We are one
Nexus has been in operation for a year. When we started this journey we had clear goals - to create a community of innovators and collaborators and help them grow their businesses, whilst having a real impact on Leeds, the city region and beyond.
Below are some details of the progress we’ve made. Our full report can be downloaded below.
Building the Nexus community
A word from our Director, Dr Martin Stow:
“As we mark the first anniversary of Nexus and celebrate the truly outstanding collaborations we’ve helped to create, I’m struck more than ever by the strength of our community and the value it has created. In our first year we have facilitated new and impactful collaborations between members and the University of Leeds, who together have the potential to crack some of our biggest economic and societal challenges.”
Dr. Martin Stow, Nexus Director
Highlights from our first year
In our first year we’ve made great progress on our targets helping our members to grow, create new jobs and to raise substantial new funding.
Here are some of the highlights of the first year of Nexus:
Recruiting Top Talent
Recruitment can be one of the biggest challenges facing start-ups and small businesses that want to scale at pace.
Despite this, and with our support, our community of businesses has created over 125 new full-time jobs, with an additional 350 planned over the coming year. This includes 23 full time positions for graduates from the University of Leeds, 19 internships and 17 postgraduate research internships.
Community Stories – University of Leeds Perspective
Nexus has successfully built meaningful relationships with members and academics at the University, with all parties benefitting from the exchanges.
“The conversations with David Wilkinson of Research Toolkit really stretched my own ideas about what was possible from my research and highlighted possibilities for collaboration to create genuine impact.”
Dr Helen Hughes, Associate Professor, Leeds University Business School
Community Stories – Business Perspective
Slingshot Simulations has been leading a collaborative project with fellow Nexus members, GMAP Analytics and Edge Analytics, which was presented at the Smart City Expo World Congress 2019 in Barcelona. The project utilises their combined data and technologies to help build a better future for cities and citizens around the world.
Community Stories – Business Perspective
Nexus’ strategic approach to working with Vet AI has helped to generate substantial benefits for both business and The University. Through offering seamless access to skills and talent across the University, Vet-AI has recruited three MSc students to re-design the company’s flagship app.
The Power of Partnerships
In partnership with the University of Leeds, the National Measurement Laboratory has established a hub at Nexus to support industry, academic and clinical partners across the region with high quality measurement procedures to improve the quality of research findings.
MIT REAP
The University of Leeds and Nexus continue to play a central role in the Leeds Innovation Ecosystem – driving a culture of collaboration, innovation and impact from the University, across the city region and beyond.
In January, Leeds hosted the next instalment of the MIT REAP international programme, and showcased its strengths to global leaders, and included the 3-day workshop Nexus.
