Northern Gritstone announces launch of NG Studios powered by KQ Labs
Northern Gritstone and KQ Labs, the life sciences accelerator delivered by The Francis Crick Institute, have announced the launch of a new life sciences program – NG Studios powered by KQ Labs.
As part of the partnership, NG Studios, Northern Gritstone’s pre-seed program, and KQ Labs will work closely with the Northern Arc universities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield to identify early-stage spinouts to participate in a new four-month program that establishes the foundations of growth for life sciences spinouts. This is achieved through bespoke venture-building activities covering strategy, operations, and capital-raising.
The program will bring academic founders into the KQ Labs ecosystem of pharma and biotech industry, entrepreneurs and investors and complement their world-class research and innovation in life sciences.
This new collaboration brings together NG Studios with KQ Labs’ proven track record in supporting early-stage health and life sciences ventures. Since 2018, KQ Labs alumni have collectively raised more than £ 219 million.
Delivered by the KQ Labs team and NG Studios, the program will embed founders in a thriving ecosystem of investors, pharma leaders, and experienced entrepreneurs, while complementing and strengthening the existing support offered by university innovation teams. The partnership with KQ Labs is the second for NG Studios following on from its technology pre-seed program NG Studios powered by Deeptech Labs announced in 2024. Its Cohort 2024 has raised £19 million to date from the investment community, demonstrating its effectiveness in preparing founders for successful fundraising.
The initiative draws on the world-class translational research base of Northern Gritstone’s three founding universities Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield; and the University of Liverpool which became a partner university in May 2025. In the most recent academic year, the Northern Arc universities combined strength created 19 spinouts in life sciences and technology (source HESA).
Duncan Johnson, CEO of Northern Gritstone said “Innovation thrives when it is part of a collaborative and supportive ecosystem of talent and capital. The Northern Arc universities are renowned for their world-class research in life sciences and health tech and for commercialising this research to create groundbreaking spinouts. NG Studios powered by KQ Labs will help accelerate the process by broadening access to the innovation ecosystem and helping academics test and develop their business strategies. We are delighted to partner with KQ Labs and The Francis Crick Institute”
Barbara Domayne- Hayman, Chair of KQ Labs said “Since its founding, KQ Labs has supported over 70 startups, with alumni raising more than £219 million to date. Our proven experience in building life sciences companies will now be embedded in this Northern-focused initiative. Our collaboration with Northern Gritstone reflects a shared commitment to empowering scientific founders with the resources they need to succeed. By bringing the KQ Labs delivery model to early-stage companies from the North, we hope to unlock the potential of world-class research in places traditionally overlooked by venture capital.” ed by Parkwalk Advisors, the UK’s most active university spinout investor with over £500 million of assets under management and target investments across sectors such as quantum computing, AI, engineering biology, semiconductors, healthtech and clean technology.
