Bite-size news and insight from UK business and tech – including funding, deals and appointments
Published: August 15, 2026 at 10:31 am
Hayden Evans has been promoted to a new role as chief product officer at sports technology business Urban Zoo.
It follows Urban Zoo’s £20m investment in July from BGF to support the development of the company’s proprietary technology.
Evans, who was previously the chief creative officer, said: “After eight years with the business, it feels like a natural next step, continuing to help shape our products, bring teams together and support the next stage of Urban Zoo’s growth.
“The role will see me working across product and delivery, helping to shape what we build, how we build it, and how we continue to create the best possible experiences for our clients and their fans.”
CEO Chris Grannell said: “Feels like this is the perfect role for you mate as we move onto the next growth phase. Well deserved.”
Founded in 2013, the Warrington-based company provides world-leading digital platforms for sports brands, clubs and federations – across mobile, web, streaming, eCommerce and retail – to drive fan engagement and strengthen revenue streams.
Since its launch, the company has disrupted the highly competitive global digital sports market through a differentiated all-in-one platform solution, Gamechanger.
It was developed in collaboration with global sports leaders and organisations to streamline content workflows, drive ROI and deliver feature- and data-rich websites and apps.
The technology has enabled Urban Zoo to win a significant share of the UK market, working with more than 60 professional clubs across all tiers of the English and Scottish football leagues, including Aston Villa, Everton and Celtic, as well as the Professional Darts Corporation, Motocross GP and the Rugby Football League.
Published: August 15, 2026 at 10:01 am
Published: August 15, 2026 at 9:53 am
Northern Gritstone, the investment company scaling early-stage life sciences and technology companies in the North of England, is opening an office in San Francisco.
Chief executive Duncan Johnson said the move will give the company better access to US capital.
He said: “It means you can grow quicker, because the US is better at procuring, and their risk appetite for technology is higher. It allows us to recruit more talent into our businesses.
“UK companies trade at a discount in the US, and capital is good at finding opportunities. But you’ve got to make the effort to go and make it easy for them.”
Five of Northern Gritstone’s portfolio companies already have US investors, including B+ Series companies Pragmatic Semiconductor, Iceotope and Phagenesis.
Active since May 2022, Northern Gritstone has already made 50 investments.
Published: August 12, 2026 at 3:04 pm
Swedish unicorn Lovable has announced that it has raised $400m in Series C funding at a $13.3bn valuation.
The round was led by Menlo Ventures and co-led by the Scaleup Europe Fund, managed by EQT.
Menlo Ventures has backed some of the most consequential companies of the AI era, while EQT has chosen Lovable as one of the first investments from its Scaleup Europe Fund.
The company was founded in 2023 by CEO Anton Osika (pictured) and CTO Fabian Hedin and launched in 2024.
Published: August 11, 2026 at 7:57 am
Ruth Percival had seen the highs and lows of a corporate career before becoming a first-time founder in her 50s – and hasn’t looked back.
Just two years after launching built environment consultancy Contollo Group, she’s made five acquisitions and grown the business to £37m turnover and 230 staff – and has ambitious plans to double in size.
In the latest episode of The Naked Founder podcast, Percival has spoken about how she’s found her favourite job and her regrets at not asking her investors for more money at the beginning.
“It’s my favourite (job) so far,” she said of being a founder. “I’ve absolutely loved this role. I feel like I’m thriving in it. I’m a deeply curious person and I’m stretched all the time but in a good way. It’s forced me to stretch myself.”
Percival had enjoyed a stellar 20-year career in M&A and made her name as a partner at BDO, where she regularly advised clients on exits and buy-and-build strategies.
She became the firm’s first female M&A partner and told The Naked Founder podcast about the misogyny she encountered in the wider industry while forging a career in the male-dominated world of corporate finance.
Published: August 11, 2026 at 7:55 am
ClimateTech startup Watercycle Technologies has secured £3m to help lead the charge towards net zero.
The University of Manchester spinout was co-founded by Dr Seb Leaper and Dr Ahmed Abdelkarim in 2020 to provide secure and sustainable supplies of critical raw materials.
The company designs and builds end-to-end mineral recovery and water treatment systems fit for a circular economy.
The grant will go towards a £6m project to establish a demonstration-scale manufacturing line capable of recovering and refining lithium from waste streams for use in electric vehicle batteries.
Published: August 10, 2026 at 6:15 pm
Nichols, the international soft drinks business behind Vimto, has acquired Irish vitamin drinks brand VITHIT.
Founded in Dublin in 2001, VITHIT has built a distinctive portfolio of low calorie, low sugar soft drinks than contain 100 per cent of the recommended daily allowance of eight vitamins.
Andrew Milne, CEO of Nichols, said: “VITHIT is an outstanding brand with a differentiated product operating in a structurally growing soft drinks category, making it an excellent addition to our brand portfolio.
“We extend a very warm welcome to the VITHIT team as they join Nichols and look forward to working together to build on the brand’s strong momentum.”
Published: August 10, 2026 at 4:02 pm
Travel Counsellors, the UK’s largest and fastest-growing technology platform for travel entrepreneurs, has reported another period of strong trading, fuelled by rising demand for personalised travel and the strength of its global community operating across seven international markets.
The business, which is backed by Vitruvian Partners, has delivered an 11 per cent year-on-year increase in group sales over the past four weeks, with the UK premium leisure business making a significant contribution, recording 17 per cent growth compared with the same period last year.
Demand has remained positive across a range of destinations and travel types. Cruise sales increased by 24 per cent over the past four weeks, while Mediterranean travel grew by 13 per cent, driven mainly by Italy and Greece.
Long-haul travel also performed well, with sales to the USA up 10 per cent. Africa (+69 per cent) and South East Asia (+32 per cent) also recorded strong growth over the same period.
Steve Byrne, global CEO at Travel Counsellors, said: “We’re really pleased with our latest trading performance. These results are further evidence of the strength of our model and, above all, of the incredible care and commitment our community continues to show their customers and the trust customers continue to place in them.”
Published: August 10, 2026 at 3:59 pm
LDC-backed Marmalade Game Studio has reported a significant rise in revenue and EBITDA after a stellar 2025.
London-based Marmalade Game Studio is one of the most successful publishers in the video board games market, with notable successes including Monopoly, Cluedo and The Game of Life.
The digital games developer increased revenue to £12.7m, with adjusted EBITDA more than doubling year-on-year to £5.2m.
Marmalade’s outstanding performance has continued into 2026, with the company set to achieve another record-breaking year and EBITDA forecast to almost double again.
Cristina Mereuta, co-CEO of Marmalade, added: “The key to our success is diversification of IP, of distribution platforms and of revenue streams.
“We currently have nine successful evergreen games available on up to eight distribution platforms, a healthy split that allows us to provide board game fans with the best gaming experiences on their platform of choice.”
Mike Willis, co-CEO of Marmalade, said: “It’s great to see our passion for board games translate into such strong financial results.”
Published: August 7, 2026 at 6:30 pm
Published: August 7, 2026 at 10:59 am
Power Tool World, one of the UK’s leading online retailers of professional tools, is to invest up to £5m in a new 36,000 sq ft automated warehouse facility in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.
The move will more than double the company’s footprint as it scales up operations following double-digit year-on-year growth.
The company currently operates across two sites totalling 30,000 sq ft. The addition of a third facility will more than double its fulfilment capabilities.
The rapid growth follows a strategic turnaround led by managing director Liam Rafferty, who joined the business just over a year ago.
Under Rafferty’s leadership, Power Tool World has restructured key operations across e-commerce, procurement, IT and data analysis.
The changes have helped increase revenue from £40m to a forecast £58m this year.
Established in 1997, the business now employs 50 people and processes between 800 and 1,500 orders a day across its two existing Newton Aycliffe sites.
Published: August 5, 2026 at 9:18 pm
A near-death experience was the catalyst for Ian Hudson to try to create a business with a turnover of £100m.
The entrepreneur is the founder of IT support provider commited and was recently included in BusinessCloud’s inaugural Founder 250 list.
After 20 years of growth and the successful acquisition of 14 businesses, the company has increased its turnover to £25m and recently rebranded from Hudson Hill Consulting.
Hudson is all about new beginnings and admits that it is a miracle he is here at all.
In 2019, he collapsed with Covid – before it had been declared a pandemic and the world went into lockdown.
He spent three weeks in intensive care, and his family was advised to say their goodbyes – but Hudson had other ideas.
After recovering from Covid, he took 18 months off before realising retirement was not for him and set out his stall to build a business with a turnover of £100m.
“After nearly dying, it made me focus on living in the moment and enjoying every minute,” he said.
Published: August 5, 2026 at 2:24 pm
Former Dragons’ Den star James Caan CBE has been appointed as a strategic adviser to an AI-powered recruitment platform following its £1m seed funding round.
London-based Alfa AI was founded by Alfie Whattam, Ed Godshaw and Dr Linda Yu in 2025.
Its AI-powered tool automates the hiring process by finding and screening top candidates and connecting them with employers.
The latest £1m seed funding round was led by Sake Bosch, with participation from FirstDegree, Golden Egg Check and Black Green Capital. The funding will be used to accelerate product development and support the company’s expansion.
Caan’s appointment comes at a pivotal moment for the technology startup as organisations increasingly adopt artificial intelligence to improve hiring outcomes, reduce recruitment costs and address growing talent shortages.
Published: August 5, 2026 at 10:48 am
London-based AI chip startup has been valued at $3.3bn (£2.5bn) Olix after announcing a $312m Series B financing round.
The valuation is remarkable as Olix was only founded in 2024 by 25-year-old James Dacombe – who famously dropped out of sixth form after just two days.
The round included Fundomo, Arm and Hudson River Trading, alongside angel investors including Reed Hastings, the co-founder of Netflix, with existing investors all increasing their commitments.
Olix, which is designing the next generation of AI chips, has also secured backing from the UK Government’s Sovereign AI venture fund.
Based in London and with offices in Bristol, Olix is developing faster, cheaper and more energy-efficient AI chips and is one of the UK’s newest unicorns.
Alongside the round, Olix has appointed Professor Nick McKeown to its board of directors.
Published: August 5, 2026 at 10:46 am
Matillion, the AI data automation company, has appointed veteran enterprise data executive Girish Pancha as its new chief executive.
He’ll succeed founder Matthew Scullion, who will remain an ‘active member of the company’s board of directors’.
The company has also appointed Sanjay Krishnamurthi as its new chief development officer.
Scullion, who co-founded Matillion with Ed Thompson in 2011, said: “The handover is real: Girish is the CEO, the company is his to lead, and he has my complete support.
“I am immensely proud of what the Matillion team has built and deeply confident about the opportunity ahead.”
Matillion achieved unicorn status in 2021 when a $150m Series E funding round took its valuation beyond the magical $1bn mark.
Published: August 5, 2026 at 10:44 am
Unseen Group has completed its 12th and 13th acquisitions with deals for early-careers recruitment business The Ladder Group (TLG) and HR tech advisory firm The Udder Group (Udder).
The future talent partner for enterprise employers now has more than 145 full-time equivalent employees globally.
Zac Williams, CEO of Unseen Group, said: “Welcoming both The Ladder Group and Udder to Unseen is a huge moment for us.
“We have spent years building and acquiring hiring technology platforms, with our solutions supporting some of the world’s largest employers across every stage of the talent journey. These two acquisitions take that even further.”
The acquisition of The Ladder Group strengthens Unseen’s early-careers recruitment and delivery capabilities.
Daniel Ball, founder of The Ladder Group, said: “Combining The Ladder Group’s expertise with Unseen’s technology platforms means we will be able to deliver even more innovative, end-to-end solutions for our clients while accelerating our impact.”
Alan Walker, co-founder of Udder, said: “What drew us to Unseen was a shared belief that technology should make hiring better and more human, as well as a real appreciation for what makes Udder different.”
Published: August 3, 2026 at 8:41 am
Enablis, an AI-native technology consultancy based in Leeds, has expanded into London.
The Leeds firm, led by Sarah Pawson – star of our Founder 250 list – has opened an office in Farringdon and appointed two senior leaders to support its next phase of growth.
The new office, which opened on 13th July, is joined by the appointments of Matt Feeney as chief AI officer and Mark Melvin as client partner.
Published: August 3, 2026 at 8:29 am
Transport technology provider Tracsis has disposed of one of its divisions days after agreeing an £48 million acquisition.
The listed Leeds company has sold its events transport planning and management business to Connection Capital for £7.25m cash.
Last week Tracsis said it had agreed to acquire Mistral Data, a wholly owned subsidiary of FirstGroup plc.
Published: August 3, 2026 at 8:15 am
RWS Holdings plc has agreed a £22.4 million deal to acquire a French rival.
RWS is a London-listed AI content localisation services firm headquartered in Berkshire which turned over almost £700 million last year.
It said this morning it will acquire Acogroup, the parent company of Acolad, a global provider of language and content solutions headquartered in the Paris region.
Published: August 3, 2026 at 7:59 am
The leader of Mind Gym plc is to step down due to ill health.
Octavius Black CBE will leave his role as executive chair at the behavioural science company and also step down from the board, it said.
Black co-founded MindGym in 2000 with Dr Sebastian Bailey and has led the company throughout its 26-year history, including its admission to London’s junior AIM public market in 2018.
Under his leadership MindGym has grown into an international behavioural science business that has worked with the majority of the FTSE 100 and S&P 100 and changed the way millions of professionals think, feel and behave at work.
Ennis, who spent more than 25 years at the technology giant, has joined the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult as a non-executive director.
HVM Catapult works with business, research and government to transform UK manufacturing.
Steve Bagshaw CBE, HVM Catapult chair, said: “Carl brings an exceptional combination of industrial leadership, technical expertise and passion for skills and innovation.
“His insight will be invaluable as we continue to help industry adopt new technologies, improve productivity and strengthen the UK’s global competitiveness.”
Ennis said: “I am privileged and excited to be able to offer my experience in support of the team at HVM Catapult and their goal to enable the delivery of the UK’s industrial strategy and deliver economic growth from industrial endeavour to all corners of the UK.”
HVM Catapult has also announced changes to its executive leadership team as it sharpens its focus on delivering the government’s modern industrial strategy.