The EY Startup Challenge is an intensive eight-week accelerator programme, starting next week (8 June 2015), offering mentoring from industry-leaders, training workshops and investor networking opportunities. This Challenge is focused on technologies developed to help businesses improve their interactions with their customers and to heighten visibility along their supply chain to avoid shocks and minimise risk.
The ten successful tech startups (in no particular order) are:
- Historic Futures – Improves the visibility of global supply chains by automating the process of requesting product information directly from suppliers. (Based in Luton)
- Elements Software – Tracks assets throughout their journey across the supply chain using a “Digital Passport” to help importers and exporters comply with regulations and meet the sustainability demands of their customers. (Based in Oxford)
- Cytora - Transforms unstructured data from the web into usable intelligence and analyses risk across multiple sectors. (Based in Cambridge and London)
- ScanTrust - Protects brands from counterfeiting using a secure and unique identifier, which is tracked on a cloud-enabled platform. (Based in Switzerland)
- StreetSpotr- Uses mobile crowdsourcing to help brands and suppliers understand their customers by collecting information, photos and insights from Europe’s largest mobile workforce, in-store, at home and on the street. (Based in London)
- Wittos– Provides real-time customer experience using analytics and behavioural intelligence via WiFi data on customers’ mobile devices. (Based in London)
- Retechnica- Intelligently tags content using machine learning to help companies to extract real business value from textual content. (Based in London)
- Real Life Analytics - Uses advanced computer vision software to show targeted adverts on digital displays, based on the demographic details of the viewer. (Based in London)
- Interpretive – Automates complex tasks like gap analysis or churn prediction using machine learning at a fraction of the cost of an in-house data scientist. (Based in London)
- Rulex – Simplifies the challenge of feeding new data into enterprise systems, and automatically extracts key trends using machine learning to get data-driven answers to business questions. (Based in Italy)
Through the programme, EY will provide the successful startups with:
- Mentorship and coaching from EY's industry-leading professionals, EY's clients, successful entrepreneurs and key industry professionals
- Access to EY’s networks which include potential clients and investors for the new technologies
- Training and support workshops to help with market validation, customer acquisition and business development
- Guidance around access to funding by helping them become ‘investor-ready’
- Shared workspace at Central Working City, based near Liverpool St in central London, for the duration of the programme
Richard Taylor, Advisory Lead for Consumer Products at EY, comments: “With growth in online sales for consumer products forecast to rise 10% faster than store-based sales over the next five years, innovation to improve the online customer experience is essential. Coupled with the finding that 81% of businesses don’t feel sufficiently equipped for the speed of the shift to online, there is a real opportunity for innovation. Our ten new startups are rising to the challenge and are all pioneering new technologies that could have huge potential. The eight weeks ahead could hold the key to the next big thing in digital customer experience and supply chain innovation.”
Errol Gardner, EMEIA Financial Services Partner for Data Analytics at EY, adds: “The UK is becoming increasingly well established as a base for cutting-edge tech, and particularly fintech, startups. Continued investment opportunities and appetite from businesses to innovate means there is significant growth potential, which increases the UK’s competitive and entrepreneurial strength on the global stage. It is essential that businesses embrace new technologies which better align their services to how their customers want to interact.”
The EY Startup Challenge
- The EY Startup Challenge is scheduled to run from June 8 2015 to July 31 2015
- Visit www.ey.com/startupchallenge for more information
- The first EY Startup Challenge took place in September 2014 – visit http://bit.ly/1yFz0ox for more details
About EY
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EY refers to the global organisation and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients.
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Hannah Forrester
EY Media Relations
+44 (0)121 535 2997
+44 (0)7900 703 020
HForrester@uk.ey.com
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