Investment Zone: Looking Ahead in 2026
What is the West Midlands Investment Zone?
The West Midlands Investment Zone is a government-backed initiative that enables global businesses to land and scale in a vibrant ecosystem of business growth, R&D and innovation support.
The region is driven by 3 key sites across the West Midlands:
- Birmingham Knowledge Quarter (B-KQ)
- Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone (CWIZ)
- Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor (GIC)
Each site prioritises the knowledge-led development of advanced manufacturing, which broadly encompasses battery technology, green industries, health tech and digital. Businesses looking to grow in these areas can take advantage of unique commercial opportunities bespoke to the Investment Zone, with benefits including tax incentives, capital funding and business rates relief.
By bringing together global businesses within distinctive, collaborative innovation hubs, alongside world-class universities and cutting-edge R&D, the West Midlands is a proven environment where great minds meet, and breakthroughs begin.
Birmingham Knowledge Quarter: Propelling Next-Gen Tech
While 2025 marked a significant chapter for growth within B-KQ, 2026 is set to increase that momentum. Driven by the development of several key assets, B-KQ is accelerating the integration of industry and academia. Pushing the envelope in fields such as digital technologies, AI, life sciences and Medtech, B-KQ is fostering a sustainable and dynamic ecosystem from inside the UK’s trusted heartland of R&D excellence.
Opportunities Available in the Birmingham Knowledge Quarter
Aston Business Hub
For early-stage and scaling businesses, Aston Business Hub offers a route to faster innovation. Set to open in March 2026, the Hub is a purpose-built environment that will foster a thriving community of innovators and researchers.
Designed to accelerate the growth of early-stage firms pushing the boundaries in fields such as ProfTech, AI and Data, occupiers will benefit from immediate proximity to academic talent and applied research, such as at AiPT and the Sir Peter Rigby Digital Futures Institute. This will result in quicker product development cycles, ensuring commercial growth through creativity, collaboration, and productivity.
Enterprise Wharf
Birmingham’s first smart-enabled building, Enterprise Wharf, integrates innovative lab space and Grade A offices with the latest in-built technology to enhance both productivity and efficiency. Designed for cross-sector collaboration, Enterprise Wharf is a high-spec, turnkey opportunity for Digital or Medtech start-ups looking to scale teams, test products, and achieve their strategic growth goals in 2026 and beyond.
STEAMhouse
For international businesses seeking UK expansion, STEAMhouse offers occupiers immediate access to skills, insight, and infrastructure that supports both market-entry businesses and those working at scale. On-site strategic business support and R&D facilities cater to start-ups, scale-ups, and established enterprises.
By creating an environment that integrates both industry and academia under one roof, STEAMhouse stands as a defining example of B-KQ’s ambitions: a focused environment where talent, research and enterprise converge to drive scalable growth.
Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone: Advancing Battery Tech at Pace
2026 is poised to unlock delivery at scale across the CWIZ. Underpinned by world-class research capability and a strong pipeline of development-ready sites, CWIZ offers compelling opportunities in advanced manufacturing, automotive innovation, battery technologies and future mobility.
Backed by powerful tax incentives that provide valuable support and business reliefs, CWIZ is creating the conditions for accelerated commercialisation, business growth, and sustained investment across the regional economy.
Opportunities Available in the Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone
Greenpower Park
2026 is poised to unlock delivery at scale across the CWIZ. Underpinned by world-class research capability and a strong pipeline of development-ready sites, CWIZ offers compelling opportunities in advanced manufacturing, automotive innovation, battery technologies and future mobility.
Backed by powerful tax incentives that provide valuable support and business reliefs, CWIZ is creating the conditions for accelerated commercialisation, business growth, and sustained investment across the regional economy.
SEGRO Park
Extending from the existing industrial and logistics park, SEGRO Park offers an ideal base for a diverse range of logistics operations. By mid-2026, the site will see major development, including flexible logistics units and built-to-suit options, with pre-let agreements becoming available.
SEGRO Park Whitley South
From its place adjacent to the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre, Whitley South will deliver on its ambitions to provide office and R&D space to leading firms in the electrification sector in 2026.
Within the 29-acre development, 12 spec buildings will be in place by the end of 2026, providing occupiers with best-in-class R&D and light manufacturing infrastructure to achieve long-term strategic and innovation goals.
Greenpower Park
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Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor: Growing the Green Revolution
As the GIC moves into 2026, attention is shifting from strategy to execution. GIC sits as a catalyst for investment in low-carbon manufacturing, clean energy systems, and green supply chains, supported by a strong industrial base and brownfield opportunities.
Sitting alongside Wolverhampton’s wider regeneration, the GIC offers occupiers a roadmap to scale sustainable green technologies and generate long-term value through nearby R&D assets, enhanced by a pipeline of industry-ready STEM graduates from the University of Wolverhampton.
Beyond the immediate opportunities, GIC is also building up to develop R&D and manufacturing sites at Six Mile Green which will come to market in the coming years.
Opportunities Available in the Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor
National Brownfield Institute
Home to innovative businesses engaged in brownfield regeneration, the NBI at Springfield Campus is a world-class research centre that develops modern methods of building through innovation and partnership within the construction industry.
With access to state-of-the-art technology – from robotics and immersive visualisation suites to advanced wearable and handheld laser scanners and flexible laboratories – the institute equips stakeholders with the tools and data needed to make informed strategic decisions.
Heading into 2026, the institute is ideally positioned to host firms advancing modern methods of construction through R&D, innovation, and strategic partnerships within the region’s built environment sector.
i54 Business Park
Home to international businesses and high-value employers, including JLR’s Electric Propulsion Manufacturing Centre, Moog and Atlas Copco, the i54 provides potential occupiers with large-scale production and logistics hubs with direct access to the UK’s deep manufacturing supply chain and motorway network.
Moving into 2026, the i54 stands as a proven occupier base for advanced manufacturing firms, with the infrastructure to support time-critical production.
Springfield Campus
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Six Mile Green
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Looking Ahead
Momentum is building.
With the West Midlands remaining a leading destination for foreign direct investment, the West Midlands Investment Zone is a central pillar in the strategic direction of the region.
Supporting innovations across key next-gen sectors – including advanced manufacturing, clean energy, life sciences and digital technologies – the Investment Zone brings together world-class research, skilled talent and targeted incentives to help businesses scale faster.
It is here where breakthroughs begin and firms innovate at pace. Explore the opportunities within the West Midlands Investment Zone and discover how your business can invest and grow inside the UK’s trusted heartland of R&D excellence.
