State of the Sector

Scaleup Capital bottleneck

Founders consistently report difficulty securing Series A/B investment, forcing them to consider relocating.

talent progression

Companies struggle to retain mid-level and senior staff due to London competition.

Global creative-tech hub

Scale the region’s virtual production and immersive experience companies for international export.

What is it?

Each year this report takes an honest look at how the Bristol & Bath tech economy is performing: jobs, investment, GVA (gross value added – the sector’s contribution to the economy), and how we compare with the UK’s other leading clusters. That full picture matters, and it remains the foundation of everything we publish.

The findings launch at the annual Chair’s Dinner, where 100+ leaders from across the ecosystem gather for an evening of good food and honest conversation about where we’re heading.

What's in it?

The report pulls together key insights on the state of the tech sector across Bristol & Bath, from a broad sector overview and market analysis to spotlights on the industries driving growth. It also shines a light on the barriers founders are facing right now, straight from the people building businesses in the region.

2026 Report

The report comes in two parts. The first is our annual overview of the Bristol & Bath tech sector. The second looks in detail at four areas that are changing how the wider economy works, and what that means for us.

The definitive annual picture of the Bristol & Bath tech economy: jobs, investment, GVA, and how we compare with the UK’s other leading clusters. It covers the full breadth of the sector – from creative technology and scale-ups to agencies, fintechs, spinouts and global chip designers.

AREA IN FOCUS

Sovereignty & Security

From Inmos to Isambard AI, this area has built chips, compute and cyber capability for fifty years. As the UK asks who owns and secures its critical technology, what role should Bristol & Bath play?

Host a roundtable

AREA IN FOCUS

AI: Building it and living with it

Home to world-class AI hardware, research and companies working out what adoption means for how they operate. Two roundtables, one theme: capability on one side, consequence on the other.

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AREA IN FOCUS

Impact-led entrepreneurship

A generation of founders here is building companies where commercial success and measurable impact are the same goal. Can impact become this ecosystem’s defining strength rather than a niche?

Host a roundtable

AREA IN FOCUS

Deep tech commercialisation

Our universities produce world-class research in quantum, robotics and engineering biology, but turning it into scaled companies remains patchy. Where does the pipeline break, and what would fix it?

Host a roundtable

Download Now & Learn What We Need To Do

The State of Tech in Bristol and Bath Report explores what changes we can make as individuals, organisations and as regional actors across policy, support, human capital, markets, finance and culture.