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Nottingham Startups to Watch in 2027: 7 Verified Companies in Brain Imaging, Advanced Materials, Security Screening, MedTech and Aerospace, Where They Get Support and Lessons for Founders

Nottingham Startups to Watch in 2027: Verified Companies in Brain Imaging, Advanced Materials, Security Screening, MedTech and Aerospace

Nottingham, in England's East Midlands, has two large universities, a life science incubator in the city centre and a medtech campus on the old Boots site in Beeston. Those places explain the Nottingham startups worth watching in 2027: a wearable brain scanner, a factory for advanced porous materials, an airport X-ray scanner that identifies materials, a bone graft for spinal surgery, cryogenic electric motors for aircraft, and new university spin-outs in diagnostics and magnetic design. The 2026 version of this article listed ten companies. When we checked them, two were in liquidation, six were registered or headquartered elsewhere (London, St Albans or San Diego), and for the last two we found no company at all. None of them was a Nottingham startup we could confirm. For this 2027 edition we started again: in November 2026 we checked each company on its own website, on university news pages and on the UK company register (Companies House) to confirm that it still operates, that its registered office is in Nottingham, what it sells and what it publishes about its funding. What happened to the old names is listed near the end.

Quick answer: the Nottingham startups and scale-ups to watch in 2027 are Cerca Magnetics (wearable brain scanners), Promethean Particles (metal-organic frameworks made at industrial scale), HALO X-Ray Technologies (X-ray diffraction security screening), Locate Bio (bone graft products for spinal fusion), HPDrive Technologies (cryogenic electric motors for aircraft), Shard Diagnostics (cancer and infection tests) and Contour (magnetic field design). Cerca's £3.8 million Series A in April 2026 is the most recent priced round on this list. For support, start with the University of Nottingham's Ingenuity Lab, NTU Enterprise, BioCity Nottingham and the East Midlands Growth Hub.

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Why Nottingham Matters for Founders in 2027

Most of the companies on this list started as research. The University of Nottingham says it has more than 40 spin-out companies, 25 of them launched in the past seven years, and that it launched six more in its 2025/26 financial year. Its subsidiary Nottingham Technology Ventures manages that portfolio and has made 19 investments in existing spin-outs. Nottingham Trent University has its own spin-outs too: HALO X-Ray Technologies came out of an NTU research collaboration in 2012.

The second strength is lab space. BioCity Nottingham, in the city centre, and MediCity Nottingham, in Beeston, are run by the Pioneer Group and rent laboratories to life science and medtech companies, from a single bench upwards. The third is regional money: the Midlands Engine Investment Fund appears again and again in the funding history of these companies. For the wider picture, compare our guides to the best deep tech cities in Europe and the best countries for startups in Europe, and our UK city lists for Glasgow and Aberdeen.

Nottingham Startups to Watch in 2027 Compared

Company	What it does	Nottingham base (registered office)	Latest funding we cite
Cerca Magnetics	Wearable OPM-MEG brain scanners	Nottingham Science and Technology Park	£3.8M Series A led by Guinness Ventures, April 2026 (company)
Promethean Particles	Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) made by continuous flow	Genesis Park, Midland Way	£8M Series A (company; date not given)
HALO X-Ray Technologies	X-ray diffraction scanners for aviation, customs and borders	Castle Park, Queens Drive	Further Agilent investment, July 2026 (press coverage)
Locate Bio	Orthobiologics: LDGraft bone graft for spinal fusion	MediCity, Beeston	£9.2M, April 2024 (company)
HPDrive Technologies	Cryogenic electrical machines for hydrogen-electric aircraft	University of Nottingham Innovation Park	Not published
Shard Diagnostics	Detection technology for cancer, infection and point-of-care tests	BioCity Nottingham	University investment, amount not published
Contour	Custom magnetic field design for sensing and instruments	Hanley Street	Not published

Sources: each company's official website or news page, University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University pages, and registered offices on Companies House, checked 9 November 2026.

The Nottingham Startups to Watch in 2027

1. Cerca Magnetics: a brain scanner you can wear

Cerca Magnetics makes a wearable magnetoencephalography (MEG) scanner. Instead of a large machine cooled with liquid helium, it uses small optically pumped magnetometers (OPMs) fitted into a helmet, so the person being scanned can move during the scan. It also sells the magnetically shielded rooms the scanner works in, and it says the system is for research and has no medical approvals yet. Its news page lists systems at SickKids in Toronto (the first commercial OPM-MEG installation, 2021), the UK charity Young Epilepsy, the University of Zurich, the Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity (June 2025) and the first OPM-MEG system in Ireland (September 2025). In November 2025 it shared in £14 million of Innovate UK quantum funding for a project with the Epilepsy Institute, and in April 2026 it raised a £3.8 million Series A led by Guinness Ventures to work towards clinical approval, scale up manufacturing and expand abroad. The company was registered in 2020 and its office is at Bell House on the Nottingham Science and Technology Park.

Lesson for founders: Cerca sold to research hospitals and universities first, while its medical approval is still ahead. A research market can pay for the product and produce the evidence a regulated market will ask for later.

Best for: founders in medtech, neuroscience and quantum sensing.

2. Promethean Particles: porous materials made by the tonne

Promethean Particles makes metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), crystalline materials full of tiny pores that can trap gases or water. Its patented continuous-flow process is designed to make them at industrial scale and lower cost, for carbon capture, biogas upgrading, harvesting water from air, and gas storage and separation. The company was founded in 2007 on research by Professor Ed Lester at the University of Nottingham, started in an incubator unit at BioCity Nottingham in 2008 and moved to Genesis Park in 2016, where its large-scale plant is. In November 2025 it shipped four tonnes of MOFs to a customer in continental Europe, its largest order so far, and it says an £8 million Series A paid for more manufacturing capacity. In July 2026 it said its MOFs power the Ahbstra ARK, a system that harvests water from the air.

Lesson for founders: Promethean's advantage is not a new material but a way to make known materials in tonnes instead of grams. In deep tech, solving the manufacturing problem can be the business.

Best for: founders in advanced materials, carbon capture and climate tech.

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3. HALO X-Ray Technologies: airport scanners that identify materials

HALO X-Ray Technologies builds automatic X-ray diffraction screening systems for aviation, customs and border security. Ordinary X-ray scanners show the shape of an object; diffraction measures how a material scatters X-rays, which works like a fingerprint for what it is made of. HALO's systems, including the HXT264, HXT2108 and ONYX, work alongside existing scanners for checkpoints, checked baggage, alarm resolution and parcels. According to Nottingham Trent University, HALO was founded on 4 April 2012 as a spin-out of research led by NTU with Cranfield University, won product development contracts from the US Department of Homeland Security, installed an HXT264 at the US Transportation Security Laboratory and raised venture capital from Midven and the Midlands Engine Investment Fund in March 2019. In July 2026 the scientific instrument maker Agilent increased its investment in HALO, with existing backers UKI2S and the Midlands Engine Investment Fund taking part, to complete regulatory approval and prepare for production, according to Pulse 2.0's report of the announcement. Its office is at Castle Park on Queens Drive in Nottingham.

Lesson for founders: HALO funded years of development with government contracts from the world's biggest buyer of security scanners before raising larger rounds. In a regulated market, a government customer can be your first investor.

Best for: founders in security, defence and imaging hardware.

4. Locate Bio: bone grafts for spinal surgery

Locate Bio is an orthobiologics company: it develops products that help bone heal, combining drug delivery and tissue scaffolds. Its lead product, LDGraft, slowly releases the bone growth protein rhBMP-2 from a biodegradable polymer, has FDA Breakthrough Device designation for one type of lumbar spinal fusion, and is still investigational, not approved for sale. Its product list also includes CertOss and OsteoMime. In April 2024 it announced an oversubscribed £9.2 million round from Mercia Ventures, BGF and new investors to fund the RESTORE clinical study of LDGraft, and the first participant in that study was treated in November 2024. Both announcements carry a Nottingham dateline. The company was registered in 2001 as Locate Therapeutics, and its registered office is at MediCity on Thane Road in Beeston, on the edge of the city.

Lesson for founders: Locate Bio took a known growth protein and changed how it is delivered. Improving the delivery of a proven ingredient can be a shorter path to market than inventing a new one.

Best for: founders in medtech, orthopaedics and drug delivery.

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5. HPDrive Technologies: cryogenic electric motors for aircraft

HPDrive Technologies develops cryogenically cooled electrical machines: very light, very efficient motors and drives for hydrogen-electric and other zero-emission aircraft, and later for other high-power uses. The University of Nottingham and GKN Aerospace launched it on 9 July 2026, building on GKN's H2GEAR hydrogen propulsion programme, and its chief executive is Professor Henner Wapenhans. It is registered at the Sir Colin Campbell Building on the University of Nottingham Innovation Park, and its news page reports the start of a superconducting motor winding project. It has not published funding figures.

Lesson for founders: HPDrive pairs a university's research with an aerospace supplier that will need the product. A corporate partner at the start brings test facilities, a route to customers and credibility with later investors.

Best for: founders in aerospace, electrification and hydrogen.

6. Shard Diagnostics: tests for cancer and infections

Shard Diagnostics develops technology for detecting biological markers, with uses in cancer, infectious diseases and point-of-care testing, and also in research, veterinary, agriculture and forensic work. According to the University of Nottingham, it was set up by two of its former postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers, CEO Dr James Hassall and COO Dr Declan Sculthorpe, a clinical adviser is guiding its qPCR platform for liquid biopsy cancer testing, and in December 2025 it joined the university's investment portfolio through Nottingham Technology Ventures. The amount was not published. The company was registered in June 2024 and is based at BioCity Nottingham on Pennyfoot Street.

Lesson for founders: Shard was started by alumni and later brought into the university's portfolio. You do not have to be a formal spin-out on day one to get your university's investment later.

Best for: founders in diagnostics and life science tools, and researchers leaving academia.

7. Contour: magnetic fields designed to order

Contour (Contour Advanced Magnetic Design Ltd) designs custom, high-precision magnetic systems for advanced technology and research. The University of Nottingham named it in August 2026 as one of its six new spin-outs, built on more than ten years of research supported by the UK National Quantum Technologies Programme, with uses in space, navigation, defence, clean energy, healthcare and agri-tech. Its chief executive is Martyn Fisher. It was registered in October 2025 with an office on Hanley Street in the city centre. It has not published funding.

Lesson for founders: Contour sells a rare skill, controlling magnetic fields precisely, to many industries at once. A deep specialism can serve several markets while you find out which one pays best.

Best for: founders in quantum technology, sensors and engineering services.

New Names to Follow in Greater Nottingham

These companies are new or just outside the city. They are worth following, but we have less public information about them:

Qurae: a University of Nottingham spin-out from its Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences that helps healthcare organisations make their data usable for research and AI. It says its tools run in production, including in the NHS England Secure Data Environment programme. It is registered in Stapleford, west of the city.
MarketNous: the University of Nottingham's first fintech spin-out, from its Business School, with an AI platform that analyses market, behavioural and economic data for traders and investors, according to the university. Its website showed only a coming-soon page when we checked.
NuVision Biotherapies: a University of Nottingham spin-out registered at MediCity. Its web address showed a parked domain page when we checked, so we could not confirm its current offer and left it off the main list.

Where Nottingham Startups Get Support

Ingenuity Lab: the University of Nottingham's startup hub for its students and alumni, at the Ingenuity Centre on the Innovation Park, Jubilee Campus. Members get mentoring and one-to-one support, events and the chance to win grant funding in the Ingenuity Impact Competition.
NTU Enterprise Start Up: Nottingham Trent University's programme for its students and graduates (UK home students aged 18 or over, and international graduates with a visa that lets them work in the UK). The 2026 programme ran from 29 September to 3 November 2026, with Phase 2 workshops from January to May 2027, and includes free flexible membership of the Dryden Enterprise Centre while you take part. Applications for 2026 closed on 7 September 2026.
Nottingham Technology Ventures and the University of Nottingham EIS Fund: the university's subsidiary manages its spin-out portfolio, and on 18 June 2026 the university unveiled an Enterprise Investment Scheme fund for its spin-outs, managed by SyndicateRoom, according to the University of Nottingham.
BioCity Nottingham and MediCity Nottingham: lab and office campuses run by the Pioneer Group, which also runs Accelerator, Launch, Scale-Up and Golden Ticket programmes and says it often likes to be the first investor in a company. Shard Diagnostics is at BioCity; Locate Bio is at MediCity.
MEIF II Equity Finance: the Midlands Engine Investment Fund II equity fund for the East and South East Midlands, managed by Mercia Ventures, offers up to £5 million in equity and is open to all sectors.
East Midlands Combined County Authority Growth Hub: the single access point for business support in Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, with business advisers, a telephone enquiry service, start-up guides and free events.
Invest in Nottingham: the inward investment service for Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, useful if you are moving a company to the city or looking for premises.

Nottingham Companies From the Old List That Changed or Could Not Be Verified

The 2026 version of this article listed ten companies. Here is what we found when we checked each one on the UK company register and on official sites in November 2026:

CHAIN Biotechnology: the company is in liquidation, according to Companies House.
Kuur Therapeutics: the UK company is in liquidation, according to Companies House.
Antidote, Carbon Analytics and Vinehealth: their companies are registered in London, not Nottingham.
Unitary: registered in St Albans, England.
Wayve: registered in London; the old article itself said it was not from Nottingham.
Mirador Therapeutics: a drug developer headquartered in San Diego, California, according to its own website.
FlowSign and SKROL AI: we found no website or active Nottingham company for either. The only Skrol company we found, near Newark, was dissolved in 2015.

We also removed the old article's funding totals copied from third-party startup databases, its unsourced claims about rankings and scale, and its links to third-party startup lists.

Which Nottingham Startup Should You Learn From?

You build medical devices: study Cerca Magnetics for selling to researchers before approval, and Locate Bio for running a clinical study.
You build deep tech hardware: study Promethean Particles, which made manufacturing its edge, and HALO, which grew on government contracts.
You work in clean aviation or energy: study HPDrive and its partnership with GKN Aerospace.
You are a researcher thinking of a spin-out: study Shard Diagnostics and Contour, two of the University of Nottingham's newest portfolio companies.
You are a student or graduate: join the Ingenuity Lab or NTU Enterprise Start Up before you look for investors.
You are ready to raise: talk to Mercia about MEIF II and look at the Pioneer Group's programmes.

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How Founders Use Nottingham's Startup Scene

Notice the pattern: almost every company here started with university research, rented lab space at BioCity, MediCity or a science park, and raised its first rounds from the Midlands Engine Investment Fund, Mercia or a corporate partner. If you build technology in the East Midlands, plan for all three. Compare investors in our guides to deep tech angel investors in Europe, angel investors for early-stage startups in Europe, UK angel syndicates for women investors and deep tech VCs in Europe, and look at programmes beyond Nottingham in our lists of deep tech incubators in Europe and startup incubators in Europe. Non-dilutive money helps too: see our lists of grants for early-stage startups in Europe and grants for female entrepreneurs in Europe.

Pitching for a prize is a good first test, and the Ingenuity Impact Competition is one. Find more in our list of startup competitions in Europe, meet investors at the best startup events in the UK and the startup events in London, and if you are in life sciences, at the top biotech startup events. To see how other research cities do it, read our lists of startups in Munich, Eindhoven, Stockholm and, outside Europe, Brasília.

Before you copy any of these business models, validate your startup idea with real customers. Most Nottingham startups on this list sell far beyond the UK, so they need to be easy to find online: list your startup in the F/MS marketing directories, publish your startup press release, and write about your product with the F/MS AI SEO Tool or the AI SEO Blog so customers, investors and AI assistants can find you.

FAQ About Nottingham Startups to Watch in 2027

Which Nottingham startups should I watch in 2027?

Our verified list: Cerca Magnetics, Promethean Particles, HALO X-Ray Technologies, Locate Bio, HPDrive Technologies, Shard Diagnostics and Contour. Each still operates and has its registered office in Nottingham, checked on its own site, university pages and Companies House in November 2026.

Which Nottingham startup raised money most recently?

Cerca Magnetics raised a £3.8 million Series A led by Guinness Ventures in April 2026 to work towards clinical approval and scale up manufacturing. In July 2026 Agilent increased its investment in HALO X-Ray Technologies, according to press coverage; the amount was not published.

Is Nottingham good for medtech and life science startups?

Yes. BioCity Nottingham and MediCity Nottingham rent labs to young life science and medtech companies, and Cerca Magnetics, Locate Bio and Shard Diagnostics all started here. The Pioneer Group, which runs both campuses, also runs startup programmes.

Are there deep tech and climate startups in Nottingham?

Promethean Particles makes MOF materials for carbon capture and water harvesting, HPDrive develops cryogenic electric motors for zero-emission aircraft, and Contour designs precision magnetic systems based on quantum technology research.

Which universities create startups in Nottingham?

The University of Nottingham says it has more than 40 spin-outs and launched six new ones in 2025/26. Nottingham Trent University's research led to HALO X-Ray Technologies, and its NTU Enterprise team runs a Start Up programme for students and graduates.

Where can Nottingham students start a business?

University of Nottingham students and alumni can join the Ingenuity Lab for mentoring, events and the Ingenuity Impact Competition. NTU students and graduates can apply to the NTU Enterprise Start Up programme, which runs each autumn with more workshops from January to May.

Where can Nottingham startups find investors?

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund II, through Mercia, offers equity of up to £5 million to companies in the East and South East Midlands. The University of Nottingham also launched an EIS fund for its spin-outs in June 2026, managed by SyndicateRoom.

What happened to the startups on the old list?

CHAIN Biotechnology and Kuur Therapeutics are in liquidation, Antidote, Carbon Analytics, Vinehealth and Wayve are registered in London, Unitary in St Albans, and Mirador Therapeutics is in San Diego. We could not find FlowSign or SKROL AI.

What can founders learn from Nottingham startups?

Start from research you can prove, rent specialist space instead of building it, use regional and government money for the early, risky stage, and find a large corporate partner or customer before you raise a big round.

Where can I get a backlink by writing about my startup?

You can publish a guest post in one of the Fe/male Switch startup blogs, which rank in Google and in AI tools. Get a quality backlink.

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.

Violetta Bonenkamp

2026-11-09 03:07 Best Startups