Chemify to triple workforce with £90M expansion

University of Glasgow spin-out Chemify is set to create up to 300 highly skilled jobs in Glasgow as part of an £89.9 million expansion backed by £22 million of public funding.

The digital chemistry company will almost triple its Scottish workforce over the next three years, growing from 152 employees to around 450, while safeguarding a further 100 jobs.

The expansion is being supported by a £16 million grant from Scottish Enterprise and £6 million from the UK Government, with Chemify committing £67.9 million to the project.

Investment

It represents another major investment in the fast-growing company, whose previously announced Series B funding has been extended to £51.9 million, taking the total funding secured by Chemify to more than £110 million.

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  Chemify CEO and founder Professor Lee Cronin

Founded in 2019 as a spin-out from the University of Glasgow, Chemify is developing technology that combines artificial intelligence, robotics and chemistry to transform how new medicines, materials and chemical compounds are designed and manufactured.

As part of the latest investment, the company will establish its new global headquarters and research and development centre at the Health Innovation Hub in Govan, at the heart of Glasgow Riverside Innovation District.

The move will anchor Chemify’s next phase of growth in Glasgow, alongside an expansion of its automated manufacturing operations in the city.

Professor Lee Cronin, founder and CEO of Chemify and Regius Professor of Chemistry at the University of Glasgow, said the investment would allow the business to expand the technology it has developed in the city.

“Just one year ago, our first Chemifarm in Glasgow proved that Chemputation works by grounding AI-enabled drug discovery in physical synthesis and improving the design and makeability of new molecules and materials,” he said.

“The additional funding will enable us to hyperscale chemistry, expand our next-generation Chemifarm and advance our Chemify Genesis system to vastly increase our capacity to create new molecules, materials and medicines and bespoke datasets.”

Chemify’s technology brings together AI and automated laboratory systems to design, make and test chemical compounds. Its approach aims to shorten the time between identifying a potentially useful new molecule and physically producing and testing it, with potential applications across pharmaceuticals and advanced materials.

The additional funding will enable us to hyperscale chemistry, expand our next-generation Chemifarm and advance our Chemify Genesis system to vastly increase our capacity to create new molecules, materials and medicines and bespoke datasets

Professor Lee Cronin

The expansion will also support Chemify’s ambition to become what it describes as the first “chemistry hyperscaler”, substantially increasing the number of compounds it can design and make for partners while scaling its technology internationally.

The scale of the jobs announcement means the investment is also expected to strengthen Glasgow and Scotland’s wider life sciences, technology and advanced manufacturing sectors.

Scottish Enterprise Chief Executive Adrian Gillespie described Chemify’s decision to undertake its expansion in Scotland as a significant endorsement of the country’s ability to grow technology businesses emerging from its research base.

“Chemify’s investment is a powerful vote of confidence in Scotland as a place to scale innovative deep-tech businesses,” he said. “It will accelerate the company’s growth and create exciting opportunities across chemistry, advanced manufacturing and life sciences sectors.

“Having supported Chemify since 2023, I’m excited to see Lee and his team continue to choose Scotland for their expansion. It underlines the strength of Scotland’s innovation environment and the calibre of companies growing here.

“By backing ambitious, scaling businesses like Chemify, we’re helping world-leading Scottish science make a bigger impact globally.”

The investment builds on Chemify’s rapid development since spinning out from research at the University of Glasgow. Initial backing included support through Innovate UK’s Innovation Accelerator programme, while the company has subsequently opened an advanced automated manufacturing facility in Glasgow.

• Chemify is based at the newly-opened Health Innovation Hub in Govan

Its growth is also another significant development for Glasgow Riverside Innovation District, a partnership led by the University of Glasgow, Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow City Council that brings together the University’s research strengths with industry and investment across the riverside area.

Chemify's move to the Health Innovation Hub in Govan will place one of the University’s fastest-growing spin-outs within that emerging innovation cluster while keeping both its headquarters and a significant proportion of its future workforce rooted in Glasgow.