A Cambridge-based start-up that designs and manufactures folding electric bikes has secured £1.2 million in fresh investment, aiming to ramp up production in a bid to rival market leader Brompton. Flit, founded in 2016 by cycling enthusiast Alex Murray and former Jaguar Land Rover engineer Dave Henderson, says demand for its models far exceeds current […]
A dyslexic entrepreneur has won the support of Sir Richard Branson by pitching his new education app to a video doorbell installed in a hotel lift. Hugh Johnston, 27, discovered last week that the Virgin founder had watched his 60-second pitch and would help promote Tyypo, the app he created to help dyslexics learn from […]
Britain has emerged as the most unpopular market worldwide among leading fund managers, as growth stalls and inflation lingers following Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Budget. A monthly survey by Bank of America reveals the UK is the least attractive country for investors, ranking below bonds, cash, energy and utilities in terms of appeal. The findings come […]
Fuel Ventures, a leading UK venture capital fund, has co-led a £300,000 funding round in PlanningHub, a cutting-edge PropTech platform using AI to transform access to planning information for property development. Designed to eliminate the inefficiencies of the UK’s complex planning system, PlanningHub provides instant, data-driven insights to developers, investors, and local authorities, helping to […]
London-based startup IMPOSSIBREW has successfully closed its latest Crowdcube fundraising round, securing £1,575,390—more than three times its original £500,000 target. Founded by Mark Wong, the company is redefining alcohol-free drinking with its patent-pending Social Blend technology, which naturally enhances relaxation while delivering an authentic beer experience. The funding round, which valued IMPOSSIBREW at £12 million […]
A former DeepMind scientist who helped develop AlphaFold, the AI model that revolutionised protein structure prediction, has raised $50 million to launch Latent Labs, a startup focused on using artificial intelligence to design new proteins. Simon Kohl, a German-born physicist and machine learning expert, founded Latent Labs in 2023 with the ambition of “achieving computational […]
Forma-Care (UK) Ltd, a leading supplier of continence care products to the NHS, has secured a significant funding package with the support of Leonard Curtis. The arrangement marks over £5m of funding raised in recent years, ensuring the Durham-based firm can accelerate its growth strategy, invest in product innovation, and strengthen supply chains amid market […]
A new report suggests that a third of the UK’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are relying on research and development (R&D) to power their growth plans for 2025. Despite difficult economic conditions, the “Geared for Growth 2025” study by alternative finance provider Growth Lending indicates that strategic investments in technology, talent and innovation could […]
Sales of personalised car number plates have more than doubled over the past ten years, according to new figures released by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). The data, obtained by the BBC, reveals more than 1.2 million transactions in 2024, up from about 500,000 in 2014. This surge is fuelled by two primary […]
Innovate UK has temporarily halted its Smart Grants programme—worth £25 million a year—to overhaul how it supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The pause aims to address oversubscription issues, with success rates reportedly falling below 10 per cent for applicants, and possibly as low as 2 per cent according to some. Under the existing scheme, […]