With the unprecedented changes the COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted on the world, the fintech industry has had to deal with navigating the challenging climate as well as providing many opportunities for businesses and consumers to review their financial options.

And the Whatsapp ordeal is a cautionary tale for those who fail to recognise it. Since pretty much the beginning of human commerce, entrepreneurs have based their strategy around competing on two verticals, price and quality. Generally speaking, if your price is low, you’d expect the quality to also be low and vice versa.

73% of tech talent would consider working for a startup in 2021, with male tech talent more likely to work for a startup (63%) than female (49%). That’s according to a recent survey by Talent Works, which asked UK employees in a variety of tech roles what they look for in a job and where they look for new opportunities.

NeuReality, an Israeli startup developing high performance AI compute for cloud data centres and edge nodes, emerges from stealth today with $8m seed from Cardumen Capital, OurCrowd and Varana Capital to fuel the growth of real life AI applications running at scale. NeuReality will introduce its first AI platform early this year.

Uptime, the free app that presents expertly curated five-minute Knowledge Hacks of the world’s best books, courses, and documentaries, has raised a $16m Seed round to bring its platform to more users globally. 

AberInnovation has announced the six winners from the first phase of BioAccelerate 2020, their flagship business accelerator programme for biotechnology, agri-tech and food and drink innovations.

As one of the UK’s leading third-party logistics providers, Wincanton plays a huge role in construction projects all across the UK. Now, with the launch of Sprint 3 of W2 Labs - an innovation lab designed to discover emerging innovative ideas and tackle some of the logistics industry’s toughest challenges, they are aiming to focus on the construction sector specifically.

For anyone looking to make the leap into self-employment, the moment might just have arrived. Insurance broker PolicyBee has uncovered that online searches for freelancers increased over the last year, particularly for individuals with digital marketing skills.

Jolt, a leading online business school backed by Octopus Ventures and Balderton Capital, today announces that it has created over 400 work placements at some of the UK’s most exciting tech businesses through its bespoke version of the Government’s Kickstart Scheme.

Koa Health has announced it closed an oversubscribed €30m ($36m) Series A funding round. The round had a first close in October 2020, led by Wellington Partners Life Sciences and Ancora Finance Group, and has now been fully closed with key participations from MTIP and Akilia Partners, and further contributions from Creas Impacto, Sabadell Asabys, and Mundi Ventures.  

London-based 3D printing startup and innovation house, Satori has announced their latest collaboration, a collection of 3D printed necklaces, designed by 3D printing fashion designer, Ganit Goldstein and printed by Satori’s ST1600 3D printer.

Cloud Digital, experts in cloud strategy and digital transformation, is forging ahead with its new project, Earth Vision, after being awarded £99,453.33 funding from AeroSpace Cornwall to pivot from advanced cyber security into this flourishing sector.

WeMaintain, recognised for radically transforming the lift market, has acquired French PropTech startup Shokly, whose tech solution has revolutionised fire alarm maintenance and management, to increase its presence in the smart buildings sector.

Gelato, the Norway-born print-on-demand solution which allows SMEs, creators, and a new generation of e-commerce entrepreneurs to localise the production and delivery of customised products to customers based in any location in the world. 

One of the UK’s young tech entrepreneurs is speaking out to warn organisations operating across multiple sectors that the post-COVID business world may look quite different than it did before.

It goes without saying, but COVID-19 has affected women pretty harshly. Although everyone is facing unprecedented challenges, women in particular are bearing the brunt of the economic and social fallout of the coronavirus. Often, they’ve taken on the bulk of childcare during lockdowns and usually more likely to run businesses in sectors most affected by the pandemic such as retail, hospitality and leisure.

Understanding the company's financial value will be put under the spotlight in the fourth webinar of Angel Business Club's Insights Series on Wednesday 10th February. The club's financial advisor, Dominic Berger, will lead the hour-long session, titled 'How Do You Know a Company Is Worth Its Weight In Gold?'.

goss, a free mobile betting app which allows its users to bet on reality TV, celebrity lifestyles, trending events and more, has raised $2.1m in seed funding. The app, which launched in September 2020, boasts nearly 200,000 installs to date. Users wager coins (which they receive by simply using the app) on trending events such as the next elimination on a reality TV show. Coins won can be exchanged for prizes.

Scotland’s CAN DO Innovation Summit, held virtually for the first time on 3rd February, attracted 1400 registered delegates including entrepreneurs, academics, investors and innovators from across the globe.

Renowned technologist, investor, podcaster and business author, Arunkumar Krishnakumar a Partner at Delphos International, is releasing his second book - Restartup: A Founder′s Guide to Crisis Navigation - on the 4th of February along with his co-author, Maxson Tee.