INVITATION ONLY
If you have any questions, please contact Katie Saddleton, Senior Ecosystem Manager, Enterprise Hub at [email protected]
The Enterprise Hub is delighted to host the Spring Showcase in 2023 – the Hub’s 10th anniversary year. This is an exclusive event that will showcase the impact of the Enterprise Hub on UK innovation.
Guests will discover latest cutting-edge tech and prototypes from the brilliant engineering and technology entrepreneurs from across the UK that the Hub’s programmes have supported. It will be an evening of dynamic pitches for investment and engaging exhibits, with networking throughout.
The event promises to be a celebration of bold, disruptive innovation, and 10 years of the Enterprise Hub’s investment in Hub Members’ successes. It will be hosted by Dr John Lazar CBE FREng, Chair of the Enterprise Committee, Co-Founder & General Partner at Enza Capital and Chair at Raspberry Pi Foundation and What3words, with the keynote from the Venture Builder Programme Director of Zinc VC, Julia Ross.
Programme
| 5.30pm | Registration and refreshments |
| 6.00pm |
Welcome and introduction, Dr John Lazar CBE FREng, Chair of the Enterprise Committee |
| 6.05pm |
Keynote Speech, Julia Ross, Venture Builder Programme Director of Zinc VC Followed by Q&A |
| 6.35pm | Pitches from Hub Members |
| 7.10pm | Closing remarks |
| 7.20pm | Exhibition and Networking Reception |
| 8.30pm | Event ends |
Venue and accessibility
It is very important to the Royal Academy of Engineering that our events are accessible to all. If you have any accessibility requirements, please contact the Events team more than one week in advance of this event so that necessary arrangements can be made. Contact details: [email protected].
Further information about accessibility at Prince Philip House can be found at: https://raeng.org.uk/about-us/accessibility.
Sir John Lazar CBE FREng
Sir John is a software engineer and entrepreneur with experience of building and managing successful global businesses. He is Chair of the Raspberry Pi Foundation, which aims to help young people realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. He is also co-founder, General Partner, and a Limited Partner at Enza Capital, which backs founders and teams using technology to solve large and meaningful problems across Africa. He sits on the boards of multiple African technology companies and previously served as the Chair of What3words. He was awarded a CBE for services to engineering in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list in 2016 and was knighted for services to engineering and technology in the His Majesty The King’s New Year Honours List 2025. Sir John was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2011 and chaired the Academy’s Enterprise Committee, which supports startups and scaleups across the UK and globally through the Enterprise Hub. He has also been a member of the Academy’s Education and Skills Committee and played an active role in developing the programme of study for England’s school Computer Science curriculum. Sir John has also been a judge and mentor for the Academy’s Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, which trains and backs early-stage African engineering companies. He has spent many years working on tech-related non-profit initiatives in Africa, especially building “digital blacksmiths” and maker labs. He has been an active angel investor and technology start-up mentor in the UK and Africa, with more than 40 individual pre-seed/seed investments. He graduated from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar with an MSc in Computation and a DPhil in History, following an undergraduate degree in Computer Science at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. Sir John was elected as President of the Royal Academy of Engineering at its 48th AGM in 2024.