Product development & strategy
We take a product from first idea to launch: user research, a roadmap and business case, then the specification and the team to build it.
Independent product & innovation studio UK · Worldwide
Igniting innovation in product,
AI, open data & UX.
Combustion Partners is an independent product and innovation studio, based in London and founded in 2002. We turn complex challenges into useful, ambitious digital products by bringing product thinking, human-centred design and serious technical depth to the same table.
We work in five disciplines: product strategy, AI and machine learning, open data and architecture, user experience design, and creative development. Every project runs through three stages, Frame, Shape and Ship, led by our principal, Glen Keller. Email hello@combustion.co.uk or call +44 (0) 7980 270 310.
Explore our expertise
Combustion / transformation model
System active
01 / Complexity
Complex needs
Fragmented data
Legacy systems
02 / Combustion
Product
thinking
thinking
Discover
Design
Deliver
03 / Impact
Useful products
Better decisions
Measurable value
Human-centred
AI-accelerated
Built for impact
02 What we do
One partner from first thought to real-world impact.
Five disciplines, one team. Each project draws on whichever of them it needs, from the same senior people, so strategy, design and engineering are never made in separate silos.
Artificial intelligence & ML
We design and build machine-learning and AI features around real business decisions, with the data pipelines, evaluation and safeguards behind them.
Open data & architecture
We design secure, scalable data platforms and open data services that other organisations can build on, with collaboration and compliance designed in.
User experience & design
We research how people actually work, design the experience around that, and test it with them before and after launch.
Creative development & integration
We build and integrate enterprise-class systems, using AI-assisted development to shorten delivery without lowering the engineering standard.
03 How we work
Think clearly.
Make boldly.
Move fast.
Every project runs through three stages: Frame, Shape and Ship. The same senior team stays with it from the first conversation to the live product.
Find the real problem
We agree what problem is worth solving, for whom, and what success looks like, before a line of code is written.
Make thinking tangible
We prototype early and test the assumptions with real users, so decisions rest on evidence rather than opinion.
Deliver with momentum
Senior product, design and engineering people build the live, enterprise-ready product from that evidence, and stay through launch.
04 Clients we have worked with
Big names.
Complex briefs.
More than two decades of work for forward-thinking organisations in regulated, technical and fast-moving sectors.
Enterprise
BPCaterpillarHPIFDLand RoverLockheed MartinMizkanO2PearsonSonySymantecT-Mobile
Public sector
Camden CouncilCity of SydneyDepartment of HealthFarnborough AirshowOotibooRAFSave the ChildrenThe Scouts
Media & culture
DisneyDonna ModernaElstree StudiosHBOJetixPlayStationTreccani
Finance
CFITCredit PassportCRIFHSBCMarshMastercardMoody’sWollette
Health
AbbVieAmarinEUSAGaldermaGrünenthalMenariniPalforzia
Consumer
BacardiBranstonDurexKookaiLottomaticaSarson’sUGG
05 About Combustion Partners
Technology with a human pulse.
We have worked from London since 2002 as an independent studio, led throughout by our principal, Glen Keller.
We turn complex challenges into innovative solutions, with deep expertise in large-scale technical architecture and end-to-end creative development, particularly in tightly regulated sectors such as finance, health and government.
Glen leads every engagement himself, with senior product, design and engineering people working together throughout, so the team that frames the problem is the team that ships the product.
20+
Years’ experience
100+
Major clients
500+
Projects delivered
06 Frequently asked questions
Straight answers, no run-up.
The questions prospective clients ask us most, answered plainly and checked against the company record.
What does Combustion Partners do?
Combustion Partners is a product and innovation consultancy that designs and builds digital products. Clients bring us complex, often regulated problems and we return working, enterprise-ready products. The work spans five disciplines, from first idea to live system:
- Product development and strategy, from ideation to launch
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning built around real business decisions
- Open data platforms and technical architecture
- User experience research and design
- Creative development and systems integration
Who is behind Combustion Partners?
Combustion Partners is led by Glen Keller, Principal and Lead Strategist, who leads every engagement. The studio was founded in 2002 and trades as Combustion Partners Limited, a company registered in England and Wales under number 10390287. Its registered office is 52 High Street, Pinner, Middlesex HA5 5PW.
Company details are published on Companies House and Crunchbase.
Where is Combustion Partners based, and where do you work?
Combustion Partners is based in London, United Kingdom, and works with organisations across the UK and worldwide. Past clients include City of Sydney in Australia and Treccani in Italy, alongside UK organisations such as HSBC and the Department of Health.
Which sectors and clients has Combustion Partners worked with?
In more than 20 years, Combustion Partners has worked with over 100 major clients on more than 500 projects across six sectors: enterprise, the public sector, media and culture, finance, health and consumer brands. Clients include Sony, Mastercard, Disney, HSBC, Land Rover, PlayStation, Moody’s and the UK Department of Health.
How does a project with Combustion Partners work?
Every Combustion Partners project runs through three stages: Frame, Shape and Ship. Senior product, design and engineering people work together throughout, so the team that frames the problem is the team that ships the product.
- Frame: find the real problem and align users, ambition and commercial reality before any code is written
- Shape: prototype early, test assumptions and build shared conviction around the experience that deserves to exist
- Ship: move from evidence to enterprise-ready delivery with momentum
How do I contact Combustion Partners?
Email hello@combustion.co.uk or call +44 (0) 7980 270 310 to reach Glen Keller directly.
07 Contact Combustion Partners
Need Combustion
Partners in your
corner?
Tell us about the challenge, the organisation and the timescale. Glen will reply with a view on where to start.
hello@combustion.co.ukGlen Keller Principal & Lead Strategist +44 (0) 7980 270 310