Twin Track closes £5m first close to back UK dual-use deeptech startups
This article covers Twin Track Ventures, a London-based venture capital vehicle focused on dual‑use technologies, which has closed a £5m first close backed by the NATO Innovation Fund and allocator Allocator One. The fund aims to support early-stage companies developing technologies with both commercial and defence applications across NATO countries.
Twin Track Ventures, a London-based venture capital vehicle focused on dual‑use technologies, has closed a £5 million first close backed by the NATO Innovation Fund and allocator Allocator One. The fund will back early-stage companies with both commercial and defence applications, aiming to reach a £10 million final close by 2026 and deploy cheque sizes up to £500,000 into as many as 25 startups across NATO countries.
Why it matters
NATO’s Innovation Fund taking a position in a small, specialised manager signals growing institutional interest in dual‑use and defence-adjacent deeptech. That matters because early-stage capital has been scarce for startups building technologies that must satisfy both commercial markets and defence procurement regimes — areas seen as strategically important for resilience and advanced manufacturing across the UK and Europe.
Who’s behind the fund
Twin Track Ventures is led by Nicola Sinclair, an 18‑year veteran of the British Air Force who is structuring the vehicle as a solo general partner fund. The fund’s first close brings together the NATO Innovation Fund, Allocator One and participation from undisclosed venture firms and individual investors from the defence and security sectors.
Inside the portfolio
Twin Track says it has already invested in five companies. Named examples include Uplift 360, SE3 Labs and Cassi, alongside two startups still operating in stealth. These early stakes are intended to cover technologies across compute, communications, sensors, supply chain, manufacturing, materials and energy — areas where solutions can translate from commercial to defence use cases and vice versa.
How the fund will deploy capital
Twin Track plans to write cheques of up to £500,000 at pre‑seed and seed stages and to back up to 25 startups. Its geographic remit is NATO countries, reflecting the fund’s dual‑use orientation and the involvement of alliance institutions. The fund’s target is a £10 million final close by 2026.
Founder perspective
Nicola Sinclair frames the strategy as a response to evolving defence procurement and the practical realities of getting deeptech to market.
Nicola Sinclair, founder and solo general partner at Twin Track Ventures, said:
I’ve been in the defence space for 20 years. I’ve seen announcement after announcement about increased spending, and it does not always materialise in the way the announcement would suggest.
Nicola Sinclair, founder and solo general partner at Twin Track Ventures, said:
There have been major structural changes in how defence customers can contract, which has made the sector far more interesting than it was three years ago. Defence procurement is hard, and early traction in deeptech is hard. When you combine the two, those challenges appear at different points in a company’s life cycle, creating opportunities to offset risk.
How it fits the market
Twin Track joins a growing cohort of single‑partner managers across Europe and is notable for being led by one of few women heading a fund in the defence and dual‑use investment space. The fund’s focus on small, early cheques into tech that spans commercial and defence demand reflects a broader trend: governments and allied institutions are directing capital and attention to technologies that underpin security, resilience and industrial capability.
The bigger picture
For the UK and European startup ecosystem, Twin Track’s first close is another sign that public and quasi‑public capital is moving upstream to connect strategic procurement needs with venture finance. That could open pathways for deeptech founders to secure early validation and revenue from defence customers, while still pursuing commercial markets — provided they can navigate the regulatory and operational complexities of dual‑use technology.
Twin Track’s progress to a £10 million target will be a barometer of how many early‑stage entrepreneurs are prepared to build companies at the intersection of commercial deeptech and national security.
Click here for a full list of 7,526+ startup investors in the UK