From the Oxford Brookes University News Archive
20/08/2020
The AI Startup Accelerator Programme CATALYST successfully came to an end last Thursday.
All our ambitious participating startups pitched their proposals to a panel of judges for a chance to win one of four £10,000 prizes powered by The Institute for Ethical AI and the Brookes Enterprise Support.
Nine teams were selected to take part in the accelerator programme delivered by Brookes Enterprise Support which started in June. They were immersed in an intensive 10-week virtual camp where they learnt how to pitch for funding using grant proposals for Innovate UK funding and they attended weekly live webinars with entrepreneurs and investors in the AI sector. The purpose of the programme was to accelerate the inception and deployment of their AI strategy and to strengthen their business case. Catalyst culminated in a pitching event where each of the start-ups had the opportunity to pitch for a £10,000 prize to spend on deploying their innovative AI solution.
Kevin Maynard, Director of The Institute for Ethical AI who sponsored Catalyst said, “It was with great pleasure that we partnered up with Brookes Enterprise Support to deliver the Catalyst programme. I was very impressed by the calibre of the businesses selected to join the Catalyst programme and we’re all looking forward to seeing how these businesses evolve in the next few years.”
The four startups that were awarded funding are:
Apurba Ltd, a service company providing innovative solutions to some of the most pressing data analytics problems in healthcare, medicine and biopharma sectors.
Good Boost Wellbeing Ltd., a social enterprise using clinical technology to transform public swimming pools into therapeutic spaces for people living with musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions.
Skyscape Technologies Ltd, a government-backed startup building AI-powered analytics and marketplace platforms for better identification and utilisation of rooftop and airspace opportunities.
DigiVue Ltd., a startup responding to the increasing student dropout rates in the UK by offering their quick and simple digital registration and engagement platform solution.
“We were overjoyed when we heard that we were to be one of the startups to receive the funding. Our team had spent a great deal of time and energy, preparing and delivering the pitch. This award will go towards scaling Apurba's collaborative AI platform, designed to assist biopharma and healthcare institutions derive insights from their data.” - Arijit Mitra, MD of Apurba Ltd.
"We're over the moon to have been awarded £10k to support Good Boost's growth and development. We're planning to use the funding to further develop the Good Boost app to create more interactive and accessibility features for our beneficiaries so that they can be more active to manage their musculoskeletal health.” - Ben Wilkins, CEO of Good Boost Wellness Ltd.
“We are incredibly grateful to have been selected as a finalist and share the winner's podium with the other incredible startups who participated in the AI Catalyst programme and we look forward to continuing our journey with the support of the Ethical AI and the Enterprise Support teams.” - Brandon Bell, CEO of Skyscape Technologies Ltd.
“The team at DigiVue are delighted to be the successful awardees of the funding in the Catalyst accelerator. It was a challenging process with many strong contenders. As a technical team, we will be using the award to strengthen our marketing and business development capabilities.” - Simon Yates, Director of DigiVue Ltd.
All participating teams of Catalyst 2020 have been offered to continue using the co-working spaces available for entrepreneurs at our Headington and Wheatley campuses, where they can access mentors for further support and guidance.
“Catalyst is one of several flagship programmes for early-stage ventures that Brookes Enterprise Support makes available each year to students, staff and graduates of Oxford Brookes University. We’re passionate about supporting ambitious entrepreneurs from all backgrounds to make their ideas happen. We’re grateful to have completed another successful academic year working closely with disruptive change-makers and look forward to delivering even more inspiring initiatives starting again in September 2020.”- Lydiah Igweh, Director of Enterprise Support.
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