Investing in Deep Tech

Building economic resilience and security through globally transformative UK science and engineering.

Today’s global challenges require “Deep Tech” solutions. From next-generation IIOT and sensors, to autonomous systems, photonics, quantum computing, nanotechnology and industrial AI, we are investing to commercialise transformative new products and services at scale.

With the United Kingdom home to world-class universities, thriving scientific research centres and technology ecosystems, we are well positioned to harness and accelerate science and engineering breakthroughs to build resilient economies and communities around the world.

Through our regional network of offices, we have access to proprietary scientific talent from across a world-class UK research base and are investing to address the UK equity gap at early and growth stage Deep Tech.

40+

Deep Tech companies invested into since 2018

60+

investment executives, from industry, blue chip advisory, banks and PE/VC firms

regional offices around the UK and Ireland – located close to the main science and research hubs

3,000+

Deep Tech deals reviewed

Deep Tech exits since 2018

1,000+

Deep Tech company jobs created (57% STEM roles)*

*Illustrative impact metrics based on Foresight Technology Funds portfolio survey as at Dec 2024

The forefront of technology investment

Foresight was founded in 1984 as a tech-focused venture capital firm and has been investing in breakthrough technologies and the innovators behind them ever since.

With a regional network of 14 offices and our strong connections to universities and colleges, small businesses and venture builders across the United Kingdom, we are uniquely placed to source and scale the very best opportunities in Deep Tech for our UK and international investor base.

Beyond the investment opportunity we see today, we are committed to building a lasting legacy from the innovation ecosystems of tomorrow.

Investment strategy

We are actively building an investment strategy for private market investors to share in the success of globally scalable Deep Tech products and services, borne from the innovation ecosystems across the UK.

We believe that it is an underinvested market with tremendous potential to outperform traditional tech and requires the expertise and network of an investment manager who will prioritise a faster time-to-profit, robust IP as a value and risk mitigator and ongoing value creation.

We look for

Hardware or software innovation

not business model innovation

Strong defensible advantage

usually IP-based

Outstanding technical team

with commercial experience and a bias for action

Ability to raise capital

Strong team and story

10x return

potential and clear route to exit

Exit value

that can be decoupled from financial multiples

For transformative technologies such as

IIOT & Sensors

Autonomous systems

Advanced materials and nanotechnology

Next generation interfaces

Factory automation

Future of computing

Industrial AI

Scientific instrumentation

Case study

Codeplay

Foresight exited Codeplay, achieving 15.7x return.

Codeplay is one of the UK’s leading providers of solutions for the semiconductor industry, accelerating the performance of computer chips that run Artificial Intelligence and other high-performance software.

Case study

Flusso

We invested into Flusso in 2020, a semiconductor company spun out of the University of Cambridge.

Flusso’s technology uses a CMOS MEMS silicon platform, and is packaged and assembled using a pure microelectronics approach. This provides both performance and scalability of manufacturing in tens of millions of parts per month.

Case study

Refeyn

Foresight invested £1m into Refeyn in 2020.

Refeyn has its origins in the University of Oxford Chemistry Department and was founded to commercialise a new technology application in molecular mass measurement.