LORCA launches open call for fourth cohort of cybersecurity innovators

• The government-backed cyber innovation centre announces Connected Economy, Connected Everyone and Connected Everything as its three innovation themes, which it will use to recruit its next scaleup programme intake
• The most promising companies will receive a year of bespoke support to scale quickly, with LORCA taking zero equity or IP

London, 24th September: The London Office for Rapid Cybersecurity Advancement (LORCA) today launches a global open call for its fourth cohort of cyber scaleups. LORCA, which is delivered by Plexal (the innovation centre at Here East), will select up to 20 scaleups for its 12-month scaleup programme.

The latest cohort will receive bespoke support with scaling in the UK and abroad, as well as access to commercial and engineering experts through delivery partners Deloitte and the Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT) at Queen’s University Belfast. The deadline for applying is Monday 4 November 2019, with full details available at lorca.co.uk/apply

LORCA is inviting applications based on three innovation themes after consulting with industry leaders from various sectors about their most pressing cyber challenges and the types of solutions they need from the market in the future. The three cross-cutting themes (Connected Economy, Connected Everything and Connected Everyone) relate to the macro challenges faced by business and society as our world becomes more digitised and connected.

Saj Huq, Programme Director, LORCA, commented: “As technology increasingly impacts all aspects of business and society, it’s clear that a cybersecurity paradigm shift is needed. Now more than ever, we need to support the development of cutting-edge innovations across the board to help us lead safer digital lives, keep our infrastructure secure and protect our digital economy from complex and evolving cyber threats. Given its increasing significance within a world that is more connected by the day, cybersecurity has to be everywhere – and serve everyone.”

LORCA’s innovation themes

LORCA’s thematic approach to recruitment is targeted at a broad range of innovators who can solve real-world cyber challenges across a variety of business and societal contexts.

1. Connected Economy

In a post-breach world where technology is disrupting business models and our economy is more connected than ever, cybersecurity isn’t just about protecting data: it’s key to enabling sustainable growth. How can we enable organisations to stay resilient in the face of security threats across their supply chains and networks? And how can they futureproof themselves by building security into everything they do?

2. Connected Everyone

Our homes, workspaces, cities and personal space have never been so connected, yet the movement to secure them is in its infancy. How can we empower people to feel in control of their digital presence, build trust in technology –and make sure nobody is left out?

3. Connected Everything

From our transport infrastructure to the National Grid, our digital and physical worlds are converging as they become connected to the internet at lightning pace. With so much to win and lose for society, how can we solve the multi-dimensional security challenges which are emerging through hyper connectivity? And how can we collaborate with a broader spectrum of fields to build cyber principles into every access point for the internet?

Paul Branley, Director of Strategy, Innovation & Testing at Lloyds Banking Group, said: “Lloyds Banking Group partnered with the London Office for Rapid Cyber Security Advancement (LORCA) in June 2018 for three reasons. Firstly, in recognition that incremental change isn’t enough and we need a transformative approach to keep ahead of the threat. Secondly, we also wanted to gain early access to cutting edge ideas, technologies and innovative companies. Thirdly, as part of our business strategy to Help Britain Prosper, by ensuring the UK is a leader on the global stage with modern cybersecurity. We are looking to cohort 4 to achieve the above for some of the biggest cybersecurity challenges in the ever increasingly connected world.”

Louise Cushnahan, Head of Innovation, CSIT commented: “The three themes this cohort will be drawn from are tightly aligned with CSIT’s internationally leading multidisciplinary research roadmap of secure connected intelligence. Our engineering and research teams are primed and ready to work side by side with this next crop of innovative cyber security companies. CSIT’s new Cyber Range came on stream earlier this year and it will be used to maximum impact as we help companies iterate their secure solutions.”