UK AI funding hits record in Q2

UK AI companies raised a record £4.56 billion in equity funding in the second quarter, according to Beauhurst, accounting for 57% of all UK equity investment by value. Beauhurst tracked 269 AI fundraising rounds between April and June, compared with 1,070 UK equity deals across all sectors, while the wider market raised £8.01 billion.

The £4.56 billion total was 4.1% higher than the previous quarter’s £4.38 billion and 186.8% above the £1.59 billion raised by UK AI companies in the same period a year earlier. Funding was highly concentrated, with eight AI rounds of more than £100 million making up almost 80% of disclosed AI investment, including deals involving Isomorphic Labs, Ineffable Intelligence, NScale, PhysicsX and Fractile.

Life sciences and health led by value, with 36 deals raising £1.52 billion, driven mainly by Isomorphic Labs’ £1.47 billion fundraise. AI infrastructure, compute, and chips followed with £986 million, while enterprise software, data and automation raised £843 million from 27 deals. Beauhurst said the total may rise as delayed Companies House filings reveal additional deals.