SETsquared ranked top university business incubator in world

University business incubator SETsquared, a partnership involving the University of Exeter, has been ranked as the best in the world by UBI Global.

SETsquared, the enterprise partnership of the universities of Exeter, Bath, Bristol, Southampton and Surrey, has been recognised as the best performing university business incubator on the globe at its investor showcase event in London today (Wednesday 25 November).

From start up only 13 years ago, SETsquared has supported over 1,000 hi-tech start-ups to develop and raise more than £1bn of investment, as well as contributing over £3.8bn to the UK economy with further £15bn contribution estimated over the next 10 years. The partnership currently supports 265 companies across its centres and has created over 9,000 new jobs.

SETsquared, which has risen from the No2 spot on the global list, was ranked alongside some of the world’s best university business incubators, including the Innovation Incubation Center at Chaoyang University of Technology, Taiwan and The DMZ (Digital Media Zone) at Ryerson University, Toronto.

Sean Fielding, Director of Research and Knowledge Transfer at the University of Exeter, said: “Being part of the world’s best university business incubator, along with the launch of the Exeter Science Park, allows us to provide new entrepreneurship activities to the region. The innovative community being created in Exeter is leading to new jobs and opportunities, which is fantastic news for the South West.”

Robin Jackson, Centre Director at SETsquared’s innovation centre in Exeter, said: “It’s been an exciting year for SETsquared in the South West as we’ve just moved into the new Exeter Science Park based on our experience and success at our home at the University of Exeter Innovation Centre, as well as celebrating the news that the University of Exeter was ranked in the top 100 universities in the world for the first time.

“We’ve also been hard at work building on the success of the student enterprise programmes, which among other accolades, have led to repeat successes in the Microsoft Imagine cup nationally and globally, the continued development of research commercialisation through our Researcher to Innovator and ICURe programmes and connecting the start-up and new product development communities in Exeter through Startup Weekend, Castle Demo nights and the Exeter Initiative for Science and Technology.”

The UBI Index is the first global index to benchmark the performance and best practice of university business incubators. The organisation already held continental rankings around the world, culminating in the global ranking event in London today.

Dhruv Bhatli, Co-founder and Director of Research at UBI Global, said: “We’re delighted to see SETsquared be named as the best in the world. The partnership’s continued dedication to entrepreneurs and start-ups has resulted in high economic impact and growth for the companies it supports.”

The news comes after SETsquared were ranked as the best incubator in Europe for the third time last month.