Baltic Ventures, the startup accelerator based in Liverpool, has revealed its first-ever cohort of nine game-changing ventures.
The 9 companies will be supported via the accelerator’s inaugural 4-month programme through a £50k equity investment, weekly masterclasses and workshops, expert mentorship and access to investors.
The cohort was unveiled today at Slush’D – Liverpool’s largest-ever startup conference with a mission to build a vibrant tech startup ecosystem in the city.
The successful companies were selected from over 200 applications in a highly competitive process that attracted founders from across the UK and beyond. Their ventures span sectors including fintech, AI, edtech, digital health and beauty.
Cultivating a Thriving Startup Ecosystem:
The launch of the Baltic Ventures Accelerator 2023 programme underscores the growing momentum behind the vision of Slush’D conference attendees to cultivate a world-class startup ecosystem in Liverpool.
Over the next five years, Baltic Ventures aims to build a flagship national accelerator – a mission backed by a £4.1 million investment from Mayor Steve Rotheram and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.
By providing startups with unparalleled access to resources, mentorship, and funding, Baltic Ventures aims to foster an environment where groundbreaking ideas can flourish and thrive.
Introducing the Trailblazing Startups:
The nine startups that have secured their place in Baltic Ventures’ accelerator program are:
- Financielle – an app that helps women to take back control of their money via a combination of useful tools, engaging content and a supportive community.
- Hexis – an AI-powered personalised nutrition app, that enhances your performance at sports by tailoring nutrition recommendations to your lifestyle, workouts and goals.
- Heatio – a cleantech start-up that analyses energy use in your home to enable you to optimise the way you use devices such as heat pumps, electric batteries and solar panels to cut your bills and carbon footprint. www.heatio.co.uk
- Gaia Learning – a global online school that supports neurodiverse children through personalised education, which parents and educators can monitor via a dashboard that provides insights into a child’s learning experience. The model leads to reduced anxiety, more personalised learning, and better overall learner experience.
- Birl – with 75% of used clothes sent to landfill, this platform aims to tackle the environmental impact of the fashion industry by allowing customers to trade in used clothing for credit on their favourite brand’s websites – in turn reducing waste and promoting a circular economy.
- IttyBit – an API that simplifies the handling of rich media in applications, providing developers with easy ways to upload, store, transform, and extract data from video, audio, and image files, while ensuring compatibility across different formats and browsers.
- Cubode – a platform that aims to make coding more accessible than the current no-code and generative AI solutions on offer by enabling users to accurately fine-tune code through a combination of no-code, AI, and data analytics.
- February – a platform that uses AI to read and understand tickets in a product development backlog, convert them into accurately coded features, and then safely deploy the changes.
- Yuty – an AI-powered platform that enables brands and retailers the ability to offer customers hyper-personalised product recommendations that drive engagement and build customer loyalty.
Claire Lewis, CEO of Baltic Ventures said: “The strength of applications for Baltic Ventures’ first cohort has been impressive. It has been so exciting to see the quality of founder talent attracted to our Liverpool-based programme and the businesses of tomorrow they are building. The team and I are looking forward to working with this ambitious cohort over the coming months to help them optimise their success”
Mo Aldalou, Programme Director, said: “Having engaged with and supported hundreds of founders over the years, I’ve seen first-hand that great founders can come from anywhere and be anyone. Our first cohort reflects this, with founders from a range of diverse backgrounds – both in the UK and internationally – coming to Liverpool City Region to turbocharge their growth.
“Being a founder can be lonely and challenging and the scaling journey is not without its pitfalls – but having access to a network of peers, coaches, mentors, investors and later-stage founders can be transformational to a company’s prospects. That is what this accelerator offers and I can’t wait to see the impact.”
Jonny Clark, Director of Liverpool Slush’D, said: “We are thrilled to witness the unveiling of Baltic Ventures’ first cohort of startups at Slush’D this year.”
“The mix of successful ventures is truly impressive and the positive impact that many of them could have is pretty breathtaking. It points to the bright future our ecosystem holds, and it is a testament to the commitment of Baltic Ventures, the Mayor and others to nurture a world-class startup community in Liverpool.
“Together, we are laying foundations that will drive innovation, economic growth, and jobs for years to come.”
Steve Rotheram, Mayor of Liverpool City Region, said: “SMEs account for 99% of all businesses in the Liverpool City Region – and I want to put them in the best position to succeed.
“I launched the Baltic Ventures programme with more than £4m of funding to do just that by unlocking the potential of early-stage companies and backing them with the equity and mentoring they need to succeed.
“The launch of Baltic Venture’s first accelerator cohort today, and the arrival of Slush’D in the Liverpool City Region are just the beginning of my ambitions. There’s no reason our area shouldn’t one day be able to stake its claim as a Silicon Valley of the North – and attract the many thousands of jobs and training opportunities it will create in a key industry of the future. If anywhere is capable of it, it’s the Liverpool City Region.”