With renewed investment and a clear government mission to make the UK a global leader in Life Sciences, understanding the businesses driving this industry has never been more important.
In this article, we’ve used The Data City’s Industry Engine and our real-time company classification system to explore this dynamic sector – highlighting just a handful of the 20,000+ companies innovating in BioTech, MedTech and Pharmaceuticals across the UK.
What are Life Sciences?
Life Sciences is one of the eight high-growth sectors (or IS-8) identified in the UK Government’s new Industrial Strategy – referenced more than 35 times in the full report. And for good reason.
It’s a field that spans biology, genetics, biotech and medicine. From AI-led drug discovery to smart diagnostics, the UK is already home to some of the world’s most exciting innovation in this space.
The government’s goal? To make the UK one of the top three Life Sciences economies globally by 2035. That means:
- Streamlining regulation
- Unlocking procurement opportunities
- Supporting UK companies to scale and stay here
In short, a thriving Life Sciences sector = more jobs, greater productivity, and better health outcomes.
The problem with Life Sciences company data
Here’s the catch – the companies driving this growth are hard to find using traditional datasets.
That’s because Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes – still the default for most databases – haven’t been meaningfully updated since 2007. They don’t capture the modern Life Sciences economy.
Where The Data City comes in
We’ve solved that problem with our Real-Time Industrial Classifications (RTICs) – machine learning-driven sector definitions built with government and industry.
Our Life Sciences RTIC identifies over 20,000 UK-based companies working across:
- Biology & Biotech
- Human Health Services
- Life Sciences Manufacturing
- Research & Innovation
- Digital Health
- MedTech
- Supply Chain & Services
This is real-time, bottom-up sector data based on what companies actually do, using the content they publish on their website, not what they selected on a form 15 years ago.
The UK’s top Life Sciences companies
So who are the companies driving the UK’s Life Sciences growth and contributing most the UK Life Sciences sector? Here’s a snapshot of seven of the most exciting players, surfaced from our RTIC dataset.
For this article we’ve highlighted three types of companies – including the top contributors (by company turnover), spinouts (companies classified as a spinout by turnover) and fastest growing startups (small/micro companies in our platform by growth rate).
We think this gives a good overview of the industry and companies within it.
Top Life Sciences contributors
AstraZeneca
A global leader in science-led biopharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca plc is one of the UK’s biggest contributors to the Life Sciences sector.
In 2024/25, the company reported over £41bn in turnover with a +5.3% growth rate, securing its spot as one of the UK’s top-performing Life Sciences businesses.
Using our What, Where data, we’ve mapped AstraZeneca’s UK workforce to key locations in Cambridge, Manchester, and Macclesfield.
Its cutting-edge global R&D facility at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus employs more than 5,000 people across business services and STEM roles – cementing the region’s status as a Life Sciences powerhouse.
GSK
Headquartered in London, GSK is a British multinational pharma and biotech company, with over £31bn turnover and 60,000+ employees worldwide.
Known for its focus on specialty medicines and vaccines, GSK invests heavily in R&D across four core areas: respiratory, immunology, oncology, and infectious diseases. Its UK operations include a major R&D hub in Stevenage, developing medicines powered by immune system genetics and advanced tech.
Classified under our Life Sciences: Research RTIC, GSK is also captured in our Engineering Biology, Pharma, and Physical Sciences Research RTICs. Using traditional SIC codes, GSK appears as ‘Activities of head offices’ – which tells you nothing. We’ve reclassified it using our proprietary AI into more meaningful categories, including:
- 72110: Research and experimental development on biotechnology
- 86900: Other human health activities
- 74909: Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
- 78109: Other activities of employment placement agencies
Vertex
A global biotech company focused on serious diseases, Vertex Pharmaceuticals combines scientific innovation with strong commercial performance. With an estimated £8bn turnover and +16.5% year-on-year growth, Vertex continues to expand its presence in the UK Life Sciences ecosystem.
Having established its UK base in 1998, Vertex now operates from its international HQ in Paddington, London, with a dedicated R&D site in Oxford. As of 2023/24, the company employs over 640 people in the UK across research and specialist roles.
Classified in three of our RTIC sectors – Life Sciences, Pharma, and Research & Consulting – Physical Sciences and Engineering – Vertex is a standout example of how advanced biotech companies are shaping the future of UK health innovation.
Life Sciences spinouts
Life Sciences companies consistently rank among the top UK spinouts, with the ‘golden triangle’ of London, Cambridge and Oxford continuing to dominate the spinout landscape.
This region is home to world-class research institutions and well-established funding networks – creating fertile ground for biotech, medtech and pharmaceutical innovation to scale rapidly.
Immunocore
A standout university spinout success, Immunocore began life as Avidex, spun out of Oxford University. Now a commercial-stage biotech company with around 310 UK employees, Immunocore is a leader in immunotherapy innovation.
The company is best known for developing the world’s first approved T cell receptor (TCR) therapy – a pioneering treatment that enables a patient’s T-cells to recognise and destroy cancer cells.
Since its founding, Immunocore has raised around £510 million across multiple funding rounds, including Series A, B, C and venture capital – solidifying its place as one of the UK’s most well-funded Life Sciences scaleups.
Clarivate
When it comes to trusted insights and analytics within the life sciences industry, Clarivate is a global leader.
Previously part of Thomson Reuters, Clarivate offer enriched data, insights & analytics, workflow solutions and expert services in the areas of Academia & Government, Intellectual Property and Life Sciences & Healthcare.
With an estimated 580 employees in the UK and a growth rate of +5%, Clarivate have offices in Cambridge and global headquarters in London.
Fastest growing Life Sciences startups
Mamedica
From industry giants to rising stars, the UK Life Sciences sector is full of cutting-edge companies poised to make a serious impact. Mamedica is leading the way in the UK’s medical cannabis movement.
Founded in 2022, this London-based private clinic and linked pharmacy specialises in cannabis-based prescriptions for patients with conditions unresponsive to traditional treatments – across areas like chronic pain, psychiatry, neurology, palliative care, and cancer.
With a reported +254% growth rate, Mamedica is scaling fast. The team now includes an estimated 25 employees, and the company has publicly reported rapid increases in both patient numbers and revenue – positioning it as one to watch in the evolving medical cannabis space.
Constructive.bio
Positioning itself as a disruptive biotech startup, Constructive.Bio operates at the frontier of synthetic biology, rewriting genomes to create novel biomolecules for next-gen materials and therapeutics.
Based in the South Cambridge biotech cluster, the company has grown rapidly, with an estimated +206% growth rate and around 28 UK employees.
Since launch, Constructive.Bio has attracted significant early-stage investment, including seed, Series A, and early VC rounds.
In 2025, they secured fresh funding from international investor LongeVC, helping them develop scalable solutions for the next generation of therapeutics and bio-based materials.
Find UK Life Sciences companies with The Data City
From global giants like AstraZeneca to fast-growing startups like Mamedica and Constructive.Bio, the UK Life Sciences sector is broad, complex, and constantly evolving. Traditional company data can’t keep up.
With The Data City, you get real-time insight into over 20,000 Life Sciences companies – classified using our proprietary RTICs and enriched with location, growth, skills and investment data.
Whether you’re investing in the future of biotech, building regional economic strategy, or supporting innovation policy, our platform gives you the tools to act with clarity and confidence.
Sign up for a free trial and see the data for yourself today.
Please note: The data from The Data City is accurate at the time the article was written but may change over time due to the dynamic, real-time nature of our data. For the latest insights, visit our platform.
