If you're operating a small to medium enterprise (SME), scaling your business in a competitive market can be a daunting task. Fortunately, 2024 brings a ray of hope for some businesses in the form of tailored support.

The British Business Bank has declared its inaugural significant transaction from the £150m Investment Fund for Scotland, allocating a £750,000 equity investment through Maven Capital Partners to the medical technology company, Carcinotech.

Smell has the power to invoke memories, arouse emotion, and alert our evolutionary instincts to warn us of danger. Such a sense, therefore, has real potential to tap into something very tangible for consumers. Yet, during the virtual reality (VR) craze that has come over the consumer and even business market, smell has remained largely untapped. We’ve, for instance, heard fuss about a VR treadmill to incorporate further immersion into the realm, but not seen the same for smell… until now.

AI audio content pioneer Wondercraft has raised a $3m Seed round to scale its ‘Canva of audio’ platform in a round led by Will Ventures and backed by Y Combinator,  ElevenLabs, Steven Bartlett and other Angels. The technology enables anyone to create studio-quality audio productions - whether it’s for podcasts, ads, audiobooks, meditations or training materials - in any language, by simply typing.

Recently, private equity firm Future Business Partnership announced it had received the highest B Corp rating of all UK companies. 

It can be hard for many parents to juggle their home and work life as well as the numerous unplanned and ad-hoc events and tasks, which can lead to feelings of stress, anxiety and being overwhelmed.

While many may share the view that the legal industry is old and traditional, laws and regulations are constantly evolving to adapt to new technologies and practices. Similarly, the changing economic climate challenges us to approach contractual relationships differently to better manage risk and streamline our ability to do business.

The world’s largest business show is back for 2024, expanding into the US and arriving at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The 2024 edition takes place on the 6th & 7th of March and is set to be an unmissable event with 300 exhibitors, live panel debates, speed networking and over 150 seminars and interactive masterclasses covering everything you need to know to start or grow your business!

The debate surrounding flexible working has intensified. We regularly encounter headlines about large corporations’ reinstatement of office-centric policies or critiques that label remote working as detrimental to the economy. This trend can be found across all types of workplaces.

OpenDialog, a conversational AI platform catering to regulated industries, has successfully secured over $8 million in a Series A funding round.

TeamViewer announced a strategic shift towards augmented reality (AR) through a partnership with AR startup Almer.

Established in 2019, Auum, standing for ‘Arrêtons l'Usage Unique Maintenant’ (Let's End Single Use Now), is dedicated to aiding companies in eradicating the five billion disposable cups annually used in France.

Deutsche Messe is currently accepting submissions for the HERMES AWARD, recognised globally as a significant award in the industrial sector.

Mobility in Motion, a UK manufacturer and supplier of vehicle adaptations and driving aids, has joined forces with BraunAbility to become its exclusive UK product supplier.

A study involving 4,383 employees has uncovered a rise in anxiety and stress levels among professionals, with a third reporting a constant state of tension.

The full-year Movers Index from Virgin Media O2 Business has disclosed that 2023 witnessed a significant resurgence in office attendance, with 40% of companies reinstating a five-day office week.

As the festive lights fade and the reality of routine kicks back in for many business owners - now’s a good time to think about what 2024 will bring.

The 2024 Aurora Tech Award has announced its shortlist of 20 women founders from around the world, each dedicated to addressing gender inequality in the tech sector.

Innovation will once again take centre stage at the European Digital Mindset Awards. The eighth edition of the awards, held as part of the Digital Enteprise Show (DES), will recognise the leadership and efforts of those companies and professionals who are committed to adopting exponential technologies in their business model. In this sense, the awards will showcase the best projects that are driving digital transformation in the business world, as well as those that accelerate disruption in customer experience, sustainability, or public administrations.