Anna Wood

Anna Wood is the Editor of Startups Magazine. She joined the team in June 2023 as Deputy Editor, and has since been promoted to Editor of the publication. When it comes to the startup sector, Anna has a keen interest in spacetech, biotech, medtech, anything that flies, and shining a light on the gender and diversity funding gap. Outside of work hours, you can find Anna tucking into a book, a nice meal, and playing her Switch!

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Sitehop secures £7.5M to expand quantum-resilient cybersecurity solutions

Sitehop, the startup building UK sovereign encryption to future-proof networks against quantum-powered cyber attacks, has raised an additional £7.5 million led by Northern Gritstone, bringing the total raised to £13.5 million.

Founders swap boardrooms for park paths in support of mental wellbeing

More than 170 small business founders gathered at Hyde Park Corner to take part in a founders’ ‘walk and talk’ event during Mental Health Awareness Week in May earlier this year. Organised by the not-for-profit, Virgin StartUp in collaboration with mental health service Self Space, the event encouraged business owners to take a break from their busy lives and tap into start-up support and connect with their peers.

Teen founder raises $1.25M uncapped to build AI desktop assistant
Teen founder raises $1.25M uncapped to build AI desktop assistant

Attention.inc, the startup developing a desktop-native AI assistant that continuously learns from real workflows, has announced an uncapped $1.25 million pre-seed raise.

How employers can support financial wellbeing

Financial wellbeing is now the top priority for employees, with new data showing stability, security, and fair rewards matter more than ever.

Export boost for SMEs as PM’s trade delegation touches down in India

As Prime Minister Keir Starmer leads an international trade delegation to Mumbai this week alongside India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, new efforts to boost export opportunities for Britain’s 5.6 million small businesses are also high on the agenda.

Cyberwave raises €7M to make the physical world programmable

Cyberwave, the startup building the operating layer between AI agents and real-world machines, has secured a €7 million funding round led by United Ventures with participation from The TechShop.

Royal Bank of Scotland reveals plan to launch IP-backed loans to fuel innovation

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has revealed plans to launch the first IP-backed loans for high growth businesses in Scotland – allowing them to access vital funding using the value of their Intellectual Property as collateral, instead of traditional physical assets.

Dragonfly raises £2.6M as it launches AI tool to simplify software selection

Dragonfly has announced the close of a £2.6 million pre-seed round alongside the public launch of its conversational AI tool. Founded in December 2024 by Zego alumni Sean King and Sven Sabas, the round was led by Episode 1, joined by Dreamcraft and Portfolio Ventures, with angel investors including QuantumBlack founder and CTO Sam Bourton, and Bolt founder and CEO Markus Villig.

EQONIC developing battery tech, slashing energy storage costs by 70%

EQONIC Group has announced its battery technology that addresses the three critical challenges facing energy storage: cost, safety, and sustainability.

How Estonia’s e-Residency is reshaping global entrepreneurship
How Estonia’s e-Residency is reshaping global entrepreneurship

e-Residency Estonia was introduced in 2014 as a way to provide non-residents secure access to its digital public services and transparent business environment. Since its launch, the programme helps over 110,000 people and their businesses operate regardless of location, and has generated over €213 million in revenue for the Estonian state budget from taxes and state fees.

100K AI workers to enter the workforce by 2026

British workers and jobseekers will be forced to compete with a surge of 100,000 virtual AI employees that will enter the workforce before the end of 2026.

What makes a unicorn founder? Key traits revealed

A study released today (7th October 2025) reveals the core traits shared by billion-dollar startup founders across the UK, Europe and North America. Developed in partnership between VC firm Ada Ventures and behavioural scientists at Synaptiq, the study analysed how founders communicate to find a clear psychological profile behind unicorn success. These findings stand to reshape how VCs assess potential, making it easier to spot talent fairly and consistently, without bias towards background or identity.

Monumo reaches critical tipping point in AI ROI

Monumo, the deeptech company coupling AI and machine learning (ML) with traditional engineering expertise to redesign the electric motor, has announced a significant commercial breakthrough, successfully delivering for multiple international companies. This progress signals a critical tipping point for the company, as its technology has now been proven to deliver superior, low-cost motor designs in record time.

Datamonk raises €1.6M pre-seed to automate medical imaging data migrations

Datamonk, the agentic AI-powered platform automating medical imaging data migrations, has announced a total of €1.6 million in funding to address one of healthcare IT’s biggest challenges: moving and cleaning decades of medical imaging data.

Workplace mentoring essential to boosting performance and retention

Workplace mentoring and coaching are now essential drivers of business performance, staff retention, and employee wellbeing in the UK, according to a major new report from the Association of Business Mentors (ABM). The findings show that over two-thirds of businesses have seen a positive impact on overall business performance from their mentoring and coaching programmes, and a further 60% attributed an improvement in employee wellbeing to their programmes.

Cricket stars Stokes, Archer, and Rahul invest in medical travel disrupter

The UK and India-based medical travel startup, The Medical Travel Company (TMTC), has raised €3.8 million to bring a new full stack medical solution, offering UK patients world class and affordable treatments in India.

Nearly all UK leaders claim to prioritise upskilling, but fall short

Nearly all (95%) UK business leaders say they are committed to building a culture of learning, according to Pluralsight’s 2025 Tech Skills Report, but the research reveals a stark gap between this intention and the reality for learners.

What VCs really look for in your financial data

Before providing a funding offer or as a prerequisite prior to payment, venture capitalists will usually conduct due diligence to confirm the details provided by the startup are correct. Whilst most founders understand the broad outline of the due diligence, there are several areas where there is often confusion and misunderstanding which can derail the funding round.

Abound lends over £1Bn as it reshapes UK personal finance market

UK credit technology company Abound has passed £1 billion in total lending volume, less than five years after launching.

UK tech funding rises to $12 billion so far this year

Tracxn has released its UK Tech 9M 2025 Report, capturing funding and investment activity across the United Kingdom’s technology ecosystem for the first nine months of 2025. The country ranked as the second highest-funded market globally, behind only the United States, with India and Germany following in the third and fourth positions respectively. The period reflected steady funding momentum, marked by billion-dollar rounds, notable sector surges, acquisitions, and IPO activity.