Audio tech company RoEx has launched Studio Pro, a premium subscription tier for its Mix Check Studio platform, as it passes a milestone of 5 million tracks enhanced across its AI-driven production tools.

Studio Pro offers unlimited Mastering+ downloads, removing per-track limits for creators who want professional-grade mastering tailored by genre and style.

Built into Mix Check Studio, Mastering+ is designed to optimise audio for different release formats—such as streaming, physical releases or DJ sets—while keeping users in control and requiring no access to stems.

RoEx said the wider adoption is also being driven by its Automix product and API partnerships with platforms including UnitedMasters, Music.AI and Boombox, with plans to expand into post-production for content creation in 2026.

Future Greens, a Sheffield-based startup developing bioreactors that convert unavoidable food and brewery waste into heat and power, has raised £500,000 in new funding.

The package includes £340,000 in equity and a £160,000 UK Government grant, which will be used to develop its proprietary system that it says can process waste up to ten times faster than conventional anaerobic digestion, with brewery customers already lined up.

Backers in the round include PXN Group, One Planet Capital, Baltic Ventures, Venture.Community and Lifted Ventures, and the company now plans to hire chemistry and biochemistry experts.

Future Greens has now attracted more than £800,000 in funding to date and is also receiving a further £100,000 in non-dilutive support through collaborations with the AMRC and the South Yorkshire Innovation Programme at the University of Sheffield.

Author: Patrick Killeen

ABB has agreed to acquire Manchester-headquartered electrical diagnostics specialist IPEC, strengthening its push into predictive monitoring for critical infrastructure.

The Swiss technology group said IPEC brings more than 30 years of expertise in electrical diagnostics, with advanced monitoring systems that track critical electrical infrastructure around the clock. 

The acquisition will expand its Electrification Service portfolio and is intended to support customers shifting from reactive maintenance to proactive asset management. 

Author: Jonathan Symcox

The CEO of Monzo was ousted by the company’s board after a disagreement over its IPO plans, according to reports.

The digital bank, which today has more than 14 million customers, has long planned a public listing, with speculation over the timing and its potential valuation rampant.

In a surprise announcement in October, Monzo said TS Anil would step down in February 2026 and be succeeded by former Google and Standard Chartered exec Diana Layfield, who had originally been lined up to lead its UK business.

At the time, everything seemed cordial – but the Financial Times reports that Anil was at loggerheads with the board over the timing of the stock market flotation, while it doubted his long-term commitment to the company.

 

Author: Patrick Killeen

Atom Bank has officially opened its new Newcastle headquarters after welcoming Economic Secretary to the Treasury Lucy Rigby KC MP to the city last week to mark the move into its new base, The Pattern Shop.

The minister was joined by Newcastle City Council leader Cllr Karen Kilgour, with the visit also recognising the regeneration of the historic building.

Rigby addressed a company-wide meeting during the visit and unveiled a commemorative plaque, with the business saying the relocation underlines its commitment to the region and will bring nearly 600 jobs to Newcastle.

The move to The Pattern Shop is a multi-million-pound relocation from Durham, which Atom said supports its rapid growth, hybrid working approach and ambition to operate as a hub for innovation.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Monzo has made its first acquisition with a swoop for digital mortgage broker Habito. 

The digital bank said the deal, for an undisclosed amount, will see it offer an end-to-end mortgage broking experience within its app.

Monzo has more than 14 million customers and says more than 450,000 of them use its Homeownership feature to track their mortgage, home value and mortgage deals.

Habito, which employs around 100 people and is also based in London, was founded in 2016. Its tech includes mortgage-switching and home-buying services.

The PropTech’s founder Daniel Hegarty stepped down as CEO in 2023 following a tumultuous year, with Ying Tan, an investor and founder of mortgage broker Dynamo – which he exited in 2021 – succeeding him.

Author: Patrick Killeen

London-based employee benefits platform Ben has raised $27.5 million (£20.8m) in a Series B funding round as it looks to challenge legacy systems used by multinational employers to manage increasingly complex benefits programmes.

The round was led by Mercia Ventures, with strong participation from existing investors Atomico, Cherry Ventures, DN Capital and Seedcamp. 

A new backer in this round was Revolut founder Nik Storonsky’s QuantumLight Capital.

The company said the funding will be used to accelerate its product roadmap and strengthen its go-to-market capabilities as demand grows from global enterprises seeking modern alternatives to outdated infrastructure.

Vodafone Group Plc has completed a €175m swoop for Skaylink.

Skaylink is a leading full-service cloud, digital transformation and security specialist with offices throughout Germany and across Europe.

Its team of over 500 professionals are recognised experts at managing cloud deployments and migrations across Microsoft and Amazon Web Services environments and implementing AI solutions for business customers.

Skaylink’s customer-centric business model, capabilities and market presence will provide Vodafone’s business and public sector customers with access to an enhanced suite of digital services and support, Vodafone said.

Author: Chris Maguire

Leading training and skills organisation Apprentify Group has acquired The Graduate Guide, a fast-growing community platform that helps ambitious graduates build careers in the startup world.

Founded by UCL graduates Peter Wood and Marlene Leiss, The Graduate Guide has built a thriving community of 30,000 graduates, with many going on to land roles at the UK’s fastest-growing startups.

Jonathan Fitchew, CEO at Apprentify Group said: “Co-founders Peter and Marlene are a breath of fresh air. They’ve built something truly unique; it’s rare to find young founders who can not only reach high-calibre leaders but also build real relationships with them.

“They have an incredible instinct for what makes people tick. Paired with Apprentify’s engine and expertise, they’re set up to achieve something remarkable.”

Peter Wood, CEO at The Graduate Guide added: “This acquisition allows us to become everything we set out to be and more.

“Becoming part of Apprentify Group allows us to expand our community and break down barriers to entry, whilst ensuring young people are able to thrive in an increasingly competitive job market.”

Author: Patrick Killeen

Shares in SThree have risen by over 7% so far today after the STEM recruitment specialist reported that full-year performance is expected to be in line with guidance and highlighted improving momentum towards the end of its financial year.

The AIM-listed group said profit before tax for the year to 30th November 2025 is expected to be around £25 million, in line with previous guidance, despite a prolonged period of soft market conditions.

Its share price is up at 185.2p today – the highest it has been since September – and the firm currently has a market cap of over £236m.

Revolut has entered the mobile market.

The product is being rolled out to waitlist customers, with general access available in January 2026.

Revolut Mobile offers unlimited 5G data, calls and texts with 20GB of roaming data in the EU and US for a special early-bird rate of only £12.50 per month.

Customers joining from 30th March 2026 onwards will pay £14.99.

Revolut says customers can activate a plan in seconds and choose to keep their existing mobile number or move to a new number with a range of additional features to create a truly personalised plan.

Its coverage will be powered by Gigs.

PropTech Goodlord has appointed serial entrepreneur Alex Depledge MBE to its board as a non-executive director.

The startup provides software and services to streamline the residential lettings process to over 3,500 letting agent brands across the UK. Its technology processes tens of thousands of tenancies per month and supports over a million users each year.

Depledge is currently the CEO and founder of Resi, the largest residential architect in the UK. After founding the business in 2016, Depledge and her team have gone on to deliver over 10,000 projects nationwide. Prior to launching Resi, she founded and exited the cleaning platform Hassle.com.

She also currently serves as the Entrepreneurship Advisor to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and sits as an NED on the board of FTSE-100 member Persimmon PLC.

Author: Jonathan Symcox

Virgin Media O2 has officially opened its new state-of-the-art North West HQ in central Manchester.

The new office, on John Dalton Street just off Deansgate, will be home to approximately 1,100 staff. 

With the lease of its Wythenshawe office due to expire in early 2026, the telecoms giant undertook a comprehensive review of its property options in the area and signed a 10-year agreement with Island to take around 50% of the new site. 

Island is a net zero carbon workspace being developed by joint venture partners HBD (part of Henry Boot plc) and Greater Manchester Pensions Fund.

Author: Rich House, tech lead, Counter

With studies suggesting 70% of transformation projects do not succeed, this is a subject which creates a lot of debate. 

Big Bang projects are so called for a reason, the emphasis for those involved in implementing them often being on the BANG. No matter how much preparation goes into it, at some point you have to ‘pull the lever’ and hope you have anticipated all the worst things that could happen, and that the team is capable enough to deal with the rest in a timely manner. 

Days and weeks can be lost to planning, rehearsing and documenting a single set of actions, rather than focusing on the benefits of the changes you are making.

Some Big Bangs are unavoidable; but many can be reduced to their absolute minimum with careful planning and forethought. Working with a company which evangelises incremental change can be a big step towards that aim. 

The benefits of incrementalism reach much further than simply avoiding large inflection points – you can demonstrate value much earlier, increasing stakeholder engagement and buy-in. Communication to your business can be simpler and much more dynamic.

Changes in direction and reversing of decisions has a lot less impact and makes your company (yes, I’m going to use the word) a lot more agile. And your teams feel more empowered, engaged and energetic, ultimately increasing their productivity.

Author: Patrick Killeen

Neuven Solutions managing director Kate Roberts has sadly passed away after a battle with an aggressive form of cancer. 

The company announced the news, paying tribute to a senior leader who played a central role in the growth and direction of the business over nearly eight years.

A separate LinkedIn post was shared from Roberts’ own account by her brother Phil, who wrote: “It is with profound sadness that I must share that Kate passed away peacefully on Friday last week.

“She approached her diagnosis and treatment with the same bravery, courage, and determination that defined how she lived her life; she fought until the very end.

“She was indefatigable and never lost her sense of humour or positive outlook throughout the entire journey. As a family, we will forever cherish the moments we shared together, and her legacy will live on through all those whose lives she touched.

“We have been overwhelmed by the messages of love and support from her friends and colleagues, and are incredibly grateful for them.

“Kate had such a positive impact on so many people’s lives, and we take great pride in her achievements, both professionally and personally.

“We are in the process of arranging the funeral and a celebration of her life, and I will be in touch at the appropriate time to share further details.”

Roberts had worked at Neuven Solutions, a provider of technology-enabled staffing solutions, for more than seven years. 

The government says Britain’s Armed Forces will be better equipped and smaller defence firms will benefit from faster growth after committing more than £142 million this year to innovative drone systems and anti-drone weapons through UK Defence Innovation (UKDI).

The new unit, launched earlier this year, will also invest around £30m in counter-drone technology aimed at protecting the UK and allies amid what it describes as increasing Russian-linked drone incursions across Europe.

UKDI was launched by Defence Secretary John Healey MP in July as a new focal point for innovation within the Ministry of Defence, backed by a ringfenced annual budget of at least £400m and a contracting approach designed to help companies scale prototypes rapidly.

While many of the firms involved have not been named, the department said the drone investment includes 20 British SMEs, 11 micro-SMEs and two UK academic institutions.

Maximum Information has closed a £2.3 million seed round led by Insurtech Gateway, with participation from Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures, Convex and Portfolio Ventures, as it builds what it describes as the first vendor-agnostic middleware for catastrophe risk analytics.

The London-based company says the raise reflects growing demand for tools that can help risk carriers compare, stress test and unify outputs across an increasingly complex landscape of catastrophe modelling providers.

The business points to the scale of the challenge, noting that natural catastrophes caused $417 billion in economic losses in 2024, with less than 40% insured and a global protection gap of $263bn.

Its flagship platform, MagniPhi, is designed to sit inside existing modelling workflows and give users clearer, faster insight into their models to support decision-making for insurers, brokers and financial institutions.

Founded in 2020, Maximum Information says its focus is on improving resilience to natural disasters by helping organisations better understand and manage catastrophe and climate-related risks.

University of Leeds spinout IVFmicro has secured a £3.5 million pre-seed investment to advance a microfluidic device designed to improve embryo quality and numbers in IVF cycles.

Co-founded in 2018 by Dr Virginia Pensabene and Professor Helen Picton, the company will use the funding, led by Northern Gritstone with support from the Innovate UK Investor Partnerships Programme, to complete its next verification and validation phase ahead of trials on human embryos in fertility clinics.

The technology aims to address stubbornly low IVF success rates of around 25-30% for women under 35, partly driven by limitations in traditional embryo culture methods.

The business says its device can deliver a 10-15% improvement in embryo quality and quantity, potentially increasing the chances of implantation and pregnancy.

FoodTech firm OSY Group is ramping up its global growth after securing a new partnership in Australia with packaging manufacturer Multisteps.

The five-year agreement, running until November 2030, will see the company’s antimicrobial coating applied to packaging for fresh fruit and vegetables sold in the Australian market.

The coating uses microscopic pins on packaging surfaces to puncture and kill microbes, helping produce stay fresh for longer by slowing the spoiling process.

Multisteps and OSY are also collaborating in China and plan to jointly explore opportunities in the US.

NCC Group and THG investor Kelso Group Holdings is looking to raise an initial £1m to expand its portfolio – although the figure could eventually rise to £2m.

Kelso believes the depressed UK stock market is the perfect time for investment and believes the extra firepower will enable it to grow its investments from five to ‘seven or eight’.

Kelso is an activist investor and was established in November 2022 to ‘unlock trapped value’ in the UK stock market.

It specifically looks for companies where it believes the current share price doesn’t reflect the real value of the business.

On Tuesday morning, Kelso announced that its original £1m fundraising had been ‘upsized’ with a further announcement on the outcome to be made ‘in due course’.

The fundraising will be by way of a placing and subscription of new ordinary shares.

Kelso has carried out three previous fundraises, raising £3m in January 2023 at a price of 2p per share; £3m in June 2023 at a price of 2.5p per share and £1.9m in February 2024 at a price of 3p per share.

The latest fundraising is expected to be undertaken at a placing price of 3p per share and will be carried out within the company’s existing shareholder authorities and with no requirement to publish a prospectus.

CEO John Goold (pictured), who was chief executive of Zeus from 2012-2021 and is a non-executive director of Debenhams Group, said: “Now that the budget is out of the way we think that UK small / mid cap can begin a proper rally which should last several years.”