Imperial College Innovations Explained

Imperial Innovations
Former Name:	Imperial College Enterprises Limited
Industry:	technology commercialisation investment company
Founded:	1986
Hq Location:	London

Imperial College Innovations Ltd is a UK technology commercialisation and investment company, based in London. Imperial Innovations is traded on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange.

History

Imperial Innovations was founded in 1986^[1] as a department of Imperial College London, later becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of the college. The company was originally known as IMPEL, short for Imperial College Enterprises Limited.

In July 2006, shares in the company were admitted to trading on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange.^[2] Since 2006, Imperial Innovations has raised over £300 million to invest in early-stage technology businesses.^[3]

On 4 November 2010 Prime Minister David Cameron revealed in a speech given in East London that Imperial Innovations had agreed to advise on the creation of an accelerator space for spinout companies at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as part of the new East London Tech City hub.^[4]

One notable tech spinout is London-based Breathe Battery Technologies, launched in 2019.^[5] In March 2024, Volvo Cars announced its partnership with Breathe would greatly improve charging times in its future EVs.^[6]

Notes and References

1. Book: Evers. Natasha. Cunningham. James. Technology Entrepreneurship: Bringing Innovation to the Marketplace. 2014. Palgrave Macmillan. 978-1137020116.
2. Web site: Imperial College London - Technology transfer company established by Imperial College London to float on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange ("AIM") (the "Flotation"). Imperial College London. 30 October 2015.
3. Web site: About. 30 October 2015.
4. Web site: East End tech city speech . Number 10 . 4 November 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101106161343/http://www.number10.gov.uk/news/speeches-and-transcripts/2010/11/east-end-tech-city-speech-56602 . 6 November 2010 .
5. Web site: 2021-12-02 . Imperial College London spin-out raises £1.5m for smart battery software . 2024-03-12 . UKTN . en-GB.
6. Web site: Lewis . Michelle . 2024-03-12 . Volvo Cars says its new partner will reduce its EVs' charging time by 30% . 2024-03-12 . Electrek . en-US . Volvo Cars has partnered with Imperial College London spinoff Breathe Battery Technologies to reduce its EVs’ charging time by 30%… charging time improvements will last throughout the battery’s life cycle without impacting its health. Volvo Cars’ collaboration with Breathe results from a sourcing agreement for its flagship product, Breathe Charge, and represents the latest investment by Volvo Cars’ venture capital arm, Volvo Cars Tech Fund..