UCL spinout Stanhope AI raises £2.3m to bring AI into the physical world
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Stanhope AI, a pioneering company in neuroscience-driven AI, has secured £2.3 million in seed funding led by us at the UCL Technology Fund, with participation from Creator Fund, MMC Ventures, Moonfire Ventures, Rockmount Capital, and angel investors.
Founded as a spinout from University College London by esteemed figures in neuroscience and AI, including CEO Professor Rosalyn Moran, Director Karl Friston, and Technical Advisor Dr. Biswa Sengupta, the company specializes in “agentic” AI. Stanhope’s innovative approach involves applying neuroscience principles to AI and mathematics, enabling algorithms to autonomously learn from discrepancies between predicted and actual events, updating their internal models continuously. This differs from traditional methods of training AI and promises significant advancements in real-world decision-making.
Their algorithms emulate the human brain’s predictive abilities, continuously updating their internal models by learning from discrepancies between predicted and actual events. Unlike traditional AI methods reliant on predefined data, Stanhope’s models autonomously learn, adapt, and refine their predictions in real-time. This approach, based on Active Inference, minimizes uncertainty and enables human-like decision-making. Led by Professor Friston’s Free Energy Theory Principle, described as revolutionary as natural selection, Stanhope’s work holds promise for energy-efficient, autonomous AI applications.
Professor Rosalyn Moran, CEO and co-founder of Stanhope AI, said: “Our mission at Stanhope AI is to bridge the gap between neuroscience and artificial intelligence, creating a new generation of AI systems that can think, adapt, and decide like humans. We believe this technology will transform the capabilities of AI and robotics and make them more impactful in real-world scenarios. We trust the math and we’re delighted to have the backing of investors like UCL Technology Fund who deeply understand the science behind this technology and their support will be significant on our journey to revolutionise AI technology.”
“AI startups may be some of the hottest investments right now but few have the calibre and deep scientific and technical know-how as the Stanhope AI team. This is emblematic of their unique approach, combining neuroscience insights with advanced AI, which presents a groundbreaking opportunity to advance the field and address some of the most challenging problems in AI today. We can’t wait to see what this team achieves.”
David Grimm, Partner AlbionVC
Marina Santilli, Associate Director UCL Business, said “The promise offered by Stanhope AI’s approach to Artificial Intelligence is hugely exciting, providing hope for powerful whilst energy-light models. UCLB is delighted to have been able to support the formation of a company built on the decades of fundamental research at UCL led by Professor Friston, developing the Free Energy Principle.”
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