Phlo, QBS Software and PortSwigger were among the big winners at GP Bullhound’s 2026 Northern Tech Awards.
The 13th edition of the awards were held at the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester and were attended by 250 CEOs, entrepreneurs and business leaders from across the digital economy to celebrate innovation and excellence across the North of England.
The winner of the Judges’ Overall Award went to PortSwigger, a Knutsford, Cheshire-based business behind security software for web applications.
The Fastest Growing Company Award went to Phlo, which raised £10 million in 2023 then a further £9m a year later to power its evolution from a digital pharmacy innovator into a holistic digital healthcare leader. It is headquartered in Trafford Park, just down the road from where the event was held.
The Fastest Growing Larger Company – for companies with revenues over £10m – went to QBS Software, an enterprise software delivery platform based in Alderley Edge, Cheshire.
Dundee-based Snappy Shopper took home the Judges’ Innovation Award, while Manchester’s Reality Mine won the Judges’ Award for Global Ambition.
The Judges’ Entrepreneur Award was collected by Heather Staff, who runs Street Group in Manchester with her brother Tom.
Financial services tech firm Origo, based in Edinburgh, took home the Judges’ Leadership Award.
The Judges Tech4Good Award went to StormHarvester, creating AI analytics for wastewater utilities from its Belfast base.
The Judges’ Award for Cultural Excellence was won by Genio, an EdTech company based in Leeds which was formerly known as Glean.
Earlier in the evening the guest speaker was Scott Fletcher, who in typically forthright style shared his personal story of starting, growing and exiting ANS; investing in Godel way back in 2008; how AI is transforming the businesses he invests in; and also took aim at an education system he feels is unsuited to tech and entrepreneurship.
In his opening address GP Bullhound’s Hugh Campbell spoke about the volatility of global markets and hailed the entrepreneurs in the room for their ability to grow rapidly in such a climate.
He also pointed to the incredible potential of AI to transform how businesses operate and augment human expertise.
The winners
Fastest Growing Company – Phlo
Fastest Growing Larger Company (with revenues over £10m) – QBS Software
Judges’ Innovation Award – Snappy Shopper
Judges’ Award for Global Ambition – Reality Mine
Judges’ Leadership Award – Origo
Judges Tech4Good Award – StormHarvester
Judges’ Entrepreneur Award – Street Group
Judges’ Award for Cultural Excellence – Genio
Judges’ Overall Award – PortSwigger
Northern Star Innovation Award – Literal Labs
Northern Star Entrepreneur Award – Afternoon Finance
Northern Star Award for Commercial Success – Cytix
Northern Star Overall Judges’ Award – urfuture