MassChallenge UK Awards £500,000 to UK's Top Startups
LONDON, October 22, 2015: MassChallenge, the no-equity startup accelerator, announced the winners of the MassChallenge UK 2015 accelerator programme, awarding £500,000 in no equity, no strings attached grants to 14 startups.
Over 700 members of the London startup community gathered to celebrate entrepreneurship at the first ever MassChallenge UK Awards Ceremony and Fundraiser. The event featured a showcase of the 90 MassChallenge UK startups, pitches from the Top 26, and speeches from Thomasina Miers, Cofounder and Executive Chef of Wahaca, and Azmat Yusuf, CEO and Founder of Citymapper.
“Our first year in London has been a huge success and tonight is the culmination of the hard work of our team, mentors and most importantly, our startups,” said MassChallenge CEO and Founder John Harthorne. “This year has set a solid foundation for growth and I look forward to great progress in the years to come.”
The Awards Ceremony capped off an active year for the global not-for-profit. Over 2,250 startups applied to join MassChallenge accelerators in Boston and London, and 218 in total were accelerated, with MassChallenge Israel sending 5 teams to London for acceleration. MassChallenge UK, which launched in February of this year, has already built a community-driven accelerator programme with over 300 top mentors and graduated 90 startups, making it the largest accelerator in London.
The 90 startups from MassChallenge UK now join an esteemed group of alumni, which includes 835 companies from around the world. Since 2010, startups accelerated by MassChallenge have raised $1.1 billion in funding, generated $520 million in revenue and created 6,500 jobs.
£50K DIAMOND WINNERS
Cambridge Bio Augmentation Systems (@CBioAugSystems)
MOM Incubators (@momincubators)
Preliminal Games (@preliminalgames)
Renovagen (@renovagen)
Sinclair Fire (@SinclairFire)
Shoot (@ShootGardening)
£25K GOLD WINNERS
BuyerDeck (@buyerdeck)
Converge
Glisser (@glisser)
Great Little Place (GLP) (@glpLondon)
Live Better With (@lbwcancer)
twosigmas (@twosigmas_)
Vidsy (@vidsysocial)
Zipcube (@zipcube)
IN-KIND SILVER WINNERS
Carbon Analytics (@co2analytics)
Compare and Share (@compareandshare)
DOYA Medical Ltd.
FoPo Food Powder (@hellofopo)
GiveVision (@givevision_net)
Gormley & Gamble (@gormley_gamble)
HelpingB (@helpingb)
RE-VANA (@re_vana)
Resonance (@ResonanceCEO)
Talent Rank (@fmrank)
Unique Insights
World Around Me (@wamapp)
About MassChallenge:
MassChallenge runs startup accelerators designed to catalyse a global renaissance by connecting high-impact startups with the resources they need to launch and succeed. Anyone can apply to MassChallenge, with any early-stage startup, in any industry, from anywhere in the world. MassChallenge does not take equity or place any restrictions on the startups it supports.
With programs in Boston, Israel and the UK, MassChallenge provides entrepreneurs with mentorship, office space, education, access to a vast network, and other resources during four months of acceleration. MassChallenge awards over $2 million in non-dilutive grants to the startups demonstrating the highest impact and highest potential. A nonprofit organization, MassChallenge is funded by corporate, public and foundation partners. To date, the 835 MassChallenge startups have raised over £720 million ($1.1 billion) in funding, generated over £340 million ($520 million) in revenue and created over 6,500 jobs. For more information, visit www.masschallenge.org.
UK Media Contact
Hailey Woldt
+44 (0)7469 150360
mediauk@masschallenge.org