3 minute read - 22nd May 2025
BioNTech to make £1bn UK investment over next decade
A planned investment of up to £1bn into the UK by biopharmaceutical company BioNTech is set to create new research centres and hundreds of highly skilled jobs, aimed at making new advances in medical science. This is one of the biggest investments in the history of UK life sciences, made possible with government backing.
BioNTech, a pioneer in mRNA vaccines and cancer immunotherapies, will invest in the UK over the next ten years as part of an ambitious plan to significantly expand its presence in the country. This will see them create two new R&D hubs, one based in Cambridge and an AI hub based at BioNTech’s planned UK headquarters in London. These are intended to generate more than 400 new jobs over the next 10 years, including researchers in clinical and scientific drug development, bioinformatics, and a range of supporting functions. Indirectly, the investment is also likely to create a substantial number of additional jobs in the supply chain.
In Cambridge, BioNTech plans to set up a new R&D centre focused on genomics, oncology, structural biology, and regenerative medicine. In London, BioNTech intends to establish its UK headquarters, which will be home to a new AI hub led by InstaDeep Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of BioNTech SE and a leading global technology company in the field of AI and machine learning. This hub will enable medical research using AI, including understanding disease causes, drug target selection, and predictive analytics.
Vaccine and cancer immunotherapies pioneer BioNTech is to invest up to £1bn and create hundreds of jobs in the UK in the next decade / Picture: Getty/iStock
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BioNTech has signed an agreement finalising the investment with science secretary Peter Kyle. Under the agreement, the government will contribute up to £129m in grant funding over ten years.
Uğur Şahin, CEO and co-founder of BioNTech, said: “This agreement marks the next chapter of our successful strategic partnership with the UK government. Together, we have already made a meaningful difference in expanding access to investigational personalised cancer therapies for patients. Now, we are taking the next step to accelerate and broaden our research and development efforts advancing towards our vision to translate science into survival for patients.”
Peter Kyle, science and technology secretary, added: “This investment will propel the growth-driving life sciences sector to new heights, delivering cutting-edge facilities, building careers in the future-facing jobs we want our children to have, and ultimately unlocking progress in medical science that could save lives. This is a clear indication of how we will deliver the government’s Plan for Change: working together with the best and brightest businesses and innovators to unlock their potential, and then reap the benefits for the economy, health and more that their drive and genius can deliver.”
The government says the sector is already thriving, worth £108bn to the economy and providing more than 300,000 highly skilled jobs across the country. But through measures like its commitment to investing up to £520m in the sector through the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund, the government says it wants to boost UK life sciences to even greater heights, bolstering ambitions to grow the economy, create jobs, and building on the UK’s position as the second-most attractive destination for international investment.
