£6m · Other round · Defence, Semiconductors, Space · Cambridge, UK
Silicon Microgravity has secured £6m in funding to expand UK manufacturing of high-performance microelectromechanical systems. The company announcement says West Hill Capital led the round, with investment from the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund’s Defence & Security and Space portfolios. The capital will add engineering and semiconductor-production capacity and accelerate commercial partnerships across Europe and the US.
Precision sensing where GPS cannot help
SMG develops resonant MEMS accelerometers, gyroscopes and gravity sensors for navigation and subsurface measurement. The components are designed to combine high sensitivity with compact size and low power consumption in environments where satellite navigation is unavailable or unreliable, including launch vehicles, spacecraft, defence systems and autonomous platforms.
The same sensing architecture supports two commercial routes. SMG Motion supplies inertial components that measure acceleration and rotation for navigation and control, while SMG Gravity packages gravimeters for field, mobile and borehole surveys. In subsurface work, tiny changes in gravity can reveal density differences associated with minerals, voids or geological structures. In aerospace and defence, low-drift inertial sensing can help a system estimate movement when external positioning is degraded.
Manufacturing is part of the product
SMG began as a University of Cambridge spinout focused on oil-and-gas gravity sensing, completed a management buyout in 2021 and shifted towards inertial and surface-gravity products. The company says it launched its GAIA gravity system and commercial MEMS accelerometers in 2025 after field trials in Australia and Wales. Its funding announcement also cites validation from global customers and use of accelerometers in space programmes, although customers and programme volumes are not disclosed.
The round therefore addresses more than sensor design. Defence and space buyers need repeatable performance, traceable production and dependable supply over long qualification cycles. SMG must expand output without losing calibration and yield, then convert trials and partnerships into recurring programmes. Building more of that capacity in the UK may matter to customers seeking sovereign components, but commercial proof will come from qualified orders that can sustain the specialised manufacturing base.
Sources checked:
SMG financing announcement · SMG company and technology · SMG official terms · UKI2S announcement · Tech.eu Funding Explorer
