Everything you need to need to know about the largest London startup funding rounds of April 2021; broken down by industry, stage, investors, and more…
London Startups
Synthesia Raises $12.5M for its AI-Powered Video Generation Platform
Last year, 92% of marketers said that video is an integral part of their marketing strategy. The average person will spend 100 minutes every day in 2021 watching online videos according to a recent study. As organizations are investing in videos, startups are building platforms to support the process. Synthesia is an AI-powered video generation platform that saves enterprises up to 100x the cost and time of producing a video. The company leverages deep learning to simulate real videos and real actors without the need for costly infrastructure like camera crews, actors, cameras, studios, and a lengthy post-production process. Clients are able to produce professional-quality videos in minutes with a single API call and a few clicks. The company is working on codifying the entire video generation process, where videos will be generated through code, offering unprecedented scalability and efficiency. London TechWatch caught up with Cofounder and CEO Victor Riparbelli to learn more about the future of video production, the company’s strategic plans, latest round of funding from investors that include FirstMark, Christian Bach, Michael Buckley, LDV Capital, MMC Ventures, Seedcamp, Mark Cuban, Taavet Hinrikus, Martin Varsavsky, and TinyVC.
Cado Security Raises $10M for its Cloud Native Digital Forensics Platform
The rapid acceleration of digital adoption has led to increased cybersecurity threats. Attacks are growing more commonplace and sophisticated in nature. While much of the focus has been on detecting threats, organizations are scrambling to figure out how to disarm a threat quickly and understand how it happened. Cado Security is a digital forensics platform that helps the enterprise quickly determine what architecture is impacted and the implications. Traditional digital forensics platforms offer similar solutions but pinpointing exactly where there is a vulnerability takes hours of manually combing through disparate data. With Cado’s automatic data capture functionality, organizations can now approach their investigations with a tactical approach at cloud speed. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder James Campbell to learn more about the experience of founding this business at the onset of the pandemic, future plans, and recent round of funding, from investors that include Blossom Capital and Ten Eleven Ventures.
Doctify Raises Another $7.5M for its Healthcare Review Platform to Keep Both Patients and Providers Better Informed
70% of patients consider online reviews important when selecting a healthcare provider and 75% of people have searched for a physician online according to a recent survey from Patientpop. With reviews playing such a pivotal role in discovery, gathering reviews is not only essential as a marketing tool but also as a mechanism for clinicians to address issues that may be resulting in less than stellar patient satisfaction. Doctify is the tech-enabled healthcare review platform that provides both patients and healthcare providers with valuable insights. Founded by two physicians in 2015, the platform also offers patients the ability to schedule appointments and teleconsultations. Doctify is offered on a subscription basis to the healthcare provider and is free to use for patients. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Stephanie Eltz to learn more about the business, the company’s strategic expansion plans to further support its mission to keep both patients and healthcare providers informed, latest funding round from investors that include Keen Venture Partners, Amadeus Capital, Guinness Asset Management, and Tom Teichman.
Swapi Raises £350K to Make Loyalty Points More Valuable Than Ever
More than half of consumers say that loyalty programs are the key reason they choose specific retailers and brands. Brands love these programs because they help fuel customer retention and also provide valuable data. Yet, consumers have very little power over how these programs work and how to best utilize their loyalty accruals. For example, you may have significant points on one airline but another airline is offering the same route for significantly cheaper, leaving you in a dilemma to go for the points or save the cash. Swapi is a mobile wallet and loyalty points management platform that allows users to seamlessly swap between loyalty points between different brand’s loyalty programs and spend these points through the app’s marketplace that’s integrated directly with the brands. As there’s been a growing movement toward decentralisation, Swapi empowers consumers to take charge of their consumer spend and loyalty earnings by providing unparalleled flexibility. Making that decision between loyalty and savings just got easier. London TechWatch caught up with Founder and CEO Pete Howroyd to learn more about the experience of launching the business during the pandemic, the upcoming formal launch of the app, the company’s recent funding round, and much, much more…
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Bea Fertility Raises $1M for its At-Home Subscription Fertility Treatment Service
The global fertility market is estimated to grow to ~$50B by 2030 with nearly 1/8 couples having trouble conceiving. Advances in technology are making reproductive health options more accessible from both a convenience and affordability standpoint. Bea Fertility is a healthcare startup offering at-home fertility treatments via a kit offered through subscription. Traditional fertility options like IVF need to be done at a fertility center and come at exorbitant cost. Bea uses ICI, a technique that’s similarly effective to other treatment options, but only costs £300/month. The company is focused on supporting the entire conception journey and offers ovulation tracking, guidance, and an expert network. Presently pre-launch, Bea is in the process of gaining regulatory approval and expects to launch by the end of the year. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Tess Cosad to learn more about the importance of making fertility treatments accessible, the company’s upcoming launch, strategic plans, and recent round of funding from Calm/Storm VC and QVentures.
Osu Raises £2.25M for its Payment Management App for Self Employed Individuals and Freelancers
Self-employed workers tend to sporadic income streams and managing cash flow is critical. With the advent of Open Banking, there are new opportunities to help these individuals optimize their balance sheets. Osu is a payment app built for the needs of the self-employed. The app lets businesses collect instant payments, invoice, and generate payment reminders all without any transaction fees. The company only charges a simple, flat monthly fee without the need for any hardware; Osu’s platform is able to collect payments via SMS. London TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Noam Nevo to learn more about the opportunity to support self-employed individuals with automation and smart solutions, the company’s future plans, and recent round of funding from investors that include Creandum, Ada Ventures, Charles Delingpole, Will Neale, and Michael Pennington.
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Intelligent Power Generation Raises £2M for its Flameless Ceramic Turbine Generator That Reduces the Dependency on Fossil Fuels
Industrial generators have long relied on diesel fuel in locations like a construction site where diesel is already being used and is readily available or on gas in deployments at oil fields, where the fossil fuel is abundant. The next generation of generators is being developed to work with renewable fuel sources. Intelligent Power Generation (IPG) has developed a 100kW Flameless Ceramic Turbine Generator that works with any type of renewable fuel (hydrogen or biofuel) without any pollution. The climate tech startup is the first to offer this fuel-flexible application that’s commercially viable in terms of cost for businesses. IPG is currently focused on powering electric vehicle infrastructure, grid balancing for use with solar and wind applications, and temporary power solutions. London TechWatch caught up with CEO Toby Gill to learn more about the work that has gone into developing the company’s pioneering technology, future plans, and latest round of funding.