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Cambridge ranked in the top 5 cities outside London when it came to VC investment in 2020, new research from Tech Nation shows.

While London was ranked number one for tech investment, Cambridge joined Oxford, Bristol and Edinburgh in the top 5, attracting $193 million of VC tech investment in 2020.

The number of technology jobs in the UK has witnessed a significant decline (57%) over the past year, with fewer than 55,000 open roles advertised, according to the latest UK Tech Talent Tracker from Accenture. However, despite this rather disappointing trend, demand for skills in cutting-edge technologies is on the up.

A Cambridge University tech spinout has raised £3.7m as part of a series C funding. Wound healing medtech firm Inotec AMD says it will use the funds to help it expand in the United States and other commercial markets.

NASA has released some dramatic high-res video of its Perseverance Rover landing on Mars. The first-of-its-kind video shows the unmanned exploration vehicle touching down on the Red Planet’s surface and also includes the first audio recorded on Mars.

Hydroponic farming – which basically skips the soil and sees plants grown in nutrient-rich water -- is challenging traditional methods. To ensure the ongoing operational success of such farms, Cambridge engineers have developed a Digital Twin that provides bespoke feedback to farmers.

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the immense importance of keeping surfaces and other areas we come into contact with clean and sanitised. To help with this plight, a Suffolk company – backed by the Accelerate Cambridge programme – has developed an innovative antiviral coating technology that kills viruses, including Covid-19, on any surface. And it has now won government funding to help further its work.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has set a record for the number of satellites launched into orbit on a single rocket. The ambitious rideshare mission — called Transporter-1 — saw one of SpaceX’s veteran Falcon 9 boosters lift off with 143 small satellites aboard, before successfully landing at sea.

A former University of Cambridge alumna could become the first woman to walk on the moon. Kayla Barron, a Gates Cambridge Scholar and NASA astronaut, has been selected to become part of NASA’s Artemis Team. This makes Kayla eligible for the next astronaut missions, which could see her become the first woman to step foot on Earth’s only natural satellite.

A new five-storey laboratory and office building will rise at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus after plans for its construction were approved by councillors.