EarthScale

What EarthScale does

EarthScale is a UK-wide 12-month cohort-based accelerator programme launched in April 2025 that supports IP-rich climate tech ventures at the pre-Series A stage (Technology/Software Readiness Levels 5–6) to bridge the gap between prototype and commercial deployment. It targets startups developing solutions that contribute to net zero or climate adaptation, with UK registration and seed investment as additional eligibility criteria. The programme is led by Imperial College London and operates through a network of six regional university hubs: Imperial (London), Cranfield, Derby, Exeter, Leeds, and Nottingham, each contributing specialist research, facilities, and industry connections.

The programme does not develop proprietary technology. Its core offering is a bespoke venture diagnostic that identifies scaling challenges and produces a tailored support plan across four pillars: technical and manufacturing support (including innovation vouchers of up to £14,000 for prototyping and facility access), enterprise development (investor readiness, financial modelling, fundraising support), talent engagement (recruitment, leadership coaching, peer founder networks), and policy and regulatory navigation (certifications, procurement, policy roundtables). The estimated in-kind support value is approximately £25,000 per venture.

EarthScale does not charge fees and takes no equity in participating ventures. It is fully funded by the Research England Development Fund (part of UKRI) as a three-year project running through 2028, and operates as a not-for-profit initiative under Imperial College London rather than as an independent commercial entity. Outreach is sales-led via a competitive application process, supported by partner university networks, events, webinars, and digital channels. Across two cohorts (16 ventures in October 2025 and 14 in June 2026), it has supported 30 climate tech ventures whose downstream activity includes over £20 million raised by Cohort 2 and nearly 200 collective employees in Cohort 1.

Name

EarthScale

Legal name

EarthScale

Website

https://earthscale.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EarthScale is a UK-wide, grant-funded 12-month accelerator programme led by Imperial College London, supporting IP-rich pre-Series A climate tech ventures through university-led technical, manufacturing, enterprise, and policy support across six regional hubs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Research England Development Fund: EarthScale is a 3-year project co-funded by the Research England Development Fund until 2028. The programme provides in-kind support valued at approximately £25,000 per venture, including innovation vouchers up to £14,000, access to facilities, expert guidance, and networking opportunities. No direct revenue is generated as this is a grant-funded initiative.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

EarthScale is a UK-wide 12-month cohort-based acceleration programme supporting IP-rich climate tech ventures to scale from prototype to commercial deployment and raise Series A funding. The programme is led by Imperial College London and delivered through a network of six regional university hubs, providing participating ventures with innovation vouchers (up to £14,000), bespoke venture diagnostics, technical and manufacturing support, enterprise development, talent engagement, and policy navigation — with an estimated in-kind support value of approximately £25,000 per venture.

Product overview

EarthScale operates as a national accelerator programme, not a traditional product company. Its core offering is a 12-month cohort-based programme supporting IP-rich climate tech ventures at the pre-Series A stage. The programme centres on a bespoke venture diagnostic tool that identifies each venture's unique challenges and delivers tailored support across four interconnected pillars: (1) Technical and Manufacturing Support through innovation vouchers and access to university facilities, (2) Enterprise Development including investment readiness and investor introductions, (3) Talent Engagement for team building and culture, and (4) Policy Navigation for regulatory compliance. The estimated value of in-kind support is £25,000 per venture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• EarthScale 12-Month Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• 30 climate tech ventures supported across two cohorts
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core lead, core partner and ecosystem.

• Imperial College Londoncore leadStrategic or Co-development PartnerImperial College London serves as the lead institution for EarthScale, coordinating the national network of regional hubs and providing access to world-class research, facilities, and innovation ecosystem in the White City Innovation District. Imperial brings over 4,000 expert researchers, state-of-the-art facilities, and connections to investors and policymakers.
• Cranfield Universitycore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerCranfield University is a regional hub offering access to specialist postgraduate facilities including water, clean energy, agriculture, aerospace and automotive capabilities, wind tunnels, welding and additive manufacturing. The university brings globally renowned expertise in applied research and industrial partnerships.
• University of Derbycore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Derby serves as a regional hub with the Institute for Innovation in Sustainable Engineering, focusing on sustainable engineering solutions, CNC machining, mechanical testing, additive manufacturing, and design for manufacture software.
• University of Exetercore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Exeter is a regional hub home to 1,500 climate and sustainability experts across 34 specialist environmental institutes. Expertise includes ocean carbon capture, carbon storage, circular economy, food systems, and whole-of-life systems thinking.
• University of Leedscore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Leeds serves as a regional hub through the Priestley Centre for Climate Futures, connecting climate experts with businesses and policymakers. The university contributes expertise in climate policy, simulations, and partnerships with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority.
• University of Nottinghamcore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Nottingham is a regional hub and major international centre for energy research, offering access to facilities in power electronics, sustainable chemistry, precision agriculture, and partnerships with manufacturers like Rolls-Royce and Toyota.
• Undauntedcore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerUndaunted is a partnership between Imperial's Grantham Institute and The Royal Institution, based in Scale Space within London's White City Innovation District. Has supported over 175 companies that have raised over $1bn and created 2,000 jobs.
• Imperial Enterprise Labcore partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerImperial Enterprise Lab is a dedicated hub for innovation and entrepreneurship at Imperial College London, offering a vibrant network with over 200 experts and mentors and an 800-strong investor community.
• Cranfield Industry PartnersecosystemStrategic or Co-development PartnerCranfield collaborates with major industry partners including Boeing, Rolls-Royce, Babcock, Airbus, Toyota, Siemens, National Gas, BP, and multiple F1 teams (Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari).
• Nuclear Skills AcademyecosystemStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst-of-its-kind partnership between the University of Derby and Rolls-Royce, supported by the Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, the National College for Nuclear, and Derby City Council.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Innovate UK: Innovate UK (part of UKRI) is the UK's innovation agency funding and supporting business-led innovation across sectors including climate tech, providing grants, investor connections and growth support — a broader incumbent funder in the same UK innovation ecosystem that EarthScale operates within.
• Catapult Network: The Catapult Network is a UK-established group of technology and innovation centres (including the Energy Systems Catapult) supporting UK businesses — particularly in deep tech and clean tech — to commercialise research and access facilities, broadly comparable to EarthScale's mission though operating across multiple sectors rather than climate-only.

Emerging players

• Station F: Station F is the world's largest startup campus in Paris, operating a Climate Action track among its programmes and providing cohort-based support for early-stage climate ventures with access to mentors, corporates and investors — comparable in cohort-based scaling of early climate ventures, though broader in scope and continental in geography.
• Undaunted: Undaunted is a partnership between Imperial College London's Grantham Institute and The Royal Institution supporting climate ventures; it has supported over 175 companies that have raised over $1bn and created 2,000 jobs. Undaunted is also a listed EarthScale partner and operates a comparable climate venture support model out of Imperial's White City ecosystem.

Direct peers

• Third Derivative: Third Derivative is RMI's (Rocky Mountain Institute) climate tech accelerator, running cohort-based programmes for early-stage climatetech ventures with investment, mentorship and corporate partner introductions — closely analogous to EarthScale's cohort model and climatetech focus.
• Elemental Excelerator: Elemental Excelerator is a non-profit climate tech accelerator that deploys venture funding and enterprise-grade support to startups tackling climate, energy and infrastructure — directly comparable to EarthScale in supporting early-stage climatetech with both funding and ecosystem access.
• Creative Destruction Lab: Creative Destruction Lab runs objective-driven cohorts for massively scalable science- and technology-based ventures, including a dedicated Climate Stream, partnering founders with experienced entrepreneurs and investors — directly comparable in cohort structure and climate tech specialisation.
• Activate: Activate (formerly Cyclotron Road at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab) is a two-year deep-tech fellowship supporting scientists and engineers scaling hard-tech ventures including climate solutions, with fellows receiving stipend, workspace, research access and investor introductions — highly comparable in serving IP-rich, hardware-intensive founders at the pre-commercial stage.
• Greentown Labs: Greentown Labs is the largest climatetech startup incubator in North America, providing prototyping facilities, manufacturing support, mentorship and investor introductions to early-stage climate ventures — directly comparable to EarthScale's mission of bridging hardware-heavy climate ventures from prototype to commercial deployment.
• Climate-KIC: Climate-KIC is a European climate innovation community and accelerator operating across multiple countries, supporting climate ventures with accelerators, investor introductions and policy engagement — directly comparable in mission and cohort-based approach, though operating at a broader European scale rather than UK-domestic.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/earthscale1

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about EarthScale