UK’s largest cyber start up accelerator reveals members

Plexal has announced the 108 cyber startups joining the Cyber Runway accelerator Cyber Runway is the UK’s most diverse community of cyber founders and entrepreneurs Startups will join one of three streams within the DCMS-backed programme – Launch, Grow and Scale.

LONDON, NOVEMBER 2021 – Plexal, the innovation company founded by Delancey, has today revealed details of the 108 cyber entrepreneurs, startups, SMEs and scaleups joining the Cyber Runway accelerator programme.

Cyber Runway has been designed to address some of the biggest challenges facing cybersecurity, such as diversity and inclusion and regional representation, and support the most promising innovators at various stages of growth.

The full membership list confirms that Cyber Runway will not only be the largest cyber startup accelerator in the UK, but the most diverse community of cyber founders in the country.

The cohorts are solving challenges like ransomware, cyber fraud, cyber-physical threats to critical national infrastructure, cloud security, improving threat intelligence and boosting education using emerging technologies such as AI, quantum and cloud
security.

45% of Cyber Runway members are female-led startups and 52% are run by founders from black, ethnic or minority backgrounds.

Plexal has ensured inclusivity is at the heart of Cyber Runway by including underrepresented groups in the design and delivery of the programme. Members will also have access to a diverse mentor pool of investors and industry experts.

50% of member companies are based outside of London and the South East of England. From Ashford to Yeovil, members and their teams are based across the country and Cyber Runway will be delivered in person and virtually to maximise nationwide reach.

The Cyber Runway membership represents some of the most innovative and highpotential
cyber startups currently operating in the UK. Members include scaleups such as CybSafe, which raised £5m earlier this year for its security awareness software, SECQAI, which uses quantum technology and AI to combat cyber threats, Yorkshire-based Bob’s Business, which delivers cyber training, insurtech startup Regulativ.ai, which aims to disrupt cyber regulatory compliance, and Hack The Box, which raised £7m in April for its online cybersecurity training platform.

The full list of Cyber Runway members is available at plexal.com/cyber-runway

Cyber Runway programme

Backed by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and delivered by Plexal in partnership with CyLon, Deloitte and CSIT (the Centre for Secure Information Technologies), Cyber Runway will be an intensive six-month programme. Three distinct streams will deliver dedicated curricula for cyber startups based on their growth phase:
Launch, Grow and Scale.

Launch: 20 entrepreneurs will get support with launching their business, building a minimum viable product and creating a network.

Grow: 68 startups and SMEs will get business support to help them address their growing pains, access funding and achieve commercial success.

Scale: 20 scaleups will access support (including 1:1 mentoring) to help them grow rapidly in the UK and around the world.

Cyber Runway has replaced and consolidated three DCMS-funded programmes: HutZero, Cyber 101 and Tech Nation’s cyber accelerator for startups.

The accelerator is designed to strengthen the UK’s cyber ecosystem and accelerate the growth of a new generation of breakthrough cyber startups to improve national security, stimulate innovation and drive economic growth.

Cyber Runway: member benefits

The 108 member companies will receive:

•  business masterclasses (both virtual and in person)
• mentoring, engineering support from CSIT and access to CSIT’s data and testing centre
• technical product development support
• opportunities to connect with international cyber hubs
• regional events
• connections to investors and corporates to fuel growth

Cyber innovation at Plexal

Plexal now delivers four of the five government-backed cyber programmes in the UK and is working to improve national security and digital resilience through emerging technologies and accelerating the growth of the UK cyber startup ecosystem.

The innovation company has delivered LORCA (the London Office for Rapid Cybersecurity Advancement) for the last three years and is currently delivering LORCA Ignite, which is supporting cyber scaleups. Over the last three years, LORCA has helped cohort companies raise more than £200m in investment and generate over £37m in revenue.

Plexal is also delivering NCSC For Startups, which connects cyber startups to technical experts within UK government to drive innovations that can make the UK safer online.

Saj Huq, director of innovation at Plexal, comments: “This is a golden age for the UK cyber startup ecosystem. Cyber startups are attracting record levels of investment and both the government and global tech giants are coming to British cyber companies to adopt emerging cyber technologies. The scale of Cyber Runway is testament to the enormous potential within the cyber startup community and will help stimulate the supply of innovative cyber solutions that will be needed by the economy and society.

“However, Cyber Runway is also specifically designed to address some of the challenges facing cyber startups as they scale. Our three programmes will connect cyber founders to the mentors, investors and corporates they need to accelerate their growth and access diverse talent. This is a significant moment for UK cyber and I have every confidence that the collaboration between the government and the private sector to create Cyber Runway will make the cyber ecosystem more successful, innovative and inclusive.”

Oz Alashe MBE, founder of CybSafe, comments: “There are few accelerator programmes that have the scale, network or the commitment to diversity and inclusion offered by Cyber Runway. I have no doubt that this will be beneficial for CybSafe. I’m delighted to join a nationwide community of ambitious, innovative cyber founders and look forward to sharing ideas, knowledge and experience with other members.”

Dr Andrea Cullen, co-founder of CAPSLOCK, comments: “Having graduated from the fifth cohort of LORCA, I have experienced first-hand the impact of Plexal’s unique combination of commercial expertise, industry connections and peer-to-peer learning networks. Cyber Runway will provide opportunities for CAPSLOCK to continue scaling and realise its full potential.”