ACT’s Annual Global App Economy Conferences (GAECs) bring our startup and tech members together for three days of founder-to-founder networking and direct engagement with policymakers. GAECs are the culmination of what we do at ACT, bringing our three pillars together in one event that fosters Community, provides resources and Education, and creates an opportunity for our startup, scaleup, and small business members to engage directly in Advocacy.
Throughout the year, ACT hosts three GAECs: one in the EU, one in the UK, and one in the U.S. Each event kicks off with networking and a shared meal on the first night, education and discussion about key and timely tech issues throughout the second day, followed by two days of policy meetings with key decision-makers and regulators. We also host receptions with government officials and their staff, providing additional opportunities for our members to share their stories. This year, our UK members gathered for the sunniest spring week London managed to offer!
More than 35 member companies from across the UK arrived in London on Sunday, 12 April, filling the hotel bar with laughter and warm reunions. From the vibrant Milton Keynes group to those traveling from as far as Scotland, new connections formed quickly before everyone headed out to share a meal and kick off the week. The evening set the tone for everything that followed: founders in the same room, exchanging experiences, sharing lessons, and building the kind of trust that makes the advocacy work ahead more powerful.
Throughout the following days, these conversations moved into the halls of Westminster. It starts with the essential foundation we lay on Briefing Day. Briefing Day is time for our members to learn the latest updates on policy priorities and to find common ground with one another. It’s also an essential and energizing moment for ACT staff to hear how our members are impacted by policy. Whether diving into the nuances of the DMCCA, unpacking the implications of AI regulation on UK businesses, or working through standard-essential patent (SEP) licensing issues, Briefing Day is one of our favourite parts of the week. It is where members learn from one another, find strength in their collective voice, and prepare to walk into their meetings with confidence and clarity.
By translating complex policy frameworks into real-life examples, including what the ‘valley of death’ in funding looks like for a growing company, Briefing Day ensures that when ACT members sit down with policymakers, their stories are tangible, specific, and easy to carry out of the briefing room and into policymakers’ offices.
After a full day of policy briefings and syncing up on the UK’s regulatory landscape, our members attended a Parliamentary Reception hosted by Gordon McKee MP. The room was packed with founders, MPs, key stakeholders, and journalists. Members brought their expertise and their stories directly to the leaders shaping UK tech policy, and the evening was a strong demonstration of what becomes possible when you get the right voices in the same room.
Our members did not waste a minute. Over two packed days, they raced across Whitehall and Parliamentary Estate for almost 50 meetings with MPs, Peers, civil servants, and regulators. Members took a moment to recognise the progress made over the past year, acknowledging the meaningful steps lawmakers have taken to engage seriously with the needs of the UK’s tech ecosystem, while also pressing forward on what comes next. Topics spanned AI adoption and regulation, funding and access to capital, SEPs, cybersecurity, procurement, and what it takes to start and scale in today’s environment.
Throughout each meeting, founders spoke honestly about their experiences navigating the UK’s frameworks and support for small tech companies, and how even well-intentioned policies can inadvertently hold back the SMEs responsible for more than half of the UK’s GDP. ACT’s members were clear with lawmakers: they want to build here, hire here, and grow here. But to do that, they need policy that reflects the reality of running a small tech company in the UK today.
We closed out the final night of GAEC: UK by reflecting on the week. Conversations naturally turned to what comes next, with ideas for future collaborations taking shape and a shared appreciation for how the friendships formed at GAEC continue to show up throughout the year.
Our time in London carried a sense of hope for the UK as a leading environment for building in tech. Members exchanged contacts to continue conversations about what the UK needs to support its tech ecosystem, and how, as member companies of ACT, they can lead in their own communities knowing that their voices matter and that they are stronger when they come together.
We are deeply grateful to our members who showed up, shared their experiences, and did the work of engaging with policymakers on behalf of the broader startup community. We are equally thankful to the many MPs, Peers, civil servants, and regulators who took the time to meet with our members and showed genuine curiosity about the realities of building companies in the UK today.
Our members left London knowing their voices matter and that their stories help policymakers understand how legislation affects the companies building the UK’s digital economy. That energy carried straight to GAEC U.S. in Washington, D.C., and the work continues.
