Elaine Smyth, Catalyst; JP McCorley, co-founder of Ecko; Niall Devlin, Bank of Ireland UK. Image: Catalyst
A shortlist of start-up finalists has been announced for Invent 2021, Northern Ireland’s competition for early-stage businesses.
Organised by science and technology hub Catalyst with headline partner Bank of Ireland, Invent is an annual celebration of the brightest new business ideas in Northern Ireland.
Invent supports, showcases and rewards businesses with the potential to shape the future of the region.
The 10 shortlisted start-ups were drawn from five different categories: greentech, health and wellbeing, product, consumer software and business software.
The finalists were chosen after two days of live, in-person semi-final pitches to a highly experienced judging panel.
Each Invent category winner will receive £5,000. The overall winner will take home an additional £20,000, giving a top prize of £25,000.
Additional prizes of £1,000 will be awarded to the best student application and the best elevator pitch delivered on the night of the Invent Awards on 30 September.
This year’s final will take place in person but will also be streamed live from the ICC Belfast.
Let’s take a quick look at the 10 finalists who will be appearing at the ceremony hoping to win the first-place prize of £25,000.
BODtech
BODtech has created purpose-built hydropower turbines, making sustainable and clean energy more widely available to communities across the country.
Tankcube
Tankcube uses low-carbon technology for domestic hot water, helping households become more environmentally friendly.
Informed Minds
Informed Minds is an app that shares peer and professional support through short real-life vlogs to tackle the stigma around mental health wellbeing issues.
StimOxyGen
StimOxyGen enhances the effects of cancer treatment by overcoming hypoxia in solid tumours.
Excavator Forklift
Excavator Forklift is a lifting attachment which allows mini-digger users to treble the lifting capacity of their excavators and lift pallets or bagged loads in excess of 1 tonnes.
Safewater Technologies
Internet-of-things (IoT) start-up Safewater Technologies provides a simple-to-use portable device for determining faecal contamination of drinking water. This device could be used in rural communities without access to labs.
Ecko
Ecko is an online audio-based collaboration platform that connects people from all around the globe, providing an experience that rivals being in the room with your collaborators.
Stable Manager
Stable Manager is a purpose-built mobile app built by an equestrian for equestrians. With Stable Manager, users can quantify performance, simplify horse care and streamline their equine business.
Anneal
Anneal is an engineering collaboration and knowledge management platform for high-performing engineering teams, designed to help accelerate and improve the engineering development process.
Defensive Thinking
Belfast-based Defensive Thinking is a knowledge transfer platform for UN peacekeepers. Bringing technology to peacekeeping, this start-up is addressing challenges such as disinformation warfare.
