The UK’s longest-running index of the most promising new startups includes three young Cambridge businesses in this year’s lineup.
The Startups 100 Index 2026 powered by Sage, lists Ethicronics, JUX Food and Mimicrete Ltd in its ranks.
The Startups 100, run by Startups.co.uk, showcases the top 100 young UK businesses which exhibit technological innovation, impressive financials, market disruption, and a strong customer base or following.
Running for the last 18 years, the Index spans all industries with the final list championing a huge range of inventive and original ideas. Previously, it has predicted the success of household names such as Monzo and Deliveroo.
Ethicronics (Index ranking: 55)
Founded by Dr Franck Courbon in 2022, the company provides governments and defence organisations with visibility and assurance over their hardware. The startup can detect hidden threats, counterfeits, and tampering that traditional cybersecurity misses.
With early sales to UK defence sectors, partnerships with the University of Oxford, and plans for international hardware assurance standards, the startup aims to become the UK’s leading company for ensuring hardware trust through software.
JUX Food (Index rating: 65)
Founded by Anna Wood in 2022, the business turns vegetables, herbs, spices and superfoods into shelf-stable products using freeze-drying technology that preserves flavour and nutrients.
The company is addressing the broken food system and aims to make fresh, plant-based food accessible to households across the UK.
JUX Food is growing 338% annually, partnering with Tesco and Ocado, and supported by chefs including James Martin and Steven Wallis.
Anna said: “It feels surreal to be named as one of the UK’s Top Startups. I started this business on my own in my kitchen, and fast-forward two years and we’re in supermarkets across the UK and about to hit £1m in revenue.
“It’s been a wild ride, but we’re just getting started: our freeze-dried ingredients are transforming how our customers cook at home, and we want to be in every kitchen in the UK.”
Mimicrete Ltd (Index rating: 69)
Founded by Zijing Li and Lívia Ribeiro de Souza, in 2021, the company has developed a self-healing concrete that can repair large cracks quickly, boosting durability.
Backed by Innovate UK and Morgan Stanley, the startup is now trialling its material on bridges and other live construction projects, partnering with leading universities to test its performance, with the ambition of making buildings and infrastructure more sustainable, long-lasting, and cost-effective across the industry.
Editor of Startups.co.uk, Zohra Huda, said: “Once again, the Startups 100 Index is proof that the UK’s entrepreneurial heartbeat isn’t confined to the capital—it’s booming across the regions.
“From the Shetlands to Southampton, Ballymena to Bangor, UK founders are showing immense ingenuity, proving that brilliant ideas and business success depend on spirit and strategy, not just your postcode.
“Our Index is a wake-up call that Cambridge is the new engine of innovation.”
About the Index:
The Startups 100, run by Startups.co.uk, showcases the top 100 new UK businesses based on five key areas of analysis: finance, external validation, size of opportunity, and innovation in ideas and strength of concept.
It is also focused on growing a community of like-minded entrepreneurs and business owners who support and advocate for each other.
