Funding for South Yorkshire's tech start-ups has doubled since 2019

Technology start-ups in Yorkshire secured equity funding totalling more than £52.6m in the first 10 months of 2022, according to TEAM SY’s South Yorkshire Tech 100 report.

Investment in South Yorkshire’s early-stage technology companies has more than doubled in the last four years, according to a new report.

TEAM SY’s South Yorkshire Tech 100 report show that the region's technology startups secured equity funding totalling more than £52.6m in the first 10 months of 2022.

The figure is 42 per cent more than in all of 2021 (£37m) and 129 per cent up on the £23m recorded in 2019, when data analyst Beauhurst started tracking investment activity in the region.

The report reveals South Yorkshire is now home to at least 3,000 active tech startups and growing clusters of AI, data analytics, IoT, NetZero and EdTech companies.

More than 400 tech companies have already been formed in South Yorkshire this year, 14 per cent more than in all of 2021, as business birth rates start to rebound following the COVID pandemic.

Oliver Coppard, South Yorkshire’s Mayor, said: “The South Yorkshire Tech 100 report highlights a new generation of tech start-ups that will drive our regional economy forward for decades.

"Thanks to our entrepreneurs, world-class research universities and talent pool, South Yorkshire is not just attracting, but creating high-quality tech companies and high-value jobs.”

He added: “Innovation is part of South Yorkshire's DNA, and we are going to make sure our region flourishes by working closely with stars of the sector to create an action plan for tech growth in our region.

"Digital and tech are the lifeblood of our economy; increasingly, every barrier is a digital or technology barrier, so it’s a vital sector for the whole of South Yorkshire.”

The South Yorkshire Tech 100 lists the region's hottest startups and scaleups. It includes the most successful tech companies born since the start of 2000 with headquarters in South Yorkshire and emerging startups with tremendous growth potential.

Between them, companies on the South Yorkshire Tech 100 employ almost 4,000 people and have raised more than £720m in funding.

The list is topped by two Sheffield-based Alternative Investment Market companies, ITM Power and WANdisco.

Energy storage and clean fuel company ITM Power has raised £350-£400m in funding, while data activation platform WANdisco has raised £100m-£125m.

Other companies on the list include Rotherham-based liquid cooling technology firm Iceotope, which has raised £60-£70m and Bumper in Sheffield, which provides an interest-free digital payment platform for vehicle repairs and services and has raised £35m-£40m.

Sheffield-based Magnomatics, which uses magnets to make gears for the renewable energy sector, and Sheffield-based imaging and microscopy business, Phasefocus, have both raised £15m-£20m.

Darren Balcombe, deputy chief executive at Capital Enterprise and TEAM SY lead, said: "There is a lot to be proud of in South Yorkshire's tech economy, but plenty of work to do to turn its emerging startup scene into a strong, self-sustaining engine of innovation and growth.

"South Yorkshire is home to several market-leading tech companies and thousands of startups that need investment to scale and create new jobs faster. We aim to give those startups and the wider tech ecosystem the best start in life so that South Yorkshire can be home to many more global leaders."