Recorded following Pocket Gamer Connects London, hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Craig Chapple sit down with Nick Poole, CEO of Ukie, for a candid conversation about risk, ambition and what it will take to make the UK the best place to build and scale a games business.
Nick brings a rare perspective to the role. Before leading the UK’s trade body for games, he worked across libraries, museums and chaired Wikimedia UK. His throughline has always been culture, creativity and how institutions shape innovation. Now he’s applying that lens to games.
In this episode, we unpack:
- Why the UK risks becoming an “incubator economy” if it cannot retain IP and talent
- What’s broken in the funding ladder from prototype to scale-up
- Why tax relief is about competitiveness, not handouts
- How risk appetite across the industry has shifted post-2020
- Why studios must build companies, not just games
- What the Games Growth Package, expanded UK Games Fund and new skills initiatives actually mean in practice
Nick is clear: the industry cannot afford to talk itself down. The UK remains one of the most creative and export-driven games markets in the world. But ambition and coordinated action are essential.
We also explore the future of play, the role of generative AI in production pipelines and why automation should unlock creativity, not replace it.
If you are a founder, investor or studio leader navigating 2025–26, this episode is about one thing:
Reclaiming agency.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Pocket Gamer Connects London Highlights
01:14 Guest Intro: Nick Poole's Career Path from Museums to Games
03:57 Understanding Ukie: The Sword and Shield of the UK Games Industry
05:40 Why Historical Government Support for UK Games Has Lacked
07:41 How Studios Can Lobby Effectively: The "Made in the UK" Campaign
11:51 Fixing the "Broken Rungs" in the Game Funding Ladder
14:55 Building the New: Adapting Business Models for 2026 and Beyond
16:14 Tax Reliefs and Fiscal Stimulus: Moving from VGTR to VGEC
22:04 Industrial Strategy: Skills, Trade Missions, and the UK Games Fund
36:58 The Future of AI in Games: Productivity, Curation, and Discovery
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