For many early stage tech companies in Wales, securing investment is just one part of a far more complex journey.
The ability to grow, hire, refine a product, and reach commercial readiness depends not only on capital, but on the guidance, networks and strategic support that surround it. Increasingly, founders are finding that the most meaningful progress happens when investment comes alongside continuity, patience and an understanding of the challenges that early stage innovators face.
This approach sits at the heart of the Development Bank of Wales’ model, and its impact can be seen both in the founders it supports and in the wider entrepreneurial tools it creates to help businesses prepare for growth.
One of the strongest current examples of this is MeOmics Precision Medicine, a Cardiff based medtech spin out working at the frontier of AI enabled psychiatric drug discovery. The company’s journey illustrates how aligned investment and founder centred support can create the conditions for deep tech innovation to take shape and mature into a commercial proposition.
A new model for drug discovery
MeOmics was founded in 2021 as a Cardiff University spin out, built on work supported by an Innovate UK grant and partnerships with St Andrew’s Healthcare. Its mission addresses a longstanding issue in psychiatric medicine: treatments are often developed using biological data that does not adequately represent the full diversity of patients, particularly women.
MeOmics’ approach uses stem cell derived human cellular models combined with AI driven analysis to identify biological subtypes of patients, enabling drug developers to design therapies that are better matched to an individual’s underlying biology. This precision psychiatry model mirrors the shift that previously transformed oncology, opening the door to more effective and safer treatments for conditions such as schizophrenia.
CEO Lucy Sykes, a scientist and female leader in a sector where women remain under represented, has been clear about both the scientific challenge and the opportunity. By generating clinically meaningful data that reflects real patient diversity, MeOmics aims to help drug developers reduce failure rates in trials and improve patient outcomes.
Funding combined with value add support
In 2025/26, MeOmics completed a £300,000 equity round to advance its platform and expand its technical team. The investment included £125,000 from Women Angels of Wales, a syndicate jointly supported by the Development Bank of Wales, alongside £125,000 in match funding from the Development Bank’s Wales Angel Co Investment Fund and £50,000 from existing investors. This followed a £25,000 Smart Flexible Innovation Support grant from Welsh Government.
The round was led by data expert and angel investor Sara Boltman, who was drawn to the company’s potential to reshape psychiatric treatment pathways. Support from the Development Bank’s co investment fund provided further leverage, helping the company hire technical staff, enhance its platform and grow its commercial partnerships.
This combination of capital, strategic investor involvement and network effects reflects a broader pattern within the Welsh innovation ecosystem: investment becomes a catalyst not only for product development, but for visibility, credibility and connection into wider markets.
Lessons in the Founders’ Playbook
The Founders’ Playbook, shaped by research with founders, investors and ecosystem leaders across Wales and the UK, sets out how to prepare for investment, what investors look for, and how to manage the fundraising process as a staged progression rather than a one off event. It includes guidance on topics such as valuation, pitching, intellectual property and the fundamentals of investor readiness – issues that any deep tech business must navigate early.
A key starting point in the Playbook is the idea of clarity before capital. Deep tech companies often face the challenge of articulating highly technical propositions to investors. The ability to present its technology in a commercially coherent way, with clear patient and market outcomes, is an example of the type of clarity the Playbook encourages founders to develop.
Another significant theme is the focus on what happens after the deal closes. The Playbook outlines the critical nature of the first 100 days post investment: maintaining regular communication, aligning expectations and establishing delivery habits that build investor confidence.
Why this matters for Wales’ tech economy
At ecosystem level, these individual journeys are contributing to a wider pattern of impact. The Development Bank has now invested £1 billion since 2017, creating and safeguarding more than 50,000 jobs across Wales and generating £5.8 billion in jobs based GVA, while unlocking £636 million in private sector co finance. Its investments have supported thousands of companies across sectors including medtech, fintech, property development and manufacturing.
For early stage tech businesses, the value add delivered through co investment funds, investor syndicates, founder resources and regional networks is becoming increasingly central to Wales’ competitiveness as an innovation hub. These structures help founders navigate critical early questions: how to grow the team, how to refine a product, how to make the business investable and how to deliver during the pivotal early months after funding.
What founders can take from this
MeOmics’ journey offers several lessons for founders across the Welsh tech sector. First, preparation matters; the work done before approaching investors often determines the pace and quality of a raise.
Second, relationships matter – investment rooted in alignment and shared purpose can offer advantages far beyond the financial.
And finally, execution after investment is crucial – the first months following a deal can build the momentum that sets a business on a long term growth path.
For founders looking to explore these themes further, the Founders’ Playbook offers a practical guide to preparing for investment, managing a raise and building strong post investment habits. It brings together real world experience across Wales and the UK and provides a structured starting point for those planning their next stage of growth.
