Conception X: Cohort 8 Discovery Session (Online)

Conception X helps you translate your research into transformative technologies that can improve lives, reshape industries and regenerate the planet.

We are the UK’s leading cross-university PhD deeptech venture programme. Since launching in 2018, we’ve supported more than 500 PhD students to launch deeptech ventures based on their research, creating 125 companies that have raised £100+ million in early-stage investments and grants. As a not-for-profit, we take no equity in the companies we help build, and the programme is offered at no cost to students.

Join our first Cohort 8 Discovery Session to learn about becoming part of the next Conception X cohort, which will run from April to November 2025. This session will cover the following:

• Programme overview presentation, including eligibility criteria, timeline and benefits
• Live testimonials from alumni
• Walk-through of the application process
• Q&A with Olivia Ash, Conception X Programme and Portfolio Manager

Conception X offers a combination of training sessions designed specifically for PhD students, one-to-one coaching opportunities, access to the UK's largest community of PhD founders and a nationwide network of industry experts, as well as warm introductions to investors.

Here's what PhD founders have built with us:

• The world's first quantum machine learning platform to enable faster and more efficient drug discovery
• Affordable vaccines to prevent the recurrence of life-threatening cancer metastases by combining computational biology, bioinformatics and machine learning
• Open source infrastructure for the private and secure deployment of generative AI models – and it all started out with quantum physics applied to satellites
• A neuromorphic chip that runs 10x faster and at a fraction of the power compared to traditional chips
• These lab-grown plants to clean up polluted land and recycle heavy metals
• And more – you can browse our portfolio here

This is what our alumni say about us:
"The programme is complete magic. Before joining, I had no idea where to start. By Demo Day, we had a working prototype."

- Ksenia Sokolova, Neurosalience

“The approach and progress of my PhD has been significantly improved on the back of some of the things I have learnt at Conception X. Being exposed to the difference between purely problem-based thinking (i.e. academia) and more value-based thinking has been an eye opener and has led me to change the way I implement my research.”

- Zak Shabka, NP-Deep

"By showing me the path ahead and breaking it down into a series of clear steps, the programme has made it feasible for me to start my own company."

- Adam Harris, Myriad Wind

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