What Empirical Ventures does

Empirical Ventures Limited is a Bristol and London-based specialist UK venture capital firm that backs early-stage deep tech and life science companies led by "venture scientists" — founders combining deep domain expertise with company-building capability. Founded in 2021 as Science Angel Syndicate by Dr. Johnathan Matlock (PhD, Chemistry) and Dr. Ben Miles (PhD, Physics) — both former members of the Ziylo Ltd team acquired by Novo Nordisk for potentially over $800 million — the firm rebranded to Empirical Ventures in April 2024 upon launching a SEIS/EIS Fund I targeting £10M, later expanded to £15M total British Business Bank backing via the Regional Angels Programme. The firm operates two coordinated vehicles: the S/EIS Fund I for professional investors and the parallel Empirical Ventures Angel Syndicate, both leveraging a proprietary scientific due diligence framework led by PhD scientists, entrepreneurs and operators.

Empirical Ventures invests across pre-seed and seed rounds in life sciences, advanced materials, TechBio, photonics & quantum, robotics & automation, AgTech, and broader deep tech, with active deal flow across UK regional clusters including Bristol, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cambridge, Southampton, and Cheshire. The portfolio spans 18+ companies (with 55+ historical angel investments totalling over £6M) including Caudal Energy, QV Bioelectronics, OSSTEC, EnsiliTech, OutSee, Silveray, MintNeuro, HotGreen Solutions, and Lucida Medical. Co-founders hold 8 board seats at portfolio companies that have collectively raised over £20M. The firm operates as an appointed representative of SFC Capital Partners Ltd under FCA authorisation (FRN 736284), with deal-flow generated through Spin Up Science (4,500+ scientists supported, 200+ deeptech companies catalysed), SETsquared, ICURe, and Pioneer LAUNCH partnerships.

Revenue derives from management fees and carried interest on the S/EIS fund, supplemented by returns on angel syndicate co-investments. The firm runs an active public-policy campaign advocating Knowledge Intensive SEIS reform to expand UK tax-relief wrappers for deep tech investment. Strategic partnerships include British Business Bank (Flagship), Fink Family Office, QantX, PXN Ventures, Northern Gritstone, and corporate investors such as Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, with PR coverage in Forbes and The Times supporting fundraising and thought leadership.

Name

Empirical Ventures

Legal name

Empirical Ventures Limited

Website

https://www.empiricalventures.vc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Empirical Ventures is a Bristol-based specialist UK VC backing early-stage deep tech and life science companies led by scientist-founders, operating an S/EIS Fund I (£15M committed) and parallel angel syndicate with proprietary PhD-led scientific due diligence.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Fund Management & Carry on S/EIS Fund: Empirical Ventures operates a SEIS and EIS fund (Fund I) raising capital for early-stage deep science businesses; revenue derives from management fees and any carried interest on profitable exits of portfolio companies.
2. Angel Syndicate Investment Returns: Angel syndicate alongside the S/EIS fund; co-invests in deep science rounds, with returns generated from capital appreciation and exits of portfolio investments (55+ investments made as Science Angel Syndicate / Empirical Ventures).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Empirical Ventures is a specialist UK venture capital firm that operates an SEIS/EIS fund (Fund I) and an angel syndicate to deploy pre-seed and seed capital into early-stage UK deep science startups. It backs 'venture scientist' founders across life sciences, advanced materials, TechBio, photonics and quantum, robotics and automation, AgTech and broader DeepTech. The firm provides proprietary scientific due diligence conducted by PhD scientists, entrepreneurs and operators, and shares that diligence with co-investors to de-risk early-stage deep science rounds.

Product overview

Empirical Ventures offers a single unified investment offering delivered through two coordinated vehicles: the Empirical Ventures Fund I S/EIS fund (the core product that pools capital from professional investors to lead SEIS/EIS rounds) and the Empirical Ventures Angel Syndicate (the parallel sub-product that lets individual angels co-invest alongside the fund). Both vehicles share the same deep-science due-diligence capability and focus on backing 'venture scientist' founders across life sciences, advanced materials, TechBio, photonics and quantum, robotics and automation, AgChem/Tech and broader DeepTech, with portfolio exposure supporting market-leading selection, access, scaling and Series A positioning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Empirical Ventures Fund I (S/EIS Fund) The flagship Empirical Ventures S/EIS fund that pools capital from professional investors and deploys it into SEIS or EIS-eligible early-stage deep science businesses, targeting pre-seed and seed rounds led by 'venture scientist' founders across life sciences, advanced materials, TechBio, photonics and quantum, robotics and automation, AgTech and broader DeepTech.
• Empirical Ventures Angel Syndicate Angel syndicate that sits alongside the S/EIS Fund I, providing collective scientific due diligence and enabling members to participate in pre-seed and seed rounds in UK deep science startups. Has historically executed over 65 angel investments totalling more than £6 million since 2021.

Quantifiable outcome

• £15M total British Business Bank commitment (£5M initial in 2024 plus £10M in 2026)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers28 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and moderate.

• SFC Capital Partners LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmpirical Ventures Limited operates as an appointed representative of SFC Capital Partners Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 736284). SFC provides the regulatory hosting that enables Empirical Ventures to market the SEIS/EIS Fund I and its angel syndicate to professional investors.
• Spin Up SciencecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-founder Dr. Ben Miles founded Spin Up Science in 2018; it has supported 4,500+ scientists in entrepreneurship and catalysed 200+ deeptech companies across the UK, providing a proprietary deal-flow and ecosystem for Empirical Ventures. Many portfolio companies (EnsiliTech, Albotherm, Transdermal Diagnostics) are Spin Up Science members.
• SETsquared Partnership (Regional Angel Investment Accelerator / Scale-up Programme)moderateGTM or Marketing PartnerEmpirical Ventures / Science Angel Syndicate participates in SETsquared's Regional Angel Investment Accelerator (RAIA) and Scale-up Programme, enabling portfolio companies (e.g. WASE, Transdermal Diagnostics) to access non-dilutive grant funding alongside angel investment.
• Pioneer Group (LAUNCH Accelerator)moderateGTM or Marketing PartnerPioneer's LAUNCH accelerator catalyses regulatory and commercial plans for several portfolio companies including Transdermal Diagnostics and EnsiliTech; Pioneer Group also co-invested alongside Empirical Ventures in Transdermal Diagnostics' pre-seed round.
• Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCEP participated as an investor in HotGreen Solutions' £1.2M pre-seed round led by Empirical Ventures and announced a UK pilot trial of HotGreen's ultra-efficient industrial heat pump technology.
• UK Government / HM Treasury (Knowledge Intensive SEIS reform)moderateGTM or Marketing PartnerEmpirical Ventures runs an active public-policy campaign (with The Times coverage and Typeform supporter page) advocating extension of SEIS scheme benefits to Knowledge Intensive Companies, including raising the SEIS funding cap to £1M and annual investor allowance to £500K.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Development Bank of Wales: Wales-focused regional development bank and seed investor. Recurring co-investor with Empirical Ventures (Argonaute RNA, Halo Therapeutics) and comparable as a regionally mandated deep tech backer.

Direct peers

• Northern Gritstone: Manchester-based growth investor focused on university spinouts from the North of England. Comparable regional deep tech mandate and recurring co-investor alongside Empirical Ventures in Silveray and Exciting Instruments.
• Cambridge Innovation Capital: Cambridge Cluster deep tech and life sciences investor backing IP-rich companies from the University of Cambridge ecosystem. Comparable as a specialist deep tech VC operating regionally around a major UK research hub.
• Oxford Science Enterprises: Oxford University-affiliated deep science investor building and backing science-led ventures. Directly comparable as a specialist deep tech VC; co-led Empirical Ventures' investment in Caudal Energy.
• Cambridge Angels: Cambridge-based angel network with deep tech focus and recurring co-investor (e.g. Orthofuse) alongside Empirical Ventures. Comparable as a regional deep tech syndicate targeting seed-stage university spinouts.
• Parkwalk Advisors: London-based specialist EIS fund manager focused on UK university spinouts and deep tech. Highly comparable as a SEIS/EIS-aligned deep tech investor with shared university-spinout deal flow and EIS structure.
• QantX: Bristol-based deep tech and life sciences investor. Comparable regional specialist thesis and recurring co-investor (Xgenera, QV Bioelectronics) with shared Bristol ecosystem roots.

Others

• British Business Bank: UK government's economic development bank and largest single LP/funder behind Empirical Ventures via the Regional Angels Programme (£15M committed). Comparable as the ecosystem enabler and capital provider that anchors Empirical Ventures' regional mandate.

Broad incumbents

• Octopus Ventures: One of the largest UK early-stage VCs with growing deep tech exposure. Comparable as a large incumbent expanding into deep science seed rounds where Empirical Ventures also invests.
• SFC Capital Partners: UK early-stage SEIS/EIS fund manager acting as Empirical Ventures' regulatory host (FCA FRN 736284). Comparable as a much larger SEIS/EIS generalist early-stage investor with broader sector mandate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SAS_investment
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/empirical-ventures

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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

M&A

Investments35 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Empirical Ventures