The first speakers have been confirmed for TechBlast’s inaugural FUEL Manchester event on 20th September.
FUEL Manchester is a two-part event aimed at promising startups and scaleups and begins with a business breakfast discussion.
Paul Gouge, co-founder of Playdemic, and Richard Potter, CEO of Manchester-based artificial intelligence scaleup Peak, have both confirmed for the breakfast discussion, which takes place at KPMG’s Manchester office in St Peter’s Square.
Part two of FUEL Manchester is an exclusive masterclass where a select group of businesses will gain direct access to panels of experts.
The session will be split into dedicated pods and involve a deep dive on the subjects raised in the morning session with respected names from the world of business.
FUEL Manchester is being hosted at KPMG’s Manchester office in St Peter’s Square. KPMG and Salford Business School are its first confirmed sponsors. Interested potential sponsors from the investment, legal, recruitment and PR & marketing sectors can contact commercial director Gary Williams at this email address to discuss involvement.
Gouge is best known as the co-founder of Cheshire-based Playdemic in 2010, the studio behind hit mobile game Golf Clash. Videogame giant Electronic Arts bought Playdemic in a £1 billion deal in 2021.
Potter is the CEO and co-founder of artificial intelligence company Peak, which enables companies to embed AI into the core of their decision-making and operations. The company has been backed heavily by investors, including £55 million in Series C funding in 2021.
Other speakers confirmed for the day include: Susanna Lawson, founder of OneFile, which was acquired by Ottawa-headquartered global software provider Harris in 2021; Nisha Sharma, head of TMT, M&A North and national head of HealthTech M&A at KPMG; and Amman Ahmed, co-founder of MusicForPets, which has just been bought by Hollywood-based tech giant Create Music Group.
The business breakfast runs from 8am-9.30am and is free to attend. The cost for participating in the masterclass sessions will be £495+VAT and include follow-up support including a mock virtual pitch, pitch deck feedback and edited press release.