University of Birmingham Enterprise Annual Review 2024-25

This year the University marked its 125th anniversary, and celebrated a legacy of driving change, shaping society, and fostering a global community of leaders and problem-solvers. 

Enterprise has had its own milestones too. This year marked the tenth anniversary of the BioHub, which laid the groundwork for a strong health and life science ecosystem in the region. Ten years ago, Birmingham had all the vital ingredients for health and medical innovation, but early-stage life science companies were not staying in the city. The BioHub provided much-needed space for incubation and delivered a landing ground to keep biomedical innovation in the region.

Like the University, we focus on priority sectors and Birmingham spin-outs such as 4D Medicine, PeroCycle and Delta.g are developing innovative technologies in med-tech, net zero, and industries supporting infrastructure development.

This year we have developed a strong pipeline of future spin-outs, and also established seven new Operating Divisions (ODs), many already at or near their first sales.

The OD model has quickly become a vital component of our approach, providing a dynamic way to unlock new opportunities. These ventures span a wide spectrum: some in the social sciences, others at the intersection of technology and science. Careful selection and strategic development are essential to guiding these ventures forward, and the flexibility of the OD model has proven to be a major strength in managing this diversity.

Our work is of course shaped by the challenges of the wider university environment. While the University of Birmingham is well-positioned, we need to recognise that the university sector as a whole is under pressure.  For enterprise activities to succeed, and to help in such an environment, a clear focus is essential, as are decisions on when and how to launch new companies, balancing preparedness with the need to take commercial risks.  We need to encourage our fledglings to fly the nest at just the right time.

For our tenants, spin-outs and ODs to succeed commercially, we need the Midlands to be working together. Initiatives like the Minerva Birmingham Pitch Up competition, co-created with neighbouring universities, strengthen regional collaboration and showcase its entrepreneurial talent to a wide audience of regional and national investors.

More recently, we were part of a team that secured £9.9m funding from Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund to stimulate the regional economy by supporting the development of talent, skills and supporting networks. We are also proud of our work with Midlands Mindforge, a patient capital investment company co-founded by eight universities in the region to provide capital and company-building skills for university spin-outs and early-stage IP rich businesses.

David Coleman
CEO, University of Birmingham Enterprise