North West Cyber Security Connect for Commercialisation (NW CyberCom)
NW CyberCom is a collaborative £1.2 million project funded by Research England's Connecting Capability Fund (CCF)
NW CyberCom is a collaborative £1.2 million project funded by Research England's Connecting Capability Fund (CCF)
The diagram bellow illustrates the seven work packages that encompass the project activity. The central stream represents the opportunity for academic colleagues from all partner universities to engage with mission critical challenges, the outcomes of these projects will be assessed for potential commercial viability and tailored support will be available to identify, and progress along, routes to market.
There will be opportunities for key industry partners to uncover and share IP that they do not have the resources/capacity to develop but recognize the strategic and commercial value it could have in another setting.
Alongside this, Mission Critical Challenges will be identified to enable research teams to work on mission-led innovation that delivers real impact for front-line problems. A series of ‘Grand Challenge’ workshops will be facilitated by Plexal so University partners can collaborate on solutions to address challenges, enabling a pipeline of research commercialisation opportunities to enable new IDEs.
Proof of Concept Funding will be available for the most promising research teams to develop their mission lead ideas further over 4-5 months.
Projects with significant market opportunity will be prioritized to ensure maximum benefit from engagement with Pre-Accelerator programmes.
Initial business plan and model that has been developed by the project teams will be reviewed by an expert panel, consisting of industry and investment partners to determine best route of commercialisation.
Market discovery activity will take place via tailored and sponsored Pre-Accelerator programmes to provide a springboard to commercialisation.
Best practice models will be shared between partner institutions to efficiently spin-out new companies for the security and critical infrastructure supply chain.
Teams will have access to high-quality “commercial champions” for start-up and spin-out businesses via CRSI.
Support will be available to scale the start-up business to be a leading IDE through investment, networking, mentoring and wider supply chain development activity.
There is a need to build a cyber investment community, bringing together investors from across the UK to discuss challenges and opportunities, share deal flow and accelerate the growth of the portfolio businesses. Investor Ladder and CRSI will work with NW CyberCom to build an “investment centre of excellence” focused on the cyber and security industry.
Bringing together industry, innovation, and investment across a range of vertical markets to accelerate growth, through formal workshops, networking events and access to latest industry trends and innovations. A dedicated “Cyber Zone” led by NW CyberCom will be part of the Climb24 and Climb25 Innovation Summits to help build momentum.
Activity will include:
We are working alongside our external partners and collaborators to provide events to engage businesses in cyber innovation.
We are delighted to announce our events for 2024:
Registration is now open for the Cyber Security Leadership Symposium 2024 On the 3rd and 4th July 2024.
This two day event is for senior executives seeking to explore and understand the complexities of being a Cyber Security leader. This symposium is targeting individuals seeking to innovate and disrupt what it means to be a cyber security leader in a complex global environment.
To register follow the link below.
Find out more about the Cyber Security Leadership SymposiumNorth West cyber ecosystem to unlock opportunities for commercialisation. Lancaster University has collaborated with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to discuss the importance of a cyber ecosystem in the North West with key stakeholders in the region.
Plexal is co-leading delivery of the NW CyberCom: Commercialisation Sandpit alongside Lancaster University, with support from the partner universities – and we want academic experts to be a part of it.
We’re on the search for individuals from all backgrounds to bring their diverse ideas, approaches and research to the table to tackle some of the most important cyber security challenges facing the North West region and the UK at large.
We’ll provide a unique opportunity for academics be part of a high-profile programme that will provide coaching, up to £25,000 per project in funding and collaboration opportunities to evolve from idea to a product-in-the-making as your confidence and concept grows.
You’ll connect with industry leaders to learn about real-world cyber challenges – and how your research can be part of the solution. In return, you’ll be open to trying new things outside of your comfort zone, collaborating and testing ideas that can be commercialised with an entrepreneurial mindset.
You will:
Ethical AI and Quantum for cyber security
Emerging technology areas, such as AI and quantum, are impacting the future of cyber security and enabling new approaches for industry to process, secure and analyse data. This can create greater efficiencies and reduce burden on employees.
However, technologies such as AI and quantum also present a new cyber security threat: the ability to generate convincing information and data, which may not be accurate or validated, as well as a new threat to established security protocols. Industry will need to leverage cutting-edge research to employ novel solutions to mitigate these risks.
We’re looking for ideas utilising research which innovatively address either (or both) of the following key questions:
Your idea can leverage any approach using AI, or quantum, or both to address these key cyber security challenges industry is facing.
Selected academics will be invited to a workshop with industry and startups, after which you’ll be asked to submit a full proposal. We’ll be on hand throughout to help you craft the right idea and understand how your research applies to the first challenge.
Your idea can leverage any approach using AI, or quantum, or both to address these key cyber security challenges industry is facing.
You may want to consider different AI models, or the ethics and bias of utilising AI. You may have specific target sectors in mind as early adopters for your potential solution – but this isn’t necessary. We’re welcoming ideas which could be applied to critical national infrastructure use cases.
If you’d like to express interest and get involved, the first step is to fill out a form. To do this you can either:
Michelle Atkinson
Jessica Wenmouth
Elizabeth Mullis
Dion Williams
Chris Wynne
Simon Cook
NW CyberCom has enlisted a cohort of six "Innovators in Residence," comprising experienced founders and recognized leaders in the field of cybersecurity. These innovators will apply their real-world cybersecurity expertise to support the commercialization of advanced, innovative academic cyber research, alongside the creation of a North West Cyber ecosystem. Their insights, passion, and deep understanding of the cyber marketplace will inject a valuable, dynamic, and exciting element into the project to produce outstanding results.
Plexal has expertise collaborating with the NCSC to surface mission critical challenges to be solved by start ups
MIT posses the international best practice of innovation ecosystems in the cyber security domain
CRSI have an extensive network of equity investors, facilitated training and knowledge sharing
Keep up to date with the project and our collaborators and partners by connecting with us.
LinkedIn:
Want to get involved? Fill out the form below to express your interest.
If you have any other queries please contact nwcybercom@lancaster.ac.uk