Cyber Runway

Cyber Runway is the largest cyber accelerator in the UK, funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and delivered by Plexal. It sits under DSIT rather than Plexal itself, and the program is built to support cyber startups and SMEs through a structured accelerator model instead of a cash grant. The support is in kind: participants keep their IP and equity, there is no direct grant payment, and the annual program runs through five tracks named Grow, Scale X, Ignite, NW Net Zero, and CNI. Eligibility is limited to UK-based for-profit companies in cybersecurity, the current cohort is closed, and the program has already shown measurable outcomes including 107 entrepreneurs and startups, 86 percent making useful connections, and later-stage companies reporting 20 percent revenue growth and 22 percent headcount growth. Founders get the most value when they need market access, investor connections, engineering help, and a clear stage-matched structure around growth or scaling. The track model matters: early teams, high-growth startups, leadership-focused founders, net-zero-adjacent cyber firms, and critical infrastructure specialists are each steered into different support paths, which makes the accelerator strongest when the company already knows which growth problem it needs to solve.

Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.