Most Interesting Startups from the United Kingdom to Watch

After exploring innovative solutions created in Germany, Sweden, France and Croatia, let’s dive into the UK startup scene. Discover a selection of the 31 most interesting tech companies worth keeping an eye on.

Pencil Biosciences

GeneticTech Pencil Biosciences, founded in 2019, focusing on developing a fully synthetic gene modulation and editing platform. This platform has the potential to significantly impact various domains by offering innovative solutions for gene editing, modulation, and genetic engineering. Pencil Biosciences envisions leveraging their technology not only for cancer and genetic diseases but also for infectious disease treatments, novel diagnostics, and innovative developments in agriculture and cell line engineering. In September 2023 the startup raised £5.6M Seed funding, including contributions from Octopus Ventures, Northern Gritstone, Martlet Capital.

Mintago

Fintech Mintago, founded in 2019, is dedicated to enhancing the financial wellbeing of employees. Their platform offers various financial planning tools, aids in locating lost pension pots, provides access to free financial advisers, and hosts a wealth of educational content. Recently securing $4.75M in Series funding led by BlackLion Ventures, the investment will drive further improvements to their platform and support the company's expansion across the UK. Notably, in September 2023 Mintago's success includes finding over £18M worth of lost pensions for employees through their pension hunter tool.

Cygnetise

Fintech Cygnetise is using blockchain technology to streamline authorized signatory management processes. Their cloud-based SaaS platform offers a secure, efficient, and transparent approach, significantly reducing the risk of fraud and operational costs for businesses. Recently secured £2.5M in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Adjuvo. Major corporations like PWC, Societe Generale, and Willis Towers Watson already benefit from Cygnetise's solution, which saves substantial time spent on manual tasks.

Raylo

Raylo, promotes a circular economy by offering leasing options for electronics instead of traditional purchasing. Raylo focuses on embedding finance models and seamless integration with e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce and Magento through plugins and API for a sustainable approach to electronics ownership. With 39x growth in customer subscriptions over three years and £22M in annualized recurring revenue, the startup recently secured £5.2M in funding from Macquarie and Channel 4 Ventures.

Conigital

AI mobility tech Conigital is developing a comprehensive "Lift and Shift" driverless vehicle platform called ConICAV™, designed for any vehicle type. Their ConICAV platform retrofits and custom-builds driverless vehicles for diverse industrial and commercial fleet needs. Conigital secured £500M in Series A+ funding, solidifying its position as the best-funded driverless vehicle startup in the UK and Europe. They emphasize early commercialization, especially in controlled environments like airports and industrial sites. Strategic academic alliances and collaborations with tech giants like AWS and BT underline their dedication to cutting-edge innovation.

Open Cosmos

Open Cosmos specializes in satellite missions to address climate change impacts and responding to humanitarian disasters through satellite data analysis. Startup has developed multiple advanced satellites for telecommunications, earth observation, navigation and science. Open Cosmos, recently secured a $50M in Series B funding with participation from investors like ETF Partners, Trill Impact, A&G, Accenture Ventures, Banco Santander InnoEnergy Climate Tech Fund, Claret Capital Partners. In the battle against climate change, their Earth Observation (EO) devices play a critical role, addressing 60% of essential climate variables through satellite data.

Envisic

Mobility tech Envisics is developing groundbreaking holographic AR technology that overlays critical information onto the real world within a driver's field of view, enhancing decision-making. Their focus is on transforming how individuals perceive and interact with vehicles and the environment, aiming for smarter and safer mobility experiences. Envisics collaborates with major automakers and in a recent Series C funding round, Envisics secured $100 M from strategic partners, including M&G Investments and Van Tuyl Companies.

Mindgard

AI security tech startup Mindgard helps enterprises test, detect, and respond to adversarial threats against their AI models. Their platform allows enterprise customers to assess and remediate vulnerabilities in all their AI models, addressing AI-specific risks that traditional cybersecurity platforms can't cover.. Mindgard's mission is to facilitate the safe adoption of AI technologies like LLMs, ensuring the protection of digital assets, brand, and reputation in the evolving AI landscape. Recently, they secured £3M in funding from IQ Capital and Lakestar. to expand their operations and provide AI security solutions to enterprises.

Jitty

AI Jitty, founded in 2023, platform allows home buyers to efficiently search for properties and manage the entire buying process from one centralized location. Main mission is to transform the home buying experience using AI to employ large-language models and computer vision to interpret floor plans, analyze photos and descriptions of homes, and cross-reference information with publicly available databases and third-party services. The company has raised $2M in a pre-seed investment round led by Gradient Ventures with participation from Sequoia, Atomico, True Global, Angel Invest, Tiny VC.

Borderles

HR tech Borderless, founded in 2022, simplifies global workforce migration through tech. Their platform automates vetting, visa processing, and relocation for hiring international workers. With £2.5M seed funding, they target the UK's care worker shortage. The automation tackles high worker turnover (50% yearly) and aligns with the UK's aging population, aiming to streamline hiring processes in the care sector. Ultimately, they plan to extend their services to a broader scope, including collaboration with the NHS.

Kamma

Kamma is a geospatial technology company specializing in property data and offering SaaS products to improve living conditions and support environmental initiatives within the property industry. The startup leverages data and technology to address substandard accommodation issues, aiming to ensure a higher standard of living for tenants. With £3.6M funding led by Clean Growth Fund, they're expanding their offerings for commercial and residential properties. Kamma provides real-time insights, mapping environmental impact and property regulations.

11x AI

11x AI, founded in 2022, focuses on creating top-tier autonomous digital workers. Their mission is to activate everyone's potential and drive sustainable growth for teams by leveraging AI and Automation. Their primary goal is to boost human productivity through AI, enabling people to focus on creativity rather than repetitive tasks. Recently, 11x AI secured $2M in funding led by Project A Ventures to launch AI Digital Workers and expand their capabilities. The ultimate vision is to automate various tasks and revolutionize the future of work, making it more efficient and streamlined.

AssetCool

Photonic coating technology AssetCool's improves electricity network efficiency by passively cooling power lines. It reflects over 90% of solar radiation and increases heat dissipation, boosting current carrying capacity by up to 45% and reducing power losses and CO2 emissions by up to 30%. The recent £2.25M Series A funding, led by Northern Gritstone, will accelerate commercial deployment and retrofitting techniques for power stations. The innovation has potential to transform global energy transmission processes, aligning with sustainable energy goals.

Pockit

Fintech Pockit's app offers a prepaid account designed for low-income and underserved communities. These individuals, often overlooked by traditional financial services, end up paying up to an additional £485 per year due to higher energy bills, phone contracts, and pricier loans resulting from their lack of a current account. The platform allows customers to send and receive money internationally, establish direct debits, deposit and withdraw cash from 27k UK stores, make online and in-store purchases, and even access salary advances. In a recent growth funding round, Pockit raised $10M, led by Puma Private Equity and featuring participation from The North East Development Capital Fund, managed by Maven Capital Partners, with support from the European Regional Development Fund.

Grasp

EdTech Grasp aims to accelerate human learning by designing tools that enhance how individuals learn online. They are starting with modern vocational skills, particularly programming, and intend to expand to various other skills and domains. Grasp's vision is to create a seamless, personalized learning journey, allowing individuals to adapt and acquire new skills efficiently in a dynamic skill landscape. To further their mission, the startup recently secured a $4M seed funding round led by Balderton Capital, which will be directed towards expanding their product, augmenting their data science and engineering teams, and advancing their platform.

Béa Fertility

Femtech Béa Fertility is making waves in fertility care with its innovative at-home treatment solution. In a recent funding round led by Octopus Ventures, Béa Fertility secured £2.5M to introduce their at-home fertility treatment in the UK. Béa Fertility envisions making fertility treatment more affordable, with a three-month treatment plan priced at £700, a fraction of the cost of traditional IVF. Their approach has demonstrated a 50% efficacy over six cycles of treatment. The startup is also piloting its at-home treatment kit with the UK’s healthcare system, the NHS, making strides towards more accessible fertility care for all.

Entia

Healthcare Entia, a London-based startup, is revolutionizing cancer care by providing at-home blood testing for cancer patients. Recently startup raised £16M in a Series A funding round led by BGF and Parkwalk to expand their remote patient monitoring system across the UK and seek regulatory approval in the US. Their flagship device, Liberty, allows cancer patients to monitor their health remotely, reducing the need for frequent hospital visits. By offering insights for personalized treatments, Entia aims to improve treatment outcomes and enhance the quality of life for cancer patients.

MAGIC

Fitness Tech MAGIC, founded in 2021, has developed an AI-powered home gym using computer vision and hologram technology. Users can perform exercises in front of an intelligent hologram mirror, correcting their real-time form and providing live feedback for a hyper-personalized workout experience. The startup recently raised $2.5M in funding, led by Fasanara Capital and SFC Capital. MAGIC aims to enable users to be coached by world-renowned athletes, offering a cost-effective alternative to traditional personal training. The startup has gained support from notable figures like Sir Richard Branson and has a lineup of top athletes as coaches.

Huq Industries

Huq Industries provides mobility insights to professionals in various sectors such as government, retail, real estate, and finance. Through their insights platform, they offer valuable data on footfall and visitor frequency, enabling clients to understand real-world behaviors and make informed decisions. Their services are designed to offer actionable insights into current economic and societal landscapes, making them a vital resource for decision-makers. Recently, the company secured £4M in funding, spearheading its expansion efforts across Europe to meet the increasing demand for their insightful offerings.

Outverse

Outverse, founded in 2021, is developing community platforms with AI-powered tools for better collaboration and user experience in product teams. The platform, already in open Beta, addresses limitations in existing tools, focusing on making discussions more accessible and customizable. With $6M in funding, led by Wing VC, Outverse aims to scale and enhance AI capabilities, supporting a new era of community-led growth and closer relationships between companies and users. Notion Capital, Seedcamp, Connect Ventures, and Tiny VC also participated in the funding rounds.

uMed

uMed is a healthcare technology company focused on improving the lives of individuals with diseases by enhancing access to research and healthcare. Their platform enables healthcare institutions to engage in targeted research and population health programs by automating the identification, screening, and communication processes with patients. The recent £9.8M funding will propel uMed's efforts to address the decline in patient access to clinical trials in the UK and expand its presence in North America, supported by investors like Delin Ventures, AlbionVC, Playfair Capital, and 11.2 Capital

Statement

Statement has developed a platform that helps small businesses compare and select card payment providers based on their needs and budget, utilizing their past merchant statements. Aiming to address the lack of transparency in fees and the long-term loyalty of merchants to their current providers, Statement wants to empower businesses with knowledge about pricing differences and options. Few months ago, statement raised £1.5M in a pre-seed funding round led by Northzone, with participation from Notion Capital, Triple Point, TinyVC, and notable angel investors. This funding will enable them to advance their technology, creating a more transparent and efficient payment industry for businesses.

Outdid

Outdid is developing identification methods with its private ID verification solution using zero-knowledge proofs. This innovative approach ensures data privacy and minimizes fraud in online verification without divulging personal information. Outdid has secured $2.5M in a seed funding round led by Jump Crypto, with participation from Superscrypt and various angel investors. The company's vision is to enhance online safety without compromising individuals' information, offering a unique privacy-focused solution in the identity verification space.

Material Evolution

Material Evolution is creating low carbon cement from industrial waste streams using an energy-efficient alkali-fusion process at ambient temperatures. This innovative approach aims to significantly reduce the cement industry's global CO2 emissions, currently responsible for 8% of the total. The company has secured an oversubscribed £15M Series A funding round, led by KOMPAS VC and featuring participation from Norrsken VC, CircleRock Capital, and strategic investor SigmaRoc. The funds will be used to scale production and further R&D, focusing on developing various low carbon concrete products for different construction applications. The ultimate goal is to transform the industry by offering cost-effective, high-performance, and low-emission construction materials.

Glowb

Glowb is simplifying the transition to solar energy and battery solutions for homeowners. Founded in 2022 the company aims to provide trust, transparency, and simplicity to customers embarking on the solar journey. With a focus on making solar solutions accessible and easy to understand, Glowb has secured £1.2M in its first funding round led by Ada Ventures and included participation from Active Partners, Voyagers Climate-Tech Fund, Volta Circle, and angel investors. The funding will help Glowb establish itself as a household name and drive the adoption of solar solutions for homeowners in the UK.

Goldilock Drawbridge

Cyber tech Goldilock Drawbridge allows users to physically segment their digital assets, devices, networks, and operational control systems remotely and instantly—without relying on the internet. This approach provides an unparalleled layer of security, ensuring assets are unreachable, invisible, and inaccessible to potential adversaries. Goldilocks patented technology allows for a micro yet complete physical disconnection of data flow elements, comparing it to the operation of a drawbridge. Recently has secured $1.7M in a Seed funding round. Goldilock Drawbridge significantly reduces the attack surface, offering the highest level of protection for sensitive data and systems.

Commonplace

Commonplace is a platform for community engagement and co-design solutions in the UK and Ireland, utilizing data to map community sentiment and enable informed decision-making. With its recent £2.1M funding, led by Beringea and including other notable investors, Commonplace aims to expand its reach and help clients showcase the positive impacts of their work on communities. The platform has been instrumental in over 2k projects, engaging millions of people and guiding various stakeholders, from infrastructure developers to local governments, in creating more inclusive and thriving places.

Axle Energy

Energy tech Axle Energy, established in 2023, plays a crucial role in connecting home energy devices to electricity markets. Acting as the 'virtual wires,' their software optimizes the collective flexibility of various home energy devices. This optimization allows for a dynamic adjustment of energy usage, shifting it to times when it's both economical and environmentally friendly. Few months ago the startup raised $1.6M in Pre-seed funding led by Picus Capital, with participation from Eka Ventures.

Omnevue

Omnevue specializes in ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) accounting solutions. Their platform connects with a company's various data sources, including financial and HR data, and generates reports in alignment with international accounting standards (ISAE 3000). With a vision to become the go-to 'credit bureau' for non-financial and ESG data in the private sector, Omnevue aims to integrate financial and non-financial data, delivering accurate ESG performance data compliant with industry standards. They recently secured $3.1M in seed led by Elbow Beach Capital and Pi Labs.

Bonnet

EV charging app Bonnet streamlines the charging experience for electric vehicle users. The app connects users to a network of charging stations, making it easier to locate and access charging points seamlessly. It aims to simplify the charging process by eliminating the need for multiple apps, providing a convenient and user-friendly solution for electric vehicle owners. Recently, Bonnet has expanded its charging network by partnering with ubitricity, a subsidiary of Shell, to add over 7,000 new charging locations to its app.

Tem

Renewable energy Tem. simplifies and democratizes access to renewable electricity for businesses of all sizes. The platform directly connects renewable energy buyers with generators through an AI-driven system, significantly reducing costs compared to traditional buying and selling methods. Their goal is to revolutionize the energy markets, unlocking $1 trillion in direct renewable energy transactions globally and saving 390M tonnes of additional CO2 by 2030. Recently, tem. raised £2.5M in a Seed funding round led by AlbionVC, with the aim to expand their team and further develop their technology to reach more customers.

Want to discover more interesting startups from other countries? Check out the list below. Top Startups from:

Most Interesting Startups from Germany to Watch (by Sofia Drobychevskaya, Editor, Vestbee)

Most Interesting Startups From Sweden To Watch (by Sofia Drobychevskaya, Editor, Vestbee)

Most Interesting Startups From Croatia To Watch (by Sofia Drobychevskaya, Editor, Vestbee)

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