Manchester-based charity technology startup Raiser has secured innovation funding and attracted investment from former JustGiving adviser Daryl Upsall as it targets its next phase of growth.
The company, which is developing an AI-enabled platform to connect charities with potential funders, has also strengthened its leadership expertise with the addition of experienced figures from the charity, philanthropy and financial sectors.
Daryl Upsall, an internationally recognised fundraising consultant who advised JustGiving’s founders during its early development and launch, has joined as an investor and ambassador.
Zahra Hedges, former chief executive of Winning Scotland and IoD Director of the Year (Third Sector) 2025, has recently joined as an adviser, while Mark Carrigan, a specialist in philanthropy and capital mobilisation, joined Raiser’s board as a non-executive director earlier this year.
The innovation funding, awarded by the GM Business Growth Hub, will support development of Raiser’s grant-matching technology and its wider growth ambitions.
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Founded by former charity leaders, Raiser is developing a technology platform designed to tackle inefficiencies in the charitable funding market by connecting organisations seeking grants with those providing them.
While existing fundraising and grant-management platforms typically serve either charities or funders, Raiser is building shared infrastructure for both, allowing charities to capture and communicate their impact while helping funders discover suitable organisations, assess their work and manage funding relationships.
The business operates a model that keeps its charity-facing service free, with revenue intended to come from funders using its technology and services.
The innovation funding will support development of a grant-matching engine designed to identify suitable funding relationships based on what charities actually do, rather than relying on keywords in grant applications.
Built around shared definitions of charitable activities, outcomes and impact, the technology forms part of Raiser’s wider ambition to establish shared data infrastructure for the sector, reducing administrative costs and improving the efficiency of grant-making.
Luke Wilkinson is a co-founder of Raiser and a former charity chief executive with 18 years’ experience in the sector.
“Right now, small charities lose out for not using the ‘right’ jargon and funders are buried in applications, unclear which charities to back. Meanwhile the quiet grassroots groups doing vital work go unseen. Keyword searches and black-box algorithms don’t fix that,” he said.
“We’re building a meaning-based alternative. Every recommendation is explainable, and humans still make the decisions.”
The appointments bring significant expertise in fundraising, organisational growth and capital mobilisation to support Raiser’s development.
Upsall brings more than 40 years of international fundraising experience, having helped pioneer face-to-face fundraising with Greenpeace International. Hedges more than doubled the annual income of Winning Scotland during her time as chief executive, while Carrigan, managing director of Carrigan Consulting, has advised more than 100 organisations across five continents in raising over $590 million.
Beckie Denny, co-founder of Raiser, said: “We’ve built Raiser around a problem we know firsthand from working in the charity sector, but we also see a significant opportunity to change how the wider funding market operates. By creating a platform that serves both charities and funders, we believe we can build a sustainable, scalable business while making charitable funding more accessible and effective.
“Securing innovation funding and attracting the support of people with Daryl, Zahra and Mark’s experience is an important step as we develop the technology and work towards the next stage of growth.”