community, networking and support system – for a three-year incubation period. Incubator companies also benefit from the wide range of support services offered by Imperial Enterprise‘s Incubation team, from expert business coaching to mentoring. As the first incubator in the UK to offer a shared lab experience, White City Incubator is proud of its reputation for always going the extra mile to accommodate the unique needs of scitech – supporting specialist lab space requirements for organisations ranging from hydrogen businesses to laser companies.

KEY SECTORS

  • Medtech
  • Climate solutions
  • Drug research and discovery
  • Biotech

EXPERT SUPPORT

  • Superb premises
  • On-site health & safety
  • Dedicated lab manager
  • Powerful networks
  • Advice & mentoring

PROVEN SUCCESS

  • Almost 500 jobs created
  • Over £1BN raised
  • High venture survival rate (93%)
  • Local impact (87% of jobs created within Hammersmith & White City area)

“I’m most proud of how we were able to create a community when we first arrived in White City. Watching these very early companies grow to take half a floor of space – as Polymateria did – has been very exciting and rewarding. These companies leaving us and continuing to grow is our success.”

Graham Hewson, Head of Incubation and Prototyping Spaces, Imperial College London

THE FOUNDERS’ CHOICE

The showcase event featured a fascinating panel discussion chaired by Imperial’s Head of Incubation and Prototyping Spaces Graham Hewson, with contributions from Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the Francis Crick Institute Barbara Domayne-Hayman, Professor Nigel Brandon (Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Professor of Sustainable Development in Energy and founder of RFC Power and Ceres Power), Polymateria CEO Niall Dunne and Dr Chiara Board, founder of P.Happi (a current member of the Incubator).

White City Incubator panellists pictured sitting from left to right are Graham Hewson (Imperial), Niall Dunne (Polymateria), Dr Chiara Board (P.Happi), Barbara Domayne-Hayman (Francis Crick Institute), Professor Nigel Brandon (Imperial, RFC Power and Ceres Power)

Panellists pictured (L-R): Graham Hewson (Imperial), Niall Dunne (Polymateria), Dr Chiara Board (P.Happi), Barbara Domayne-Hayman (Francis Crick Institute), Professor Nigel Brandon (Imperial, RFC Power and Ceres Power)

These founders shared candid insights into their experiences and challenges as innovators and entrepreneurs, highlighting the critical role that affordable access to specialised and shared lab space played in the development of their companies, enabling their teams to focus on product development without the burden of prohibitive operational costs.

Simon Hepworth shares with attendees at the White City Incubator highlights from 18 years of successful incubation.
“Innovation is about people, space and money. The White City Incubator focuses on the people and the space.” Imperial’s Director of Enterprise Dr Simon Hepworth reflects on 18 years of successful incubation.

The event included a prize-giving for the Incubator graduation awards, recognising those companies who have moved through the Incubator and onto their next phase of commercial growth. The celebrations concluded with an exhibition where attendees enjoyed the opportunity to explore the breakthrough innovations being brought to market by current Incubator members, followed by guided tours of the Incubator’s stand-out facilities. Many congratulations to White City Incubator and its inspiring cohort of graduate companies, and we look forward to much more success to come.