While the world battles a loneliness epidemic, reinforced by COVID-19 imposed lockdown and social-distancing, a new, rapid growth startup uses technology to help solve the problem for companies individuals. Panion has recently announced a suite of features that solidify the startup’s position as the most exciting new virtual community-building app in the world. Panion encourages its members to be authentically themselves and to lean into the interests that make them unique.
This year’s shortlist for one of the world’s largest annual competitions in sustainability, Postcode Lotteries Green Challenge, has been officially revealed today. The international top 25 organisations now edge closer to being crowned the overall Postcode Lotteries Green Challenge winner and receiving €500,000.
Kennet Partners Limited (Kennet), a leading European technology growth equity investor focused on bootstrapped and capital efficient companies, has raised $250m (€223m) for its fifth fund, Kennet V in partnership with Edmond de Rothschild. The Fund exceeded its target and secured new investors from across Europe and Asia.
With all the doom and gloom currently out there, especially for a lot of startups and small businesses, Blackstone LaunchPad powered by Techstars created the Summer Startup Fellowship this year in response to obstacles created, and elevated, by the coronavirus pandemic for current college students and recent graduates. The Fellowship program was developed in March of this year in response to the impacts of coronavirus on student job, internship, and entrepreneurship opportunities (50% – 60% of which were dropped or rescinded).
No Isolation was founded with the aim of reducing loneliness and social isolation through the creation and implementation of warm technology. Following the success of its first product, the AV1 telepresence avatar, designed to tackle loneliness amongst children and young adults affected by long-term illness, the company brought its second product, KOMP, to the UK in 2019. KOMP – a one button communication device, designed to connect seniors with their wider family unit – has been bought by 3,300 families across Europe.
A call has been launched for applications to the Startup Leadership Program London 2021. The Startup Leadership Program (SLP) is a not-for-profit organisation which exists to support entrepreneurs on their path to success and make our world a better place. It is also part of the world’s largest network of entreprenuers!
‘There is not a common, comprehensive definition of what counts as social value, to frame understanding, benchmarking or reporting, and aid comparison of tenders and to determine best practice. This has given rise to significant disparities in what counts as social value activities, and no requirement to focus on improving the wellbeing of those who are most disadvantaged.’
It is fair to say that so many startups have used the year 2020 to really show how they can adapt and help and shine through, but for the Biggest 2020 Hero category this year there was one clear winner who really have done some amazing work in 2020 and through the COVID crisis, and that is Joanna Montgomery, Founder and CEO of Little Riot which develops connected products that enable human connection in an otherwise very digital world, such as the product Pillow Talk.
amicable, the tech startup disrupting the family law sector, has raised £488k in funding from existing and new angel investors. The news comes just a few months after a high court judge ruled in favour of amicable’s approach to divorce and separation that focuses on supporting couples through the process and removes the need for couples to instruct two separate lawyers.
New research by Hitachi Capital Business Finance has explored the challenges businesses led by single parents face. The research surveyed more than 300 single parent business owners asking about how they started their business, running their business day-to-day, and plans for the future. Their responses were benchmarked against a nat rep sample of 1,466 business owners.









