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Northern Accelerator is a collaboration between Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside Universities.
It has transformed research commercialisation in the North East and strengthened the region’s knowledge economy.
Our partnership brings world leading research together with commercial expertise to drive sustainable economic growth and ensure worldclass research delivers lasting regional impact.
To date we have
£200+m
Investment Raised by Spin-Outs since 2016
£1.8m
Invested from our Seed Investment Fund
65
Spin-out businesses created
430
Academics trained in impact & entrepreneurship
We support academics to turn exceptional research into successful spinout companies. These businesses create high quality jobs, attract investment and deliver long term value for the region.
Having created a step change in research commercialisation, the next multi-million-pound phase for Northern Accelerator is supercharging the North East’s innovation ecosystem.
We’re expanding entrepreneurial development, improving access to investment and grant funding, and strengthening the support available to academic founders. We’re also enhancing opportunities for licensing university intellectual property and deepening collaboration with businesses seeking innovative research driven solutions.
Northern Accelerator activity is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund in partnership with the North East Combined Authority and Durham County Council. Next generation support by Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund further strengthens our capability to generate and scale commercial opportunities from university research and help spinouts thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape.
Together with our partner universities we’re committed to shaping a thriving and globally connected North East. We will translate world-class academic research into high-impact innovative commercial propositions that address real world challenges across sectors and industries. This will generate economic, social and environmental benefits for the region and beyond.