Geovation celebrates 15 year milestone - after supporting 150 startups worth more than £300 million

Over the last 15 years, Geovation has cultivated PropTech and GeoTech start-ups, helping them break new ground in the way location and property data is used. Through its award-winning Accelerator Programme, Geovation has helped to raise over £155 million in funding for new companies and created more than 2,500 jobs. Geovation is an Ordnance Survey (OS) initiative, in association with the HM Land Registry (HMLR).

The Geovation hub provides a collaboration space, access to trusted sources of geospatial and property information in the UK, including OS and HMLR; along with direct support through workshops, events, and technical expertise. Location data is the foundation of many innovative digital solutions, and has been made easier to access by Geovation, enabling start-ups to create viable, impactful solutions that drive positive change. 

Geovation was created on the back of the launch of OS Open MasterMap data in 2009, as part of a wider initiative to make government data more open and accessible. Geovation grew into a pioneering corporate start-up programme, leading the way for other organisations to follow.

In those 15 years, Geovation has built its own active, diverse community of start-ups, working together and individually, to tackle big problems, unlocking social, economic, and environmental value. From using artificial intelligence to provide drone insurance for operators, broadcasters and emergency NHS deliveries, to ground-breaking farming apps, and providing addresses for the homeless.

Geovation start-up case studies 

• Mission:Explore (earliest winner of the first challenge launched in 2009): Dan Raven-Ellison, Guerrilla Geographer and Founder of Slow Ways and National Park Cities: A former Geography teacher, Dan led the successful campaign to establish London as the world's first National Park City. He also founded Slow Ways, an initiative aimed at creating a national network of walking routes that connect all of Great Britain's towns and cities.
• Land App (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2015): Land App provides a comprehensive platform for landowners, planners, and developers to manage and visualise land data, facilitating efficient planning and land use decisions. Land App also collaborates with corporate and government partners, including the Forestry Commission, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), and Sainsbury’s, to help farmers and suppliers protect biodiversity, climate, water, and soil.
• Soil Benchmark (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2022): Soil Benchmark helps farmers improve soil health and comply with regulations by generating soil management plans. Now profitable and covering 5.2% of England, the company recently closed an oversubscribed seed round to expand into manure and nutrient management planning.
• Verna Earth (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2023): Verna is a B2B SaaS nature-tech startup which is building software that unblocks the $500Bn nature market by providing the operating system for nature restoration.
• Planning Hub (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2024): PlanningHub uses artificial intelligence and Large Language Models to sieve through property and planning data, simplifying searches to establish the planning feasibility of property development. Their rapid planning guidance supports homebuyers, consultants and estate agents, to property developers and Local Planning Authorities.
• Building Atlas (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2024): Building Atlas uses machine learning and data to help owners of commercial and public sector property portfolios find the best path to retrofitting their buildings and optimise the value of their assets. By combining data on building fabric, energy networks, and the value of buildings – without any input from the building owners – they find the most appropriate retrofit measures across entire portfolios.
• Viability (joined Geovation Accelerator in 2023): Viability combines data from HMLR and OS with the analysis methodologies of industry experts to automate and improve the way property developers assess land for potential development. By streamlining site appraisals, the platform enables developers to deliver more homes sustainably. 

About Geovation

Founded in 2009, Geovation supports startups develop innovative solutions by leveraging the power of location data and expertise to create new and impactful opportunities. It is home to a thriving ecosystem, which brings a diverse community of over 2,000 GeoTech and PropTech members together to unlock innovation and growth.

The first hub was opened in partnership with the Future Cities Catapult (now Connected Places Catapult) in 2015 before moving to the current location in Farringdon, London in 2018.

In 2017, HMLR joined Geovation to collaborate on the Accelerator Programme, empowering PropTech startups that utilise land and property data to transform the property industry. Since then, this partnership has supported successive cohorts in creating transparent digital processes for buying and selling property, benefiting homeowners and contributing to the establishment of a world-leading property market.

The latest cohort of seven GeoTech and PropTech start-ups joined its Accelerator Programme in Autumn, and aims to problem-solve a new set of challenges using software solutions and technology to improve public safety, environmental challenges, property transactions and building management. The programme’s PropTech branch is supported by HMLR, and the GeoTech branch is supported by OS. For more information visit Geovation Accelerator Programme.