In keeping with Dealroom knowledge cited by the Monetary Instances, British start-ups raised simply £16.2 billion final yr, far lower than the greater than £65 billion raised by their counterparts in Silicon Valley throughout the identical interval. In reality, the U.S. seems to be pulling additional forward annually. In 2024, 57% of worldwide enterprise capital funding went to U.S. startups — the primary time that share has exceeded 50% in over a decade, per Dealroom.
This widening hole is a part of a years-long development that U.Ok. founders have taken notice of, the FT experiences, and it’s prompting many to contemplate relocating overseas.
“Recognizing that the majority enterprise funding comes from the U.S., we arrange as a Delaware company, the popular and acquainted construction for American buyers,” mentioned Mati Staniszewski, co-founder of the London-based AI firm ElevenLabs, in an interview with the FT.
Barney Hussey-Yeo, founder and CEO of the AI start-up Cleo, advised the FT that he already spends 4 months a yr in San Francisco and is critically contemplating a everlasting transfer. “You get to a sure measurement the place there isn’t any capital within the U.Ok. And the issue is getting worse,” he mentioned. “Truthfully, the U.Ok. is kinda f***d if it doesn’t tackle [the problem].”
