Top Funding Rounds This Week
1. Optalysys — £23 million Series A Extension (Leeds)
Funding: ~£23 m (~€26.4 m) Series A extension led by Northern Gritstone with participation from imec.xpand, Lingotto Horizon and the UK government’s National Security Strategic Investment Fund (NSSIF).
What it does: Optalysys builds photonic computing chips that use light rather than electricity to process data — a promising path toward energy-efficient and secure AI compute infrastructure.
Use of funds: Accelerate product development, commercialisation of its photonic chips, and expansion into the US market.
Comment: CEO Dr Nick New said the capital validates the potential of photonic compute and supports making the technology a key part of next-generation cloud and encrypted computing. (Optalysys)
2. Stream — £67 million Series D (Workplace FinTech)
Funding: ~£67 m (~€76 m) Series D led by Sofina, with support from investors including Ascension Ventures, Balderton, Northzone, LocalGlobe and British Business Bank.
Total raised: ~£194 m (~$228 m) to date.
What it does: Stream (formerly Wagestream) provides workplace financial tools — from wage access and budgeting to affordable credit and pensions — in partnership with employers.
Use of funds: Scaling products, deeper pensions services, and international expansion (notably in the US).
Comment: Co-founder Peter Briffett described the funding as crucial to expanding how workers manage finances and planning long-term financial wellbeing, while supporting employers to improve staff financial health. (FF News | Fintech Finance)
3. Elyos AI — ~$13 million (~£9.7 m) Series A (AI for Trades)
Funding: ~£9.7 m (~€11.1 m / $13 m) Series A led by Blackbird Ventures, with backing from Y Combinator and Pi Labs.
What it does: Elyos builds autonomous AI agents designed to support trades and field service businesses (e.g., plumbing, HVAC, electrical) by:
- answering calls 24/7,
- managing bookings,
- scheduling jobs with optimisation,
- handling messages and follow-ups.
Use of funds: Expand engineering and go-to-market teams, deepen CRM integrations, add voice & messaging features, and push toward international growth in 2026.
Founders’ view: Co-founder Adrian Johnston and the team emphasise that AI agents help field businesses increase bookings and cut admin work, translating to real operational impact. (AI Insider)
Other Notable Notes in UK Funding This Week
While the three above lead the headlines, the UK tech funding scene also showed broad investor activity — with total tracked investment ~£140.7 m spread across 8+ deals, including energy, deep tech and other software companies outside of the big rounds mentioned. (UKTN)
Founder & Market Reactions
Here’s how the ecosystem and founders are talking about these deals:
- Optalysys (Reddit community): Commenters noted excitement about UK-led strategic tech in areas like secure compute and photonics, and pointed to government support via NSSIF as a sign of confidence in advanced infrastructure startups. (Reddit)
- Elyos AI (LinkedIn post by founders): The team celebrated the Series A as a launchpad for growth, highlighting how the product is already making tangible improvements for real businesses — and saying “the real work starts now.” (LinkedIn)
- Stream: Investors and founders alike frame this funding not only as commercial scale-up capital but as addressing real economic issues like worker financial resilience and pensions planning at scale. (FF News | Fintech Finance)
Summary: Week in UK Startup Funding
Optalysys leads the deep-tech AI compute wave with strategic backing and global ambitions.
Stream’s large Series D highlights continued investor appetite for fintech solutions tied to everyday financial wellbeing.
Elyos AI’s Series A shows AI powering practical automation in traditional field and trades industries.
The overall picture: UK startups continue to attract significant capital across AI, fintech and compute, with investors backing both cutting-edge technology plays and deeply pragmatic business-oriented platforms. (Startupmag)
Here’s a case-study–style weekly UK startup funding roundup — covering Optalysys, Stream, Elyos AI, and key comments from founders, investors and users — giving you not just deal sizes but what each startup is actually doing and why the money matters (week of 19–23 January 2026). (Startupmag)
1. Optalysys — Photonic Computing for Secure, Energy-Efficient AI
Deal: £23 million Series A extension led by Northern Gritstone, with imec.xpand, Lingotto Horizon and the UK government’s National Security Strategic Investment Fund participating. (Optalysys)
What Optalysys Does
Optalysys builds photonic computing chips that use light instead of electricity to move and process data — making computations much more energy-efficient and potentially faster than traditional silicon chips. This is aimed at handling heavy AI and cloud workloads. (Optalysys)
Why This Funding Matters
- The capital will accelerate commercial rollout of its photonic chips and support expansion into the US market. (Optalysys)
- These chips are designed not just for raw performance but also for secure, always-encrypted data processing — something crucial for finance, defence and cloud infrastructure. (EU-Startups)
Founder & Community Comments
- CEO Dr Nick New said the investment “validates both the opportunity and our execution capability” and helps push photonic computing toward mainstream cloud infrastructure. (EU-Startups)
- Tech communities have celebrated the move as a UK-led deep-tech success — especially given government involvement in strategic technology sectors. (Reddit)
Why it’s a case study: Optalysys represents deep tech UK capability in next-generation compute, where the focus is on solving real bottlenecks in AI infrastructure rather than just building apps. (Optalysys)
2. Stream — Workplace Finance Platform Scaling Globally
Deal: ~$90 million Series D (≈ €76 m / £67 m), led by Sofina with support from existing investors including Balderton, Northzone, British Business Bank, and Better Society Capital. Total raised now ~£194–£228 m. (FinTech Futures)
What Stream Does
Stream — formerly Wagestream — partners with employers to offer workplace financial tools:
Earned wage access
Budgeting and savings features
Affordable credit
Pension tracking/combination services
All through one platform integrated with employer payroll. (FinTech Futures)
What the Funding Will Be Used For
- International expansion, especially into the US market. (FinTech Futures)
- Deeper workplace pension offerings, including tools to help workers find and combine unclaimed pension pots. (FinTech Futures)
Comments from Leadership and Analysts
- CEO Peter Briffett describes the funding as vital to scaling Stream’s approach to worker financial wellbeing — giving everyday employees practical tools and better outcomes versus high-cost payday lenders. (FinTech Futures)
- Stream’s model aims to balance commercial growth with social impact by embedding financial services directly into workplace ecosystems. (FinTech Futures)
Why it’s a case study: Stream shows how British fintech is evolving from niche wage access into a comprehensive financial wellbeing platform with global ambitions — blending social purpose with scalable technology. (FinTech Futures)
3. Elyos AI — AI Agents Transforming Trades & Field Services
Deal: ~€11.1 m (~$13 m / £9.7 m) Series A led by Blackbird Ventures, with Y Combinator and Pi Labs participating. (BeBeez)
What Elyos AI Does
Elyos builds autonomous AI agents tailored to trades and field services — such as plumbing, electrical and HVAC businesses — that:
Answer calls 24/7
Manage bookings and scheduling
Chase quotes and follow-ups
Integrate with existing CRM/job systems
This helps reduce administrative burden and capture more business. (BeBeez)
Impact & Customer Results
- Companies adopting Elyos AI report higher booking rates and faster response times, with fewer missed calls and reduced admin overhead. (startupresearcher.com)
- Example: A fire and security firm saw agents handling a significant portion of inbound calls automatically, freeing staff for core operations. (startupresearcher.com)
Founder and Investor Views
- Co-founder Adrian Johnston says the funding accelerates product capabilities, deeper integrations, and international expansion. (BeBeez)
- Investors highlight Elyos’s deep industry understanding of trades businesses and strong customer traction as key reasons for backing. (startupresearcher.com)
Why it’s a case study: Elyos AI illustrates how AI startups are tackling practical real-world problems outside the usual enterprise or consumer segments — showing that automation can drive tangible business value even in traditional industries. (startupresearcher.com)
Overall Funding Trends & Ecosystem Signals
This Week’s Snapshot
- Total UK startup funding tracked: ~£200 m+ across ~15+ deals spanning AI, fintech, healthtech, greentech, and more. (Startupmag)
- Investments reflect a mix of deep tech infrastructure, workplace finance and AI-driven automation — suggesting investors are backing both foundational tech and product-led platforms. (Startupmag)
What Founders Are Emphasizing
Across these deals, leaders are focusing on:
- International growth and scaling, not just UK market penetration. (Startupmag)
- Tangible customer impact (e.g., fewer missed calls, better financial outcomes). (startupresearcher.com)
- Positioning technology as an operational necessity rather than a speculative bet. (Startupmag)
Summary: Key Takeaways
Strategic capital deployment: Funding is backing startups with clear paths to growth and revenue, both in the UK and abroad. (Startupmag)
Practical innovation: Investors are increasingly focused on real value creation — from secure AI compute to workflow automation and employee wellbeing finance. (Startupmag)
Sector diversity: Deals span deep tech, SaaS, AI services and fintech, indicating a healthy breadth in the UK ecosystem. (Startupmag)