Empirical Ventures has secured a £10 million commitment from British Business Bank through its Regional Angels Programme, bringing the Bank’s total backing of the firm to £15 million.
The funding will enable the Bristol-based deeptech investor to scale its strategy of backing what it calls “venture scientists,” founders with deep technical expertise building companies across energy, advanced materials, life sciences, and other frontier sectors.
Empirical Ventures focuses on pre-seed and seed-stage investments, combining patient capital with its SEIS and EIS fund structures alongside an angel syndicate. The new capital will allow the firm to write larger, high-conviction checks to early-stage founders across the UK, particularly outside London.
The firm’s core thesis is that many traditional investors struggle to evaluate deep science startups due to limited domain expertise. Empirical aims to address this gap by investing with scientific conviction, supporting founders who bridge the transition from academic research to commercial application.
The investment aligns with the UK government’s 2026 Modern Industrial Strategy by supporting the commercialization of scientific research and accelerating the growth of deeptech and life sciences companies across regional ecosystems.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are delighted to expand our commitment to Empirical Ventures. Their team has identified a powerful untapped resource in the UK economy: the ‘Venture Scientist.’ By backing technical founders who are solving hard problems, Empirical is helping to bridge the critical funding gap for science-led businesses outside of London. This partnership ensures that the UK’s brightest scientific minds have the support they need to turn research into category-defining global companies.”
Mark Barry, Senior Investment Director, British Business Bank
“The greatest companies of the next 30 years will be built by scientists. We call them ‘Venture Scientists’ – founders who bring rigorous scientific methodology to company building. But for too long, these founders have been underestimated or misunderstood by generalist investors. This £10m commitment from the British Business Bank allows us to back these Venture Scientists with the conviction they deserve. Whether they are in Bristol, Manchester, or Edinburgh, we are here to ensure that the founders capable of rewriting the rules of what’s possible get the resources to do so.”
Dr. Johnathan Matlock, Co-Founder And General Partner, Empirical Ventures
