Insider Brief
- Quantum Exponential Group announced that it has invested £300,000 as part of a circa. £1,500,000 pre seed funding round in Delta g.
- Delta g is a UK based gravity sensing hardware and technology development company.
- Delta g’s equipment could be used for for scanning beneath the earth’s surface for utility mapping, smart cities, smart mining, and building information modelling.
PRESS RELEASE — Quantum Exponential Group plc (AQUIS: QBIT), a company focused on investing in quantum technologies, announced that it has invested £300,000 (the ‘Investment’) as part of a circa. £1,500,000 pre seed funding round in Delta g Ltd (‘Delta g’). Delta g is a UK based gravity sensing hardware and technology development company that has developed a cutting-edge underground imaging system that leverages quantum technology to measure gravity gradients. The funding round was led by Science Creates Ventures, with additional investment from Newable Ventures, Bristol Private Equity Club and angel investors. This is Quantum Exponential’s seventh portfolio company.
Delta g Highlights
- Delta g is a UK based company that has recently spun out of the UK Quantum Technology Hub Sensors and Timing at the University of Birmingham.
- The company is focused on developing a gravity gradiometer for scanning beneath the earth’s surface for utility mapping, smart cities, smart mining, and building information modelling (BIM).
- Its gravity gradiometer has already received significant performance acclaim, demonstrated within a paper published in Nature (https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-04315-3), and has attracted interest from large industrial end users across many industrial verticals.
- Secured circa. £1,500,000 in a funding round involving specialist deeptech and quantum investors.
- Its technology will contribute to effective monitoring of critical national infrastructure and ground movement from climate change – both in the UK and internationally.
- Secured circa. £500k Innovate UK project grant via the ISCF Commercializing Quantum Technologies: feasibility studies round 3.
The funding will be used to develop a commercial demonstrator of the existing research system, perform trials with industrial end users, and build a robust roadmap towards manufacturing and commercialization.
The quantum gravity gradiometer has the potential to transform underground mapping for several industries such as utility mapping for smart cities and smart mining as it can be used in real-time monitoring and is a direct measurement. The applications and cost benefits of the technology are vast including:
- Mapping of as-built utility infrastructure.
- Improved prediction and monitoring of natural subsidence from climate change or seismic activity.
- Discovery of hidden natural resources.
- Understanding archaeological mysteries without damaging excavation.
- Reduce the risk of unforeseen ground conditions in the construction sector including rail and road projects.
Following the investment, Quantum Exponential will hold 153,061 ordinary B shares in Delta g representing approximately 7.8% of Delta g’s enlarged issued share capital on a fully diluted basis.
Commenting on its investment, CEO of Quantum Exponential Group, Steve Metcalfe said: “Jeremy Hunt’s spring budget highlighted the UK’s commitment to become a world-leading ‘quantum-enabled’ economy and doubled its current investment in the sector. Quantum Exponential share the same vision and believe that early investment in quantum-focused businesses is pivotal if we are to realize that vision.
“Delta g’s use of quantum technology to measure gravity gradients has the potential to revolutionize industries such as construction and infrastructure and significantly improve mapping of what happens underground. We are proud to support Delta g in its mission to develop a commercial demonstrator of the existing research system and to develop a gravity gradiometer. We are particularly pleased to note that Delta g’s technology has also received a circa. £500k Innovate UK project grant, highlighting its importance to the UK government’s efforts to advance the commercialization of quantum technologies.
“At Quantum Exponential, we are committed to investing in the most promising early-stage global quantum technology companies, and Delta g is an excellent addition to our portfolio. We look forward to working closely with the team at Delta g and supporting them as they continue to develop its technology. This investment brings our portfolio to seven companies to date and further cements our position as a leader in the quantum technology investment sector. We remain focused on identifying new opportunities in this rapidly evolving industry and delivering value to our investors.”
Quantum Gravity Sensor
Quantum gravity sensor measures subtle changes in the pulling strength of gravitational fields when a cloud of atoms is dropped. The bigger the object and the greater the difference in density of the object from its surroundings, the stronger the measurable difference in pull. But vibration, instrument tilt and disruption from magnetic and thermal fields have made turning quantum theory into commercial reality challenging. The Birmingham quantum sensor breakthrough is the first to meet these real-world challenges and perform a high spatial resolution survey. The removal of noise due to vibration will unlock gravity mapping at high spatial resolution. For more information about the quantum gravity sensor technology click here.
