Cambridge Future Tech

Kicking off our collaboration with Bohemia Interactive Simulations, we are pleased to announce the integration of our Secure Data Environment with VBS4 - the industry leading virtual simulation engine.  Built with security and scalability in mind, the Mission Decisions data platform is able to handle large amounts of data in real time, serving analytics to users across networks and geographies. Through interactive dashboards, users can access deep insights into exercise and mission performance either as part of their immediate After Action Review, or for observing trends across training cohorts and serials. As well as data the platform is able to securely host advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence models, which are then made available on demand - bringing unrivalled access to the latest analytical tools and techniques for our defence users. The best bit? We’re releasing the plugin and dashboard for free, to all users of the Mission Decisions Secure Data Environment. If you are attending #IITSEC 2024 in Orlando this year, you can try it for yourself at booth #1649. Rusmat Ahmed Oliver Arup Tim Colebrooke

Breaking down and rebuilding... An intense and inspiring couple of days away at The Ickworth Hotel with the Cambridge Future Tech management team. Grateful for the time to reconnect, review and gain whole new perspectives. Thanks Owen, James & Steve. #venturebuilding

Does VC stand for vanilla custard? 🥄 My grandmother taught me a valuable lesson about simplicity: break problems down to their essence and tackle them head-on. She didn’t know what venture building was, and “VC” might as well have been a new recipe. But her lessons resonate with founder mentality. In the rush to build, pitch, and scale, we often layer complexity where it is not needed - thinking that a more intricate solution will impress investors or dominate markets. Yet I have seen that the opposite may be true. Simplicity, clarity, and focus are the foundation of enduring ventures. It’s not always about adding more; it’s about removing what doesn’t matter. My grandmother showed her way of being through her actions; she approached everything with quiet kindness and practicality. When things didn’t work, she never overcomplicated; she simply adjusted, refined, and tried again. I try to carry her way of being with me to the best of my ability, and remind myself to cut through the noise, avoid overcomplicating, and act decisively. To the founders out there: Vanilla custard is a simple recipe, but done right, it’s unforgettable. The same goes for ventures - strip back complexity, focus on what matters, and let the essence of your idea shine. What’s one way you have embraced simplicity to build something stronger? #KeepItSimple #FounderMindset #Entrepreneurship #IsVCvanillacustard

Meet Sven, our Partnerships Manager! 👋 Sven joins us to manage CFT's growing portfolio of global corporate partnerships. With a history of contributions to UK and EU scientific committees and project management across sustainable ventures in London and Tanzania, his experience and collaborative energy make him the perfect person to support CFT’s mission to drive innovation and impact. With a double master’s in Innovation Design Engineering and expertise in biotech and agritech, Sven's already a valuable resource for partners wanting to solve strategic challenges. Pleased to have you, Sven! #deeptech #innovation #camfuturetech

Slush 2024 ❄️ ✨ 🪩 Moody nightclub lighting improves all things: late nights and early investor meetings are infinitely enhanced by sparkling lasers, but darkly-lit vegan conference food remains inedible… Slush was all about the side-events: with special thanks to our hosts, partners and new friends at #KnightsoftheNordics Conception X, Innovate UK, Mishcon de Reya LLP, HYUNDAI CRADLE, XTX Ventures, In Parallel, British Embassy #Helsinki. Excellent roundup in Sifted if you didn’t make it to Helsinki! https://lnkd.in/e9b6-zSq ✈️ Cambridge Future Tech VC #deeptech #slush2024

We are thrilled to announce Owen Thompson, CEO and Co-Founder of Cambridge Future Tech, as a speaker for the Wolfson Entrepreneurship Panel Discussion on ‘How to make a smooth career transition into entrepreneurship’. Owen studied for a master’s degree in Entrepreneurship at Wolfson (2018) and will be joining a dynamic panel featuring Dr Chris Coleridge (2022), Professor Ijeoma Uchegbu FMedSci (2024), and Omar Majid (2018).   Book your place today for the panel on 7 December with the link below: https://lnkd.in/dtjP5nga   Cambridge Future Tech is a technology-first venture builder working with top-tier UK universities to spin-out the most promising deep technologies into commercial ventures with global impact.    Prior to his role at CFT, Owen was a fighter pilot in the Royal Air Force (RAF) for over a decade, and then subsequently General Manager for Advanced Technologies at BAE Systems, which included running multiple R&D sites with technology focus areas such as microwave materials, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), printed electronics, and additive manufacturing. In the last year, Owen has successfully shaped multiple start-up funding rounds, including taking six portfolio companies through their pre-seed rounds and supporting multiple external fundraising engagements. Under his leadership, CFT’s portfolio continues to grow at pace, having created over 70 highly skilled jobs and raising over $10m in external funding.  

Life as a Venture Analyst at CFT: ✅ Joining international summits ✅ Scouting sustainable tech in the UK ✅ Connecting with the global venture ecosystem If you’re passionate about driving deep tech from lab to market and want to be part of our growing team, visit: https://lnkd.in/eJFGm7CX 🚀 #venturebuilder #ventureanalyst #deeptech #cambridge

Congratulations to AutoPickr, a CFT portfolio venture, for recently winning the Innovation in Agriculture Award at the Robotics & Automation Awards 2024! We're pleased to see their work in accessible robotics recognised once again, helping to drive innovation in agriculture. Here’s to more milestones and continued success! 🚀 #deeptech #agritech #ROBOAA24

📈 Deeptech maintains its share of European investment. 📉 Though the total amount of capital invested falls. ....and we strongly lag behind the USA. Europe is a research powerhouse with timely strengths: quantum computing / AI / decarbonisation / advanced materials / synthetic biology. Where would the world's largest challenges and opportunities be if more of this research was supported through to commercialisation? Investors out there: is the problem a lack of suitable dealflow (tech and/or talent)? A lack of LP appetite? Long return cycles? Something else? I'd love to see us get the most out of our strengths. Credit: State of European Tech Report 2024 Cambridge Future Tech #deeptech #venture #creation

It's been a busy few weeks at Cambridge Future Tech! 🇨🇭 We went out to CERN to join the venture connect summit, thank you Linn Kretzschmar, Hanaé Taxis and the wider CERN Innovation Partnerships team for the great event! 🛠️ I traveled within the UK, to look at a promising new technology enabling the pathway to more sustainable transportation. 🇵🇹 Finally, we went to Web Summit, where I got to engage with the broader EU early-stage venture scene and catch up with Literal Labs (with Noel Hurley catching me loitering outside the investor lounge on multiple occasions). These experiences highlighted the extensive technological development happening all over Europe. To maximise the impact of the scientific research and engineering taking place at academic labs and within startups, it is critical that the European venture ecosystem keeps growing and continues to become more interconnected. A large and well connected ecosystem will improve access to the support required to make startups succeed and will allow obstacles in a founders path to commercialisation to be removed.