Three innovative and exciting new tech businesses all born out of the University of Cambridge were named winners of the 7th annual CW (Cambridge Wireless) Discovering Start-Ups competition, following passionate pitches from all the finalists at last night’s event sponsored and hosted by Deloitte in London. The winners – 8power with its smart, self-powered wireless sensors, risk analytics company AlgoDynamix and satellite positioning specialist Focal Point Positioning – were chosen from 10 finalists who presented their disruptive technologies and business plans to a panel of 28 expert judges. The elite line-up comprised leading tech-business executives and investors from the likes of Amazon, ARM, Barclays, BT, Deloitte, Intel, Google, Oxford Capital, Samsung and UK Business Angels.
8power has developed smart wireless monitoring and sensing products for industrial, automotive, utility, built environment and infrastructure applications. The company’s patented technology addresses the problem of battery replacement by harvesting power from vibration and has already been trialed successfully on the Forth Road Bridge in Edinburgh. www.8power.com
AlgoDynamix is a pioneering portfolio risk analytics company dealing with financially disruptive events for investment banks and asset managers. Its software detects anomalies in financial markets and anticipates price movements hours or days in advance of the event, without using historical data or previous disruptive events. www.algodynamix.com
Focal Point Positioning is creating innovative advances in satellite positioning, navigation and timing, for both indoors and outside. Its smartphone-based sensor fusion, machine learning and signal processing technology dramatically improves the sensitivity and performance of existing radio-based positioning systems for urban environments and deep indoors. www.focalpointpositioning.com
“All 10 finalists from across the UK and mainland Europe impressed the judges and it was challenging to whittle it down to three winners,” said Bob Driver, CEO at CW. “The competition always creates a buzz and is a great showcase for the very best in tech innovation from the UK and beyond, while the passion and quality of the pitches showed that invention and entrepreneurship are stronger than ever.”
David Cobb, innovation tax partner at Deloitte and one of the judges, said: “The finalists this year lived up to expectations and proved that the UK technology start-up scene is in rude health. Congratulations to the winners, 8power, AlgoDynamix and Focal Point Positioning, who each showed a great breadth of technology expertise and business acumen. While the spotlight is on the three winners it was a tremendous opportunity for all the finalists to get feedback and advice from 28 industry experts and investors that they can use to help drive their businesses forward.”
The three winners all received a Discovering Start-Ups trophy along with:
- A free of charge innovation showcase plinth at the major conference Innovate 2016
- A delegate pass for the 2017 Future of Wireless International Conference
- Free year’s CW Founder Membership
- Ticket to attend the 2017 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona courtesy of Tradefair and the Department of International Trade
- A secured place in the semi-finals of the £50K Wayra Acceleration programme
All shortlisted finalists have the opportunity to meet with & receive support from the Department of International Trade (DIT) Venture Capital Unit who attended yesterday’s event and met the pitching companies.
“It is vital to support early-stage technology businesses to drive economic growth and help to keep the UK at the forefront of science and technology,” said Bob Driver, CEO, CW. “Discovering Start-Ups remains a great opportunity to bring start-ups, investors and industry experts together.”
This year’s sponsors include Deloitte, Dorsey, IC Resources and Provence Promotion – all focused on helping entrepreneurs and early stage companies grow and develop. The event was also supported by Digital Catapult, SETsquared, St. John’s Innovation Centre, Tech City, Tradefair, Department for International Trade, Google and Wayra.
For more information, visit www.cambridgewireless.co.uk/dsu
To strike up a conversation about DS16 @CambWireless and feature your tech innovations, please use #DSrupt.
