The deadline to apply for the Leeds Tech Map is this Friday.

Work on a refreshed and expanded version of the Leeds Tech Map – almost five years after the original design became a fixture across offices and meeting rooms throughout the region – began late last year.

Leeds tech ecosystem builder Stuart Clarke MBE, who featured on our Northern Leaders list again last  year, is behind the updated map which will again provide a visual snapshot of the city’s tech ecosystem.

Leeds-based tech firms are invited to put themselves forward for inclusion through a competition called ‘The Techs Factor’. They can do so here.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Fraudster Andrew Currie has been hit with a confiscation order following his release from prison.

Currie’s brother Peter remains behind bars following the collapse of their peer-to-peer lending platform Collateral.

The Financial Conduct Authority has secured a confiscation order of £265,523.96 against Andrew Currie, who was convicted in 2023 and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment for defrauding investors.

Peter was handed a five-and-a-half-year sentence.

Author: Patrick Killeen

The UK Government has warned that Elon Musk’s social media platform X could potentially be blocked in the UK.

The news comes amid concerns that it is failing to adequately protect users from harmful content generated by its AI tool, Grok.

Business Secretary Peter Kyle said X “is not doing enough to keep its customers safe online”, confirming the government would fully support any enforcement action taken by Ofcom, including the possibility of banning the platform if it is found to be in breach of the Online Safety Act.

Ofcom has launched a fast-tracked investigation into Grok after the AI tool was used to generate large volumes of sexualised images of women and children, often by manipulating real photographs.

Kyle said the regulator had already requested information from X and was now conducting what he described as an “expedited inquiry”.

He warned that Ofcom’s powers range from “heavy, heavy fines all the way through to banning X from our country”, adding that the government stands “fully behind Ofcom” in exercising those powers if necessary.

Musk has accused critics of the platform, saying “they want any excuse for censorship”.

He responded by reposting messages criticising the UK government’s stance, including one featuring AI-generated images of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in a bikini.

“They just want to suppress free speech,” Musk wrote whilst quote-reposting the original post, framing the backlash as politically motivated censorship rather than a safety issue.

The pressure on X has intensified after Malaysia and Indonesia became the first countries in the world to block access to Grok outright.

Multiverse has expanded its partnership with enterprise technology group DXC Technology to provide UK-based staff with access to new leadership and engineering training alongside its established AI programmes.

The initiative will see the New York-listed firm’s employees enrol in Multiverse’s Applied Leadership Academy, Engineering Academy and AI for Business Value courses, aimed at building advanced technical skills.

It said the programme is central to future-proofing its workforce as AI and emerging technologies reshape client demands and delivery models

Author: Jonathan Symcox

An investor which has seen 11 takeover bids rebuffed by Auction Technology Group has slammed the London-listed firm over ‘extreme shareholder value destruction’.

ATG rejected a series of “unsolicited, opportunistic and highly conditional” approaches from FitzWalter Capital Limited, its largest shareholder, about a possible cash offer for the shares it does not already own.

The firm, which is also headquartered in the capital, said its board has unanimously rejected 11 proposals since 11th September 2025, including the latest approach on 23rd December 2025 at 360p per share, arguing they “fundamentally undervalue” the business and its prospects.

The company said it views the repeated approaches as an opportunistic attempt to buy the business while its market valuation is “currently disconnected from the company’s fair value”.

Now FitzWalter Capital has hit back, saying: “The words of the board ring hollow, having presided over such extreme shareholder value destruction.”

It pointed out the fact that ATG’s share price has declined 51%, 46%, 64% and 82% over one, two, three and four years, respectively. 

It also pointed to the $100 million acquisition of Chairish, which was a loss-making business. The share price of ATG – chaired by Scott Forbes (pictured) – fell by 21.7% on the day that the deal was announced.

A company using AI-powered CT imaging biomarkers and clinical data platforms to advance lung and heart disease research has appointed Rebecca Simmons as COO.

Simmons will lead Qureight’s scaling of global operations and support sustainable growth as it expands the use of its technology in clinical trials.

She brings more than 20 years of operational leadership experience, most recently as COO of quantum computing firm Riverlane, where she helped scale the business and supported over £100 million in venture funding.

Her background also includes senior roles across healthcare research, academia and public sector partnerships.

AI infrastructure startup Nscale is in talks to raise a further $2 billion, according to reports, just months after securing $1.1bn in funding. 

The London-based company is said to be working with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase on the fundraising, which would significantly bolster its expansion plans across the UK, Europe and North America.

Founded less than two years ago, the business is developing large-scale data centre projects in the UK, Portugal, the US, Iceland and Norway, and was selected by the UK government to deliver Britain’s version of the “Stargate” data centre initiative. 

The company has also signed high-profile partnerships with Nvidia and OpenAI, although it has faced recent challenges including a reported copyright lawsuit and a failed acquisition deal.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Oxford Nanopore Technologies shares have jumped by over 7% already today after the DNA sequencing specialist reported strong full-year trading that exceeded its revenue guidance.

The FTSE 250 company expects to report 2025 revenues of around £223-224 million, up roughly 22% year-on-year.

The update follows a key leadership announcement from last month, when Oxford Nanopore confirmed that Francis Van Parys will take over as chief executive in March 2026, succeeding founder Gordon Sanghera.

Specialist filtration, laboratory and environmental technology group Porvair has agreed to acquire German aluminium filtration specialist Drache Umwelttechnik GmbH for £17.8 million.

Founded in 1984, Drache designs and manufactures filters, consumables and equipment for the molten metal industry and will join the Cambridge firm’s Metal Melt Quality division, adding a European operational base.

The deal, which includes two freehold sites in Germany, is expected to boost earnings in the year to November 2026, with Drache generating over £17m of revenue in 2025.

The acquisition is being funded from existing cash and facilities and is expected to complete later today.

Compound semiconductor specialist IQE expects full-year revenue of around £97 million, at the upper end of guidance, with adjusted EBITDA of at least £2m.

The business said trading strengthened in the second half of 2025, driven by earlier-than-expected funding for US defence programmes, stronger photonics demand linked to AI and data centres and increased wireless sales from new handset launches.

The Cardiff-headquartered firm ended the year with £15.6m of cash and secured a covenant waiver from HSBC for Q4 2025.

It also confirmed it is in discussions over potential bids for a takeover of the business.

Plus500 has reported revenue of around $792 million and EBITDA of approximately $348m for 2025, both ahead of market expectations.

The FTSE 250 group remained debt-free and ended the year with about $800m in cash, despite returning roughly $380m to shareholders through dividends and buybacks.

Performance was supported by improving customer quality, with around half of over-the-counter revenue generated by clients trading on the platform for more than five years.

It also expanded strategically, securing new licences in markets including the UAE, Canada and Colombia, as well as strengthening its US presence through major futures-market partnerships with CME Group and Topstep.

Manufacturing firm Avingtrans has appointed Stuart Gall as CEO of its medical and industrial imaging division.

The company designs and manufactures critical components and systems for the energy, medical and industrial sectors.

Gall brings extensive experience in scaling MedTechs, most recently leading Intelligent Ultrasound Group through the sale of its AI software arm to GE Healthcare and the disposal of its simulation business in early 2025.

At the Cambridgeshire-based business, he will lead the strategic development and commercialisation of Adaptix, Magnetica and Scientific Magnets, which span low-dose 3D X-ray imaging, compact helium-free MRI systems and cryogen-free superconducting magnets.

CelLBxHealth plc, a specialist in circulating tumour cell (CTC) intelligence for research, drug development and clinical oncology, has announced a series of board appointments.

Peter Collins has been appointed CEO, alongside new non-executive directors Klaas de Boer, Kim Oreskovic and Benjamin Hart.

Separately, non-executive director Joseph Eid will step down from the board at the end of the month.

The changes follow the company’s December update and are intended to strengthen leadership as it advances its Parsortix CTC platform across oncology research and clinical applications.

Corero Network Security has reported a strong second half of 2025, with revenue expected at the upper end of guidance at around $25.5 million and EBITDA ahead of expectations at more than $1.3m.

Order intake increased 20% to $33.8m, supported by strong uptake of its SmartWall ONE and CORE platforms.

The London-listed company, which specialises in distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection, ended the year debt-free with $4.0m in cash, benefiting from improved cash generation in the second half.

Author: Patrick Killeen

SaveMoneyCutCarbon (SMCC) has been acquired by advanced materials and EnviroTech group Haydale in an all-share deal valued at up to £24m.

The deal marks an exit for venture capital firm IW Capital, which has backed the business since 2017 and played a central role in scaling the Suffolk-based firm’s B2B decarbonisation platform.

The business aims to help organisations improve energy and water efficiency and cut carbon emissions.

London-listed MedTech Renalytix has completed three new healthcare provider integrations in the US during the final quarter of 2025, with testing now underway at all sites.

The precision diagnostics company, which specialises in AI-enabled kidney disease testing, completed the integrations at kidney care providers in New York, Florida and Tennessee.

They embed the company’s FDA-approved and Medicare-reimbursed kidneyintelX.dkd test directly into existing clinical workflows via one-click ordering.

The New York firm expects utilisation to grow as adoption expands across patient populations.

It is also advancing its collaboration with Tempus AI to support broader electronic health record integration and future expansion, and plans further provider integrations in the coming months.

The Smarter Web Company has announced plans to move its shares from the Aquis Growth Market to the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market, subject to regulatory and shareholder approval.

The company, which provides web design, web development and online marketing services with recurring revenue from hosting and marketing contracts, will have a shareholder vote at a general meeting on 28th January, with both the cancellation and Main Market admission expected to take place on 3 February 2026.

The board said the move would better support the Surrey-based firm’s long-term growth strategy, including organic expansion, acquisitions and its Bitcoin treasury policy.

Quadrise, which develops low-emission fuels to help decarbonise shipping and heavy industry, has extended its exclusive global agreement with specialty chemicals group Nouryon until October 2026.

The deal ensures Nouryon will continue to exclusively supply the emulsifier chemicals used in the London firm’s MSAR® and bioMSAR™ fuel technologies.

The agreement also covers shared intellectual property linked to the development of these fuels.

Quadrise said the extension supports the ongoing rollout of its cleaner fuel solutions across shipping, power generation and industrial markets.

Vulcan Two Group CFO Simon Carter has stepped down from his role with immediate effect for personal reasons, but will remain with the business in a finance position.

Former Boku and Paysafe CFO Keith Butcher has been appointed on an interim basis for at least six months, bringing more than 20 years’ experience as an LSE-listed finance director in technology and e-commerce businesses.

The listed company, which is building a regulated UK ePharmacy platform through acquisitions, has also appointed Dr David Wong, a healthcare and capital markets veteran, as a non-executive director to strengthen its board as it prepares for its first acquisition.

Author: Chris Maguire

It’s hard to think of a retailer that has become more of a British cultural icon than Greggs.

In 2025, Greggs was named the UK’s strongest brand and even had one of its iconic sausage rolls unveiled at Madame Tussauds.

The bakery giant has continued to make headlines at the start of 2026 – but for very different reasons.

On January 8^th, Greggs provided a trading update for Q4, which showed total sales in 2025 were up 6.8 per cent to £2.15bn on the back of 207 new shop openings.

However, the company described market conditions as ‘challenging’ and has seen its share price fall by a quarter in the last 12 months.

Chief executive Roisin Currie made headlines when she said there was ‘no doubt’ that the surge in weight loss jabs had led to the public looking for smaller portions.

It arguably represents Currie’s biggest challenge since becoming the company’s first female CEO in 2022.