Gradient Labs, an AI-native customer operations platform for financial services, has increased its Series A funding to around £20 million.

The round was led by new investors Octopus Ventures and CommerzVentures with follow-on backing from Redpoint Ventures and Exceptional Capital. 

Founded by former leaders from Monzo’s AI team, Gradient Labs has developed a suite of vertical-specific AI agents to automate operations spanning customer servicing and long-running processes such as lending, disputes and Know Your Customer (KYC) checks. 

A former touring musician who performed at Glastonbury is now building an AI-powered startup designed to transform how people experience music.

Ben Etches, founder of Sineco, has swapped life on stage for entrepreneurship, developing a platform that creates real-time adaptive audio shaped by a user’s biometric data – including heart rate, movement and activity.

Based in Greater Manchester, Sineco is aiming to become a global leader in adaptive audio for fitness, wellbeing and performance, turning music into a responsive, personalised experience.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Nutrition brand Protein Works has announced its acquisition by Lactalis, the world’s leading dairy company.

Founded in 2012, Protein Works produces a wide range of protein-based nutrition products designed for health and well-being. Its portfolio includes protein shakes, meal shakes and savoury options, wellness supplements and protein snacks.

The company, which has been backed by YFM Equity Partners since 2019, generates annual revenues of approximately £55 million and has sold 500n shakes to date.

Founder Mark Coxhead said: “It’s been an incredible ride for both Protein Works and me over the last 15 years. Seeing the brand in rude health and ready for its next phase of exciting growth makes me very proud. 

“With such a talented team, now backed by Lactalis, the sky is the limit for the brand I started all those years ago in my spare bedroom.”

Calculus, one of the UK’s longest-established EIS and VCT fund managers with over 25 years backing innovative growth companies, has announced a £2.5m investment into Edify, an AI-powered operations platform built for quick service restaurants and hospitality chains.

The investment forms part of a £3m round completed alongside current investors.

Edify was founded in 2024 by Ed Barry, a hospitality operator who built and sold Over Under, a London coffee chain, to Blank Street Coffee in 2022. Through that journey, Barry saw how fragmented systems, manual processes, and unclear information flows were holding hospitality businesses back.

Edify was built from that perspective: a live intelligence platform designed around the realities of the floor, and the decisions operators need to make every day.

Current customers and brands served include Pret A Manger, Dunkin’ Donuts, WatchHouse, Yolk Brands.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

AccessPay has appointed Johan Jardevall as CEO following its private equity takeover, with Anish Kapoor moving into a chairman role.

Kapoor is stepping down after more than a decade of leading the Manchester FinTech through a significant period of growth, technology transformation and platform development.

Jardevall brings more than 25 years of experience leading and scaling enterprise software and SaaS businesses across Europe and the UK. He has held several senior executive and CEO positions within high-growth technology companies, with expertise spanning operational leadership, customer delivery, strategic growth, and product commercialisation. 

Loqbox and Blackbullion have partnered to help more than 450,000 students build stronger financial futures through accessible credit-building tools and curriculum-linked financial education.

The partnership gives students across 100+ UK universities, colleges and businesses access to practical financial skills and the opportunity to start building credit responsibly while they study.

It comes as students face rising accommodation costs, increasing debt burdens and ongoing cost-of-living pressures, with 88% of them feeling hopeless about their financial situation.

Yet most are leaving education without the credit knowledge they need to navigate it. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of Gen Z wish they had learned more about bills and personal finance before leaving home, and many of them don’t understand how to build a strong credit history before they need one.

The consequences follow students long after graduation. A thin credit file can affect access to housing, mobile phone contracts, fairer borrowing rates and future financial opportunities.

Blackbullion is the UK’s leading student financial wellbeing ecosystem, helping students learn about money, access funding, and manage their finances with confidence. It featured in sixth spot on our FinTech 50 ranking last year.

Brightwell, a service provider for defined benefit pension schemes, has announced the appointment of Mike Bussey as non-executive chair, subject to FCA approval.

Bussey worked for HSBC Group based in Asia, the Gulf, Africa, North America and UK for over 20 years in a number of senior executive level roles followed by ten years as CEO of three highly respected global private banking and trust firms.

From 2011 he has enjoyed a selective portfolio of chair and non-executive roles. Mike is chair of Deutsche UK Bank Ltd, a position he has held since 2020. In November 2024, he was also appointed chairman of The London Clinic, the UK’s leading private charitable hospital based in London.

Mayors in areas including Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, and Greater London will be handed control of Local Innovation Partnership funding.

After the next Spending Review, they will be given the ability to decide how and where to target regional R&D investment through the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund on their own doorstep. 

The Fund supports partnerships of local leaders, businesses and universities to turn existing research breakthroughs into practical solutions that back local businesses, create jobs and improve people’s lives. 

Joining mayors and local officials on a visit to Liverpool today, Technology Secretary Liz Kendall has confirmed plans to pass future control of the Local Innovation Partnership Fund in England to regional leaders, with the change expected to kick in during the next Spending Review period. 

Laverock Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing disease-responsive advanced therapies through its unique, programmable gene control technology, has been awarded two new grants totalling in excess of £2.2m to support the next generation of its gene-control platform development, and expansion into additional non-oncology therapeutics areas.

The first grant-funded project will focus on scaling the company’s platform within a T-cell product context, utilising solid tumour-based patient datasets, and foundational data around both intracellular signalling and antigen expression. Leveraging single cell and AI-powered approaches Laverock will be able to rapidly identify the preferred combination of product features to unlock efficacy and safety in solid tumour cancer indications, tailored to tumour type, and using patient derived models for rapid prototyping and evaluation.

The second grant will enable the expansion of Laverock’s macrophage-based programmes into non-oncology indications, building upon the platform’s ability to program myeloid cell phenotypes and precisely control the expression of therapeutically relevant payloads. This work will be part of a consortium effort pulling in leading experts in the disease indication of interest and across the product development workflow to enable rapid translation to the clinic.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Applied Nutrition plc has acquired US-based sports nutrition manufacturer Nutrablend Group as it expands its North American footprint.

The deal, for a total cash consideration of $16 million (£12m) is for the trade and majority of assets of Nutrablend Group – including a manufacturing and warehouse facility in Buffalo, New York State, which has been independently valued at approximately $7m.

Applied Nutrition has also entered into a collaboration agreement with Mondelēz International to allow the group to develop and manufacture AN Supps & SOUR PATCH KIDS and AN Supps & SWEDISH FISH branded sports nutrition products.

The range will initially be stocked in 2,200 Walmart stores and 1,300 GNC corporate stores from August 2026.

Knowsley-based Applied Nutrition has upgraded expectations for the current financial year ending 31st July 2026, with revenue now expected to be approximately £148m and EBITDA margin in line with current consensus market expectations.

A new evidence-based health app designed to help people understand and manage physical ageing has launched in the UK.

Developed by ADL Smartcare, The LifeCurve app translates more than 30 years of research into a simple digital tool that helps people identify early signs of decline and take action to maintain independence and wellbeing for longer.

At the heart of the app is The LifeCurve model – a scientifically validated framework showing that people tend to lose everyday abilities, such as climbing stairs, cutting toenails or getting on and off the toilet, in a predictable order over time. Research shows that both the age at which decline begins and the speed of decline are strongly influenced by lifestyle and behaviour, meaning early intervention can help people maintain – and in some cases regain – ability.

The app brings this concept to life through a two-minute assessment that shows users where they sit on The LifeCurve and provides tailored guidance to help improve functional ability. This includes personalised goals, movement routines, practical advice, and connections to local services and support.

ADL Smartcare CEO Peter Gore said: “Ageing is inevitable, but decline doesn’t have to be. The LifeCurve gives people the tools, confidence, and insight to take action earlier, helping them stay independent, active, and in control for longer.”

A French cybersecurity company specialising in protection against credential theft is to expand in the UK after raising Series A funding.

MokN has raised $15 million led by GV (Google Ventures), with participation from DataDog, MokN’s existing investors, Moonfire, OVNI Capital and angels.

MokN already protects more than a million users across large corporations and mid-size companies, including finance, retail and healthcare.

CEO Gautier Bugeon, who co-founded the company with Antoine Coudoux, is a former security operations centre (SOC) manager at mining firm Eramet.

As well as growth in the UK market, the company plans further global expansion, beginning with new offices in the US. 

 

Author: Chris Maguire

The winner of the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 has been revealed.

Casey Morrison, Jitendra Mohan and Sanjay Gajendra, co-founders of US winner Astera Labs, beat the UK’s representative, Mia Drennan of GLAS, to the top prize at a ceremony in Monaco’s Salle des Étoiles.

Starting in a Silicon Valley garage almost a decade ago and growing into a $54bn company, Astera Labs has overcome constant hurdles in its mission to make AI more accessible.

Leaving their established careers, the founders set out to solve the performance bottlenecks and bandwidth issues essential to unlocking the next wave of AI innovation.

With more than 1,000 employees across 13 global offices, Astera Labs continues to operate at the forefront of AI infrastructure, driven by a vision built on passion, purpose and execution.

The company was selected from nearly 5,000 programme participants, including 58 national winners from 46 countries and regions competing for the global title.

Astera Labs completed a successful IPO in 2024 and is the fourth US winner of the award.

The new-look Northern Spin podcast is back.

The podcast, which was last aired in 2023 after five successful seasons, has returned as Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham attempts to win the Makerfield by-election ahead of a possible bid to become the next Prime Minister.

Frank McKenna joins BusinessCloud Executive Editor Chris Maguire as the new co-host of the show, which is now called ‘Northern Spin with Maguire and McKenna’.

A former politician himself, McKenna is the chief executive and group chairman of the influential private sector lobby group and business networking organisation Downtown in Business.

In the first 75-minute episode of Northern Spin, the pair discuss a range of issues, including:

• Can Brand Burnham win over Makerfield, Labour and the country?
• Is it Burnham or bust for Labour?
• Will Carol Vorderman finish off Reform candidate Rob Kenyon after the sexism row?
• Would victory in Makerfield make Burnham Labour’s next leader-in-waiting?
• Why does Burnham need to ditch the ‘King of the North’ label?

Author: Chris Maguire

One of the North West’s most respected dealmakers has died after a long battle with cancer.

Andy Thomas, whose career included spells at Maven Capital Partners and more recently YFM Equity Partners, died on Wednesday surrounded by his loved ones.

His wife Mia Hailwood took to LinkedIn to break the news.

She wrote: “It’s with a broken heart that I have to announce that my beautiful, brave husband Andy Thomas died on Wednesday surrounded by people who loved him dearly.

“I’m in the process of arranging Andy’s funeral and a celebration of his life and will share the details once finalised.

“I want to thank Andy’s friends and colleagues who have been so kind and supportive over the last few months to both of us. It was a huge comfort to know how many people loved and cared about him.”

Mavis Technologies, an assistive technology company, is set to transform the lives of blind and partially sighted people.

The Northampton firm has launched its revolutionary AI smart glasses, Mavis Viaro and Mavis Itero, which feature a range of life-enhancing capabilities that will provide increased independence and confidence for people who are blind or have low vision.

Designed through lived experience and developed specifically for blind and partially sighted users, the technology addresses a rapidly growing and underserved need in the UK and beyond. 

An estimated two million people in the UK currently live with significant sight loss, a figure expected to rise to more than four million by 2050. At the same time, traditional support solutions remain under pressure, with long waiting lists for guide dogs and many mainstream technologies still not built with visual impairment as the primary user need.

Mavis Technologies was created to solve that gap.

Founded by visually impaired computer scientist and engineer David Sikharulidze, the company was born from both academic research and personal determination. Living with high myopia and a lifelong risk of retinal detachment, Sikharulidze understood first-hand the daily barriers faced by people with sight loss. 

 

Orbital Industries has raised $50 million (£37m) in Series B funding, led by Plural.

The company is building industrial hardware from the atoms up to address the physical constraints of AI infrastructure.

Orbital Industries designs, engineers and manufactures physical infrastructure, using AI to accelerate how new technologies are discovered and brought to market. 

Transition Ventures, an early stage investment firm whose team has founded companies worth over $15 billion across software, hardware and deep tech, has closed a $150 million Fund II, taking its assets under management to over $300m.

The firm is founded on the belief that the most important companies of the next decades will be built at the intersection of AI and the physical world, leveraging the latest technologies to replace legacy systems with cleaner and more efficient alternatives. 

Transition Ventures has been an early investor in a number of notable companies, including Olix, Applied Atomics, Seneca and Upway.

Social impact measurement platform Thrive has announced the appointment of leading social value economist Dr Daniel Fujiwara as its first head of economics.

Fujiwara is set to lead its dedicated in-house economics team.

He co-authored HM Treasury’s Green Book supplementary guidance on wellbeing and is internationally recognised for his work on wellbeing valuation, social value and econometrics. He previously founded Simetrica, the social value research consultancy now part of Simetrica-Jacobs.

Zilch has appointed Florence Quirici as chief corporate affairs officer, joining the executive leadership team to lead global communications and public affairs.

Quirici joins from the Conservative Party, where she served as senior business advisor, and previously held senior public policy roles at Bloomberg and Standard Chartered.

The appointment comes as Zilch prepares for its next phase of international growth following the acquisition of Fjord Bank and the launch of its European banking licence.

With almost 6 million registered customers, over £7 billion in retail sales processed to date, and over £200 million annual revenue run rate, the company is gearing up to extend its model beyond the UK.