I have spent rather more years than I care to remember in the world of IT and colleagues were used to me heading for a whiteboard to draw a technology stack. I would stress the importance of integration across the stack whether in a single piece of Apple hardware or in a complex ecosystem like Oracle’s enterprise cloud. A well-integrated stack operates like an orchestra rather than individual musicians – each component plays its part while contributing to a harmonious whole. This orchestration becomes increasingly critical as systems grow more complex and distributed.
The world I now work in – supporting innovation to drive a modern economy – I see striking parallels:
Just as fragmented technology creates system failures, fragmented innovation support can cripple an economy’s innovative potential.
Consider:
- Technology needs seamless integration between hardware, middleware, and applications
- Innovation needs equally smooth integration between research institutions, funding mechanisms, and commercial enterprises
Within the orchestra we have:
- Highly talented academic researchers/teams who may be potential founders
- World class universities & research institutions
- Research Funding bodies
- Proof of Concept funds
- Accelerators
- Angel networks & early-stage funders
- Specialist VC’s
- Growth VC’s
- Other Private Capital
- Private Equity
- Public Markets
Each must play their part in perfect harmony for the innovation ecosystem to thrive.
Key lesson? Integration isn’t a nice-to-have – it’s fundamental to system performance. Just as no amount of excellent individual components can overcome poor integration in a technology stack, no amount of individual excellence in research, funding, or education can overcome poor integration in innovation support.
Let’s explore the ecosystem and recognise that in today’s fast-paced world of innovation, we often celebrate the end product – the breakthrough drug, the revolutionary clean energy solution, or the game-changing technology. However, these innovations aren’t born fully formed; they emerge from a complex, interconnected stack of activities, expertise and support mechanisms. Understanding and nurturing this complete innovation stack, paired with the right funding at each stage, is crucial for turning scientific discoveries into world-changing solutions.
The Foundation: Pure Science Research
At the base of the innovation stack lies pure science research—the fundamental investigations that expand our understanding of the world. This crucial foundation occurs at scale in academic institutions and research laboratories, where scientists pursue knowledge without immediate commercial applications in mind. Academic founders bring deep expertise and breakthrough discoveries that represent true innovation potential. To give an idea of scale the six universities that QantX is partnered with have an annual research budget* of more than £600m creating 300 plus innovations each year.
Cross-Pollination: The Power of Interdisciplinary Thinking
The next layer of the stack involves identifying potential synergies across different fields and matching them to commercial opportunity. Very early proof of concept funding is needed here and the role of an experienced accelerator, such as Set Squared is vital this part of the process.
Early Commercial Vision: The Critical Translation Phase
A pivotal—and often underestimated—layer of the stack is the early exploration of commercial potential. The transition from scientific discovery to viable commercial product represents one of innovation’s greatest challenges. This critical phase demands not just technical excellence, but also market insight, commercial acumen, and strategic patience. QantX specifically addresses this challenge by engaging with research teams early in their journey, helping identify promising commercial applications while technologies are still in development. This proactive approach, combined with the research excellence of our academic founders, significantly increases the likelihood of successful commercialization.
Building the Right Team: Beyond the Technical Founders
Technical brilliance alone rarely translates into successful innovation. This crucial layer involves building the right team around the founding scientists or engineers. Through our work with academic founders, we can access a rich ecosystem of talent and expertise, ensuring that promising innovations are supported by well-rounded teams capable of bringing them to market. Series A funding supports this critical phase of establishing presence in the home market, building out the core team, and creating a solid foundation for future expansion.
Regulatory Navigation: The Often-Underestimated Challenge
For many innovations, particularly in healthcare, energy, and other regulated sectors, obtaining necessary approvals represents a significant hurdle. This layer of the stack requires patient capital, regulatory expertise, and strategic planning. Success means treating international regulatory compliance not as a bureaucratic burden but as an integral part of the development process, building it into planning from the earliest stages.
Scaling for Global Impact: The Final Challenge
The final layer of the innovation stack involves scaling for international growth. This means developing robust manufacturing processes, building global supply chains, and adapting to varied market needs. At this stage, QantX partners with other UK investors in Series B & C rounds and beyond, providing the substantial capital needed for global expansion while maintaining strong UK regional roots.
The Glue: Patient Capital and Strategic Guidance
What holds this stack together? Patient capital and strategic guidance carefully matched to each stage of development. Traditional venture capital timelines of 5-7 years often prove insufficient for deep tech innovations that require longer development cycles. The funding journey must evolve with the company’s growth and needs:
- Focused research support that is aware of commercial potential
- Proof of Concept Funding
- Pre-revenue Seed: Supporting the crucial transition from research to commercial possibility
- Later Stage Seed: Achieving further commercial validation and initiating regulatory processes
- Series A: Establishing strong presence in the home market and building core capabilities
- Series B: Supporting scale-up and operational expansion
- Series C and Beyond: Enabling international growth through UK co-investment partnerships
Looking Forward: Building Better Innovation Ecosystems
By strengthening our support for the full innovation stack, we can transform promising discoveries into world-changing solutions that address major global challenges—from climate change to healthcare accessibility. The new investment vehicle established by QantX and the SETsquared Universities represents an ambitious and collaborative step toward this vision.
To see this approach in action, visit our portfolio and discover how we’re helping ambitious founders take scientific breakthroughs into commercial success stories.
* Source: HESA