Inside Level39 | August & September 2026

As summer transitioned into autumn, the Level39 community continued to welcome international delegations, host industry-shaping conversations and connect with founders, investors and ecosystem leaders across the London startup ecosystem and beyond.

Welcoming Global Innovation Communities

Level39 welcomed delegations from Germany, China and Washington D.C., bringing together founders, business leaders, policymakers and innovation organisations from across the globe.

• Germany: The German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce brought CEOs, founders and entrepreneurs from Northern Germany to exchange perspectives on trade, innovation and emerging technologies. Uday Kumar of Vynex Tech and Brendan Vickers of ICC joined discussions around trade finance, innovation policy and UK-EU collaboration.
• China: An Executive MBA delegation from Worcester College London’s Chinese MBA programme was introduced to the Level39 ecosystem, exploring the opportunities available within the London startup ecosystem and how the capital supports international businesses with ambitions to scale globally.
• Washington D.C.: We welcomed Deputy Mayor Nina Albert, alongside government representatives, business leaders and organisations exploring UK expansion. Amy French, Director at Level39, introduced the Level39 model, while Mike Joslin of Bombe shared insights into international connections and partnerships, leading into conversations around innovation districts, soft-landing programmes and future collaboration.

In Conversation: Investment, Technology & Growth

September’s Women at Level39 Network event, Taking a Seat at the Table: Demystifying Investment Decisions, brought together founders, investors, operators and ecosystem partners for a discussion on fundraising, investing and navigating the realities of building and scaling businesses.

Moderated by Lalitha Aiyer, Membership Associate at Level39,  the panel explored investor decision-making, founder credibility, risk assessment, bias within investment processes and the importance of improving access to knowledge, networks and role models. Speakers included:

• Mital Patel, Director of Strategic Investments EMEA at Citi
• Sarah Glanville, Senior Account Manager at etoro
• Dr Jacqui Taylor, Founder of FlyingBinary
• Natalie Paton, Founder of Luminus Ventures

Collectively, the panel highlighted the importance of resilience, education and community in helping more founders and aspiring investors participate confidently in the investment ecosystem.

Alongside our own programming, Level39 hosted a number of external events covering some of the biggest topics currently shaping business and technology:

• The Raion Sovereign AI Forum, featuring speakers from NVIDIA, Microsoft, Palantir, UBS and former Home Secretary Sir James Cleverly, explored sovereign AI, compute capacity and digital infrastructure.
• KPMG’s Road to FCA Crypto Authorisation provided practical guidance on navigating the UK’s evolving crypto regulatory framework.
• The British Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce Investment Forum connected investors, business leaders and policymakers to explore opportunities across fintech, energy, infrastructure and defence.
• Implement AI’s Annual Showcase, led by Dr Aalok Shukla and Piers Linney MBE, focused on helping organisations move beyond AI experimentation and towards implementation at scale.

Insights from Across the Ecosystem

The Level39 team spent September attending a number of industry events, meeting founders, partners and innovators from across technology, fintech, healthtech and the future of work.

At the Grow London Market Open Ceremony at the London Stock Exchange, speakers including Janet Coyle MBE and Howard Dawber shared updates on the continued growth of the London startup ecosystem and the capital’s position as a global innovation hub. Key takeaways included the expansion of over 80 international companies into London through Grow London programmes and the creation of 15 new unicorn businesses over the past year.

At Fintech Week London, attended by Daisy Harris, Lalitha Aiyer and Aimee Tiernan, recurring themes centred around the strength of the UK’s fintech ecosystem, growing AI adoption across financial services and the value of connected communities in supporting business growth.

This year also marked Level39’s first year as a Community Partner of Sifted Summit. Across conversations with founders, operators and investors, several themes emerged:

• Strong brands are built through consistency and clarity long before a rebrand.
• Meaningful engagement is becoming more valuable than pure reach and impressions.
• Communities are increasingly seeking curated experiences that prioritise the right connections over larger audiences.

These themes resonated strongly with Level39’s own community-led approach to supporting innovation and growth.

Elsewhere, Lalitha attended the Women’s Health Horizons Summit, connecting with leaders from healthcare, life sciences, investment and healthtech, while the team also represented Level39 at the Belgium x UK Demo Day and GCUC UK, where conversations focused on emerging technologies, partnership opportunities, AI and the future of flexible workspaces.

Strengthening International Partnerships

September also provided an opportunity to learn from other leading innovation ecosystems.

Alongside colleagues from CWG and Kadans, the team visited Uptown Basel, one of Europe’s emerging centres for quantum computing, AI and cyber security innovation. The visit included meetings with QuantumBasel, home to Switzerland’s only publicly accessible IonQ quantum computer, and QAI Ventures, a leading investor focused on quantum technologies.

The trip offered valuable insight into how deep-tech ecosystems are being built around infrastructure, investment, research and commercialisation, and highlighted the increasingly important role international collaboration will play in advancing emerging technologies.

Supporting the Next Generation of Innovators

We were delighted to welcome two new cohorts to Level39 during September.

The latest cohort of the Morgan Stanley Inclusive & Sustainable Ventures (MSISV) programme brought together startups working across ClimateTech, HealthTech, DeepTech and Social Impact, tackling challenges ranging from carbon management and sustainable materials to digital health and inclusion.

Meanwhile, the 13th cohort of Innovation Norway’s Tech Executive Accelerator (TEA) programme arrived at Level39, supporting ambitious Norwegian companies spanning AI, PropTech, enterprise software, energy, healthcare and geoscience as they explore growth opportunities within the UK market.

Beyond Business

Community extends beyond events and partnerships.

In August, members of the team volunteered with The Felix Project, helping prepare and package meals as part of the charity’s work tackling food waste and food poverty across London. The community also took part in Run the Wharf, Canary Wharf’s annual closed-road 5K, bringing together businesses from across the estate for an evening focused on health, wellbeing and connection.

Looking Ahead

August and September brought together so many different sides of the Level39 community, from international delegations and accelerator programmes to industry events, new technologies and conversations around what’s next.

It’s been brilliant to see so many different people and perspectives come together, both here in Canary Wharf and across the wider London startup ecosystem. As we head into the final months of 2026, we’re looking forward to continuing the conversations, collaborations and introductions that keep our community moving forward.