What SCVC does

SCVC (Science Creates Ventures LLP) is an early-stage venture capital firm headquartered in Bristol, United Kingdom, founded in 2020 by Harry Destecroix as the investment arm of the broader Science Creates ecosystem. The firm specialises in UK-based Deep Tech startups spanning biotech, quantum, AI, synthetic biology, and advanced materials, deploying capital from pre-seed through Series A. SCVC applies a proprietary "technology-product fit" model to guide portfolio companies through technical and commercial de-risking, differentiating from generalist VCs by focusing exclusively on hard-technology bets with long development cycles. The firm's leadership team comprises exited founders and technical specialists: Destecroix previously led Ziylo to a 2018 acquisition worth up to $800m; General Partner John Williams co-founded and served as CTO of Kudan Inc, which exceeded a $1bn market cap on its Tokyo Stock Exchange IPO; and Principal Laura Davies is a biochemist with industry experience at Adaptimmune and BBSRC-UKRI.

The firm operates within a vertically integrated ecosystem that includes three physical incubators (Old Market, St Philips, OMX), an Accelerate training platform, and the Science Creates Outreach STEM education initiative, providing portfolio companies with laboratory infrastructure and operational support beyond capital. SCVC has raised £53m+ in total capital, deployed £25m+ across 18 portfolio companies, and is regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FRN:1041971). Revenue is generated through standard venture capital mechanics — management fees on committed capital and carried interest from exits — with demonstrated liquidity potential from founder Destecroix's prior Ziylo outcome and GP Williams's Kudan exit.

Deal sourcing is anchored in founder networks, university spinout ecosystems (notably University of Bristol and University of Cambridge), and the Science Creates incubator pipeline, with recent co-investments alongside NATO Innovation Fund, Earlybird Venture Capital, Deep Science Ventures, and Cambridge Enterprise VC. Portfolio highlights include Portal Biotech ($35m Series A, 2025), Zero Point Motion (£4m seed, 2025), Houdini Bio (€1.7m pre-seed, 2026), and Scarlet Therapeutics (£3.2m seed, 2026).

Name

SCVC

Legal name

Science Creates Ventures LLP

Website

https://scvc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SCVC is a Bristol-based early-stage Deep Tech venture capital firm investing in UK startups from pre-seed to Series A across biotech, quantum, AI, and advanced materials, embedded within the Science Creates incubator ecosystem.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Deep Tech)

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Open-End Investment Funds (525910)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Venture Studios & Incubators (Build/launch ventures) (FSANAHAC), Corporate Deep Tech / R&D Commercialization CVC (FSANAHAL)

Keywords

• Deep tech venture capital
• Early-stage tech investing
• Science startup funding
• Technology transfer investment
• Pre-seed to Series A capital

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Returns: SCVC generates returns through equity investments in early-stage Deep Tech companies. The firm takes equity stakes in portfolio companies and realizes returns through exits (acquisitions, IPOs). Typical VC fund structure with management fees and carried interest.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

SCVC provides early-stage venture capital investment (pre-seed to Series A) into UK-based Deep Tech startups across biotech, quantum, AI, synthetic biology, and advanced materials. The firm applies a proprietary 'technology-product fit' model to guide founders through technical and commercial de-risking, complemented by access to the Science Creates incubator ecosystem, training platform, and development services.

Product overview

SCVC (Science Creates Ventures) operates as an award-winning Deep Tech VC firm offering a comprehensive ecosystem for early-stage UK companies. The core offering is venture capital investment from pre-seed to series A through SCVC, complemented by physical infrastructure via Science Creates Incubators (Old Market, St Philips, OMX), the Platform (Accelerate training engine and Partnerships program), Development Services for laboratory and R&D facilities, and Science Creates Outreach for STEM education. The ecosystem applies a 'technology-product fit' model to guide Deep Tech startups through technical and commercial de-risking, focusing on sectors including biotech, quantum, AI, synthetic biology, and advanced materials.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SCVC Venture Capital Investment (Pre-seed to Series A) Early-stage equity capital (pre-seed to Series A) for UK Deep Tech founders developing breakthrough technologies in AI, quantum, synthetic biology, biotech, and advanced materials. SCVC applies a proprietary 'technology-product fit' model to guide teams through technical and commercial de-risking, and portfolio companies gain access to the Science Creates ecosystem including incubators, training, and lab infrastructure.
• Science Creates Incubators (Old Market, St Philips, OMX) Specialised Deep Tech incubator spaces providing wet lab and engineering lab facilities for science and engineering startups at multiple Bristol locations (Old Market, St Philips, OMX). Tenants gain access to a Deep Tech community and the broader Science Creates ecosystem.
• Development Services (Laboratory & R&D Facility Design) End-to-end design and delivery services for laboratory and R&D facilities, providing Deep Tech companies and research organisations with purpose-built infrastructure.

Quantifiable outcome

• Ziylo acquisition for up to $800m in 2018
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Cambridge Enterprise Ventures: University-linked seed and early-stage investor commercialising University of Cambridge deep tech research. Highly comparable to SCVC in stage, sector focus (biotech, quantum, advanced materials), and UK geography, and has appeared as a SCVC co-investor (e.g., Houdini Bio).
• Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE): VC firm spun out of Oxford University investing in deep tech and life sciences from university IP. Closely comparable to SCVC in mission (commercialising UK academic deep tech), stage focus, and sector mix.
• Cambridge Innovation Capital (CIC): Early-stage investor focused on the Cambridge deep tech and life sciences cluster. Closely comparable sector mix (biotech, quantum, AI) and stage, making it a natural UK peer to SCVC.
• Parkwalk Advisors: UK-based early-stage investor specialising in university spinouts and deep tech from UK research institutions. Directly comparable to SCVC in thesis, stage (pre-seed to Series A), and customer base (technical founders).
• Deep Science Ventures: Venture builder creating and funding science companies from first principles. Has co-invested with SCVC (e.g., Houdini Bio), and shares a deep tech, science-first thesis with overlapping UK founder pool.
• Episode 1 Ventures: UK pre-seed and seed investor with meaningful exposure to deep tech and science-led founders. Comparable to SCVC in stage focus and UK orientation, though somewhat broader in sector mandate.

Broad incumbents

• IP Group: Largest UK-listed IP commercialisation company backing deep tech and life science spinouts from leading universities. Broader and more established than SCVC, but directly comparable in thesis of monetising UK academic deep tech at early stage.
• Octopus Ventures: One of the largest UK VCs with a dedicated deep tech vertical alongside broader fintech/healthtech investing. More diversified and at larger check sizes, but operates in overlapping UK early-stage deep tech deal flow.
• LocalGlobe: Prominent UK seed investor with a founder-led approach. While more software/internet biased, it competes with SCVC for top UK technical founders at pre-seed and seed stages.

Regional players

• Apollo Ventures: European deep tech and biotech-focused early-stage investor. Comparable thesis on deep tech/longevity, though primarily Continental European in focus versus SCVC's UK-centric mandate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sc-vc
• Xx.com/SCVC_UK

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments24 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SCVC