Regeneration news
MassChallenge UK: A Year of Growth and Innovation in the Royal Docks
The Royal Docks Team, a proud partner of MassChallenge UK, welcomed innovators, founders, and corporate partners to City Hall to celebrate the finale of an incredible year for the accelerator programme.
MassChallenge UK is part of a global not-for-profit network that supports start-ups, connecting entrepreneurs with mentors and industry experts to help them grow and scale their impact.
The Royal Docks Team has partnered with the UK programme since its launch in 2023, supporting its growth from a small pilot, to 18 start-ups in 2024 and an impressive 36 in 2025. Over just three years, the programme has accelerated over 60 startups, helping them collectively raise £29 million and create more than 3,300 jobs across the UK and beyond.
It’s been an incredible year of growth. The quality, ambition, and diversity of this year’s founders show just how vibrant the UK innovation ecosystem is. We’re proud to help these startups move faster, scale globally, and make a positive impact.
David Kinsella, Managing Director of MassChallenge UK
Over the past four months these exceptional startups, selected from hundreds of applicants across the world, have worked closely with a community of experts and partners to accelerate their growth and bring their bold ideas to life. These early-stage entrepreneurs are tackling challenges and offering solutions across AI, climate, food, and health.
As a strategic partner, the Royal Docks Team provides place-based support with access to local business networks, investment opportunities, and talent. In collaboration with key partners - including the Royal Docks Centre for Sustainability, Tate & Lyle, and leading corporates - the programme is helping to cement the Royal Docks’ status as one of London’s emerging innovation districts, where entrepreneurship, sustainability, and inclusive growth converge.
Partnering with MassChallenge UK helps bring our vision for the Royal Docks to life – making us a home for mission-driven innovators and new business start-ups tackling global challenges with ideas and solutions that are inclusive, sustainable and will make a difference.
Matt Davies, Head of Economic Development, Royal Docks Team
The Awards Ceremony provided an opportunity to recognise this year’s cohort whose groundbreaking technologies reflect the diversity and ambition of the UK’s innovation landscape.
Eight start-ups advanced to the finals, with the top prize of £20,000 awarded to Vizgard, an SME committed to making public spaces safer with AI tracking and object detection technology and The Bland Company, a bio-tech start-up transforming agricultural bio-products into powerful new ingredients, including protein alternatives for the egg market.
Special thanks to Chris Choa, Royal Docks Programme Board Member, whose keynote set the Royal Docks within the context of London, which he described as a rare global city that is simultaneously ‘Made
and Making’ – both well established and continually evolving. He spotlighted the Royal Docks and east London as a vital part of this ‘Making’
identity – a dynamic that attracts forward-thinking organisations such as MassChallenge.
Start-up presentations at MassChallenge UK Awards Ceremony 2025 held at City Hall
In addition to the two winning teams, a further six start-ups were presented with in-kind awards for legal and advisory support, helping them to strengthen their growth strategies:
- AreteMedical – offering a digital health device that enables hospital-grade respiratory monitoring at home.
- Blusnik - transforming underused seafloors into habitats that capture carbon and restore marine biodiversity.
- Fibre Folks – creating fermented, high-fibre wheat flours to boost nutrition and support sustainable food production.
- Grub Club – producing vet-approved, insect-based dog food that support dogs’ health.
- Interstellar – building autonomous factories in space to transform high-performance manufacturing.
- Steribake – revolutionising food safety with sterile, preservative-free batters that can be stored at room temperature.
For more information on this year’s accelerator initiatives, see MassChallenge 2025
