Israeli medical startup, NanoVation has been awarded a €2.5m grant as part of the European Union’s prestigious Horizon 2020 EIC Accelerator program. The Haifa-based company is developing a new respiratory monitoring device, based on its proprietary nano-sensor technology.
Edinburgh-based startup, Boundary is preparing for the official launch of its smart home security system in August, and will use the funding to complete product testing and for its post-launch operations.
Ag-tech startup, Consumer Physics, is introducing SCiO Cup – according to the company it is the world’s fastest, portable, lab-grade forage dry matter analyser. The smartphone-operated device transforms feed analysis by enabling frequent dry matter analysis. SCiO Cup enables on-farm decision making ensuring consistent dry matter intake and reducing feed leftovers. In addition, SCiO Cup can be used on-field for planning silage harvest timing at optimal moisture levels.
New research from Santander UK reveals that a third (32%) of the UK’s SMEs who implemented changes plan to make their COVID-19 adaptations a permanent feature post-pandemic as almost half found they not only survived, but actually grew their customer base during COVID-19. The study – which polled 2,050 senior leaders in UK SMEs – suggests that the pandemic has driven long-term change to the way businesses operate.
“I never put myself forward for awards, so this was a really nice surprise,” is what Tamsin Dewhurst, Founder at Uptree said to me when I asked how she felt about winning our Founder of the Year award in this year’s Virtual Hustle Awards.
Creator Fund, the university-focused venture capital fund, has released its “State of Student Startups” report, which gives a comprehensive national picture of what the UK’s best young minds are starting, and how to best support them. The report found that more than half of UK campus ventures have a foreign student founder.
COVID-19 (coronavirus) has significantly impacted businesses, but even more so for social entrepreneurs, BAME founders and females due to the difficulties and challenges around access to support, finance and funding as well as structural inequalities. We are on a mission to work closely with these founders to help them flourish in the face of adversity.
Over the years we’ve seen Twitter celebrities get their accounts hacked. But this recent hack goes way beyond anything we’ve seen before. This latest security breach calls into question the security of Twitter and social media platforms and even the foundation technology they are built upon.
Online shopping is arguably one of the best inventions out there. Nothing beats that feeling of joy when your parcel arrives! But what about the times when your parcel isn’t successfully delivered and you arrive home to find a ‘sorry we missed you’ card through your letterbox? iParcelBox solves the problem of missed deliveries, providing a smart, secure and weatherproof parcel delivery solution that users can monitor and control from their smartphone.
Roundups is a new donation app that helps charities with their fundraising whilst the economy continues to battle through challenging times. The app links with users’ payment cards in order to round up their payments and donate pennies to their chosen charity as they spend.
White Castle has announced a planned pilot with Miso Robotics – creators of the autonomous grilling and frying kitchen assistant, Flippy – to accelerate the adoption of Artificial Intelligence and robotics in the restaurant industry.
Maskey, the brand behind the UK’s first mask vending machines, has signed a deal with leading British retailer WHSmith to stock its individual fashionable face coverings on the shelves of hundreds of outlets on high streets and in train stations, airports and hospitals.
With businesses across the world seeing the tangible benefits of a mobile workforce over the last few months, returning to the office may become temporary as working from home potentially becomes a new way of working, according to research collated by Instant Offices.
Moneybox, the award-winning saving and investing app, today announces it has secured £30m in Series C funding earlier this year from existing investors including Eight Roads, and new investors Breega and CNP. Moneybox also reveals it now has £1bn in assets under administration, and announces plans to bring customers closer to its growth journey through an upcoming crowdfund.
When starting a business, the implementation of a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system may seem like an additional and unnecessary expense, but committing to it from the outset will realise a number of benefits including the development of a clear and focused sales strategy, together with the opportunity to strengthen new client relationships.
In the COVID-19 era many people are taking the opportunity to organise and simplify their home working spaces, making good use of the ample time at home. But de-cluttering your virtual space – including your computer/laptop, phone, cloud storage, etc – is just as important as de-cluttering your physical space.
What’s the secret to innovation? Is it all about having work spaces peppered with chill-out zones, ping-pong tables and climbing walls? Actually, the truth is far more down to earth.
This crisis period has proven what so many of us in our industry already knew. The UK manufacturing industry is and always has been resilient and adaptable, and has continued to grow even in times of trouble. Overall, the UK’s industrial sector has increased by 1.4% a year since 1948, according to the ONS. Much of this has been down to the fact that we always adapted and moved forward fast; year on year we shifted production from low to high productivity goods, invested more in research and development and adopted automation and technology.
A crisis seems an unlikely time to use for improving growth, but for many startups there’s an unexpected opportunity to slow down and refocus their growth and marketing plans on their fundamental, long term growth opportunity. It’s crucial for startups to build resilience and a path towards sustainable growth by building the right growth marketing framework and strengthening customer relationships.
The startup driving intelligent automation for commercial kitchens, Miso Robotics has announced its first funding round in the UK. The services sector is seeing a new impetus for automation as it builds back better post pandemic, ensuring more resilient businesses, safer working environments and food production for staff and customers.
