Maxximus is an AI-led marketplace, connecting those who seek with those who contribute. Founded by Temur Abuladze, the marketplace has just launched, and Startups Magazine had the opportunity to speak with the founder all about the platform, the journey so far, and the company vision for the year ahead.

Destinus, a European aerospace and defence company, has secured a €50 million financing facility from Commerzbank, marking the company’s first commercial bank facility and supporting the next phase of its industrial expansion across Europe.

Cloudberry, a venture capital firm based in Helsinki and London, has announced the launch of Europe’s first semiconductor venture fund with an initial close of €30 million. The fund invests in companies advancing the technological frontier with semiconductors, photonics, and advanced materials to advance compute, connectivity, sensing, and power.

The past month has offered a telling snapshot of where facial recognition technology (FRT) finds itself in the UK.

B2B tech CMOs plan to pivot their marketing and comms strategies to combat the dwindling effect of traditional brand influence tactics, according to B2B communications agency 3Thinkrs. This ‘influence reset’ has come in response to tech brands wrestling with declines in web traffic, lower LinkedIn engagement levels, shifting media dominance, and the rise of zero-click purchasing.  

If you talk to seasoned CFOs right now, you’ll more than likely hear the same sentiment: confident, with a slight sprinkle of caution. In The CFO Centre’s recent survey of 500 senior finance professionals, only 56% said they’re very confident about hitting targets in the year ahead. What makes the others not so confident? Warnings about tariffs, exchange rates, regulation and the pace of technological change came up as possible challenges for 2026.

Recent major venture capital (VC) reports from KPMG and PitchBook confirm that AI remains in the lead, accounting for more than half of all investments this year. Data from CB Insights shows that investors’ attention inside the AI market is shifting rapidly toward industrial humanoid robotics. As a result, investors argue the flood of AI capital is pushing robotics toward a speculative zone, with too many startups promising breakthroughs without commercial evidence.

When people talk about startup success, they usually mean billion-dollar valuations, viral growth, or a big exit. But that version isn't helpful for most founders – it's too far in the future. There's another kind worth talking about: the work-in-progress kind. When you're learning and adapting – and both you and your investors see real reasons to keep going.

The Hustle Awards is back for 2026, and will be better than ever. The awards are the perfect opportunity for startups and businesses to showcase their achievements, gain industry recognition, and celebrate all of the great work they are doing! Entries open on the 12th January, so take some time to explore the categories, and decide which ones you want to enter.

Determined problem solver Natalie Dowsett is about to supply thousands of off-road vehicles to Africa, to support a new transport service arrangement she has helped to introduce for farmers and traders.

IVFmicro, the University of Leeds spinout improving the success rate of IVF treatment by enhancing the quality and number of embryos in a cycle, has raised £3.5 million in pre-seed funding. The investment is led by Northern Gritstone, with support from Innovate UK Investor Partnerships Programme, and will be used by IVFmicro for its next verification and validation phase, leading to trials on human embryos in fertility clinics.

Gracia AI, the London-based company building the first production-ready infrastructure for 4D Gaussian Splatting (4DGS), has announced $1.7 million in funding from a group of top-tier funds and angel investors, including EWOR and one of the original pioneers behind NeRF. With this new round, Gracia positions the company as one of the fastest-growing players in an industry that barely existed two years ago.

European small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are rapidly integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their operations, driven by economic pressures, competitive demands, and the promise of greater productivity. However, new research from Sharp Europe, a leading provider of business technology products and services, reveals that while 72% of UK SME owners now trust AI more than they did a year ago, concerns remain about the workforce’s ability to keep up.

The org chart as we know it is obsolete. We’ve entered an era where creativity, code, and content are no longer separate skills, they’re part of the same toolkit.

With the news that Tim Cook will step down as CEO of Apple, the debate about choosing a successor has sparked a wave of opinions. Whether you are running a Fortune 500 company or leading a team of 50, the core principles of succession planning stay the same. Yet many founders never think about it until they have to, or the idea feels too overwhelming to tackle. I have broken down how to approach this in a practical way, how to ensure a smooth transition, and why putting values at the centre of the decision will always set you up for long term success.

The UK and Canada have agreed a deal to strengthen technology ties at a G7 Ministerial meeting, accelerating digitalisation for public services through tackling outdated technology, cyber threats, and driving growth with AI adoption among SMEs.

Even with the right timing and planning, expansion can fail without disciplined execution. Entering a new market isn’t about opening an office and hoping for the best. It’s about legal preparation, founder-led leadership, carefully chosen hires, smart partner choices, and a tailored GTM war plan.

Let’s be clear: you’re not invisible. You’re showing up on social media, you’re emailing your list, your clients and customers love what you do. You’re being seen.

December has a funny way of reminding us that speed doesn’t always equal progress. As founders, we often sprint toward the end of the year, trying to squeeze in every unfinished task, every last-minute goal, every ‘quick’ job that we meant to do months ago. But rather than hurtling toward the end of December at full speed, sometimes the most powerful, productive move you can make is to pause, plan, and realign before stepping into the new year. And for many startups, that moment of realignment starts with one pivotal decision – learning to delegate and onboarding the right support.

Mollie, one of Europe's fastest-growing financial service providers, has signed an agreement to acquire GoCardless. The strategic combination creates one provider serving over 350,000 businesses that integrates card payments, local methods, and bank payments into a single solution.