The one year investment will foster further collaboration between businesses, research institutions and local government. The funding includes a grant which is part of a £30m funding extension of Innovate UK’s Innovation Accelerator (IA) programme, which focuses on locally-led innovation to drive economic growth and technological advancement in three key regions – Greater Manchester, Glasgow City Region and the West Midlands.
MITIH was launched in 2023 to rejuvenate the region’s innovation ecosystem through collaboration, co-investment, and partnerships with the aim of providing innovators and businesses with access to expertise, funding and state-of-the-art technologies and facilities.
Paul Dennett, Salford City Mayor and Deputy Mayor for Greater Manchester said: “I am delighted that through The Landing company, Salford City Council colleagues will continue to play a pivotal role in leading, fostering, and supporting innovation through the use of immersive and creative technologies across many sectors of Greater Manchester’s economy.
“MITIH’s success in revitalising the innovation ecosystem at MediaCity and supporting creative businesses across the city region exemplifies true collaboration and proves the power of devolution. I welcome the confidence the Government has placed in us through this extension and look forward to working with businesses, and local and national Government colleagues, to shape a robust Industrial Strategy that reflects the importance of the creative and cultural industries, not only for Salford and Greater Manchester, but for the whole of the north of England.”
Professor Simon Green, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Salford, said: “This new investment in the MediaCity Immersive Technologies Innovation Hub is a significant step forward for Greater Manchester’s innovation ecosystem. By fostering collaboration in this way, we are creating a dynamic environment where cutting edge ideas can thrive. “The funding will provide vital support to innovators, start-ups and scale-ups, ensuring they have access to the expertise, resources and technologies needed to drive economic growth and technological advancement in the region. As an institution, we are proud to play our role in this and look forward to seeing the impact it will have on the future of innovation in Greater Manchester.”
Martin Chown, Interim Managing Director, MediaCity, added: “Innovation is embedded in the fabric of MediaCity and the continued presence of MITIH is crucial to its long-term success as the UK home of immersive media. The next cohort of innovators, technologists and creators will break boundaries on a global scale and we’re proud to support their presence here.”
To date, MITIH has engaged and supported over 250 businesses, channelled more than £1million into 26 innovative projects, employing 99 staff and 77 subcontractors, and launched a new innovation lab which has assisted more than 50 businesses and artists. It launched the Cultural Accelerator programme, delivered in partnership with Future Everything, which supported eleven digital artists. The programme has reached more than 4,000 people through partnerships in events across the animation, broadcast, media production, music, audio, immersive experience, games, advertising, marketing, built environment, health and education sectors.
Anthony Hatton, MITIH Programme Director, The Landing at MediaCityUK said: “The new funding will allow us to continue to support entrepreneurs and innovators and grow our creative economy. We’ve already worked with hundreds of creative and digital businesses to connect them with fellow professionals, test and develop their ideas and to bring their innovations to market.
“We aim to increase our impact by leveraging local assets and national programmes, such those delivered by the CoSTAR and Creative UK Enterprise teams, to offer local businesses the technical and research expertise and access to state-of-the-art facilities at MediaCity and across Greater Manchester to maximise their economic opportunities.”
Professor Mandy Parkinson, Professor of Business Innovation, University of Salford said: “Over the next year we aim to assist a further 40 businesses to fast-track their innovative ideas through tailored support and collaborations building on our network of academic and industry experts.
“MITIH will continue to nurture our growing community and expand our expert network to ensure that the best ideas can be identified, developed and commercialised. We will also leverage programmes at the University of Salford’s Centre for Sustainable Innovation and increase our collaboration with other GM programmes such as the Centre for Digital Innovation, Turing Innovation Catalyst and Health Innovation Manchester.”
Any companies or talented individuals who wish to take part in or contribute to the programme can contact the MITIH team via Office Forms.
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- Date published
- Thursday 3 April 2025
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