A mid-Wales-based start-up which plans to make DNA testing technology as easy to use as a smartphone has been backed with a £350,000 equity investment from the Development Bank of Wales, alongside £185,000 from London-based tech investors SFC Capital.

Synthavo has secured a €4 million seed investment co-led by Samaipata, the pan-European venture capital fund specializing in digital businesses with network effects, and Senovo, who back European B2B software founders with US ambitions. The funding round also included participation from active business angels such as Rainer Hundsdörfer, Tobias Rieke (Market-Pilot) and Oliver Bendig.

The Bettii Pod Ltd, a pioneering FemTech start-up founded in 2021 by CEO Elaine Galston, has successfully raised £337,000 to further its mission of normalising and destigmatising menstruation while promoting sustainable menstrual practices.

The Bettii Pod's innovative menstrual cup/disc washer is designed for installation within the cubicles of away from home toilets, addressing the practical challenges faced by users of reusable menstrual products. By focusing on convenience and hygiene, the company is poised to drive adoption of sustainable menstrual solutions, advancing the FemTech hardware sector.

The investment was led by Edinburgh angel syndicate Equity Gap, with co-investment from Scottish Enterprise. Lifted Ventures introduced 12 angel investors to participate in the deal. Lifted Ventures contributed not only by helping The Bettii Pod raise capital from its angel network, but also by bringing expertise, connections, and strategic guidance.

AI Simulator, a world-first technology that uses AI to replicate the private investment market, is set to join the American Angel Capital Association as a consultant to develop a curriculum for their Deep Tech toolkit. This prestigious project, funded by the Nation Science Foundation, aims to educate early-stage investors.

The Investment Fund for Northern Ireland (IFNI) has deployed £5.95m of equity investment in its first year of operation, leveraging a total of £14.6m of investment across deals with six local companies.

The established premier pitching competition of the West Midlands is back, with a closing date for applications at 9.00 am on 6th January 2025.

Axial3D, a leader in creating AI-powered 3D medical imaging algorithms, automated planning and patient specific 3D solutions, has announced the completion of a new investment round totalling USD 18.2 million

Wilder Sensing, a developer of software for biodiversity monitoring using audio and Artificial Intelligence (AI), has secured a £300,000 equity investment from the South West Investment Fund, via appointed Fund Manager The FSE Group.

This forms part of a £700,000 investment round that also includes Oxford Innovation Finance and Cambridge Angels. The new funding will enable the company to create 15 new jobs, increasing its capacity to deliver cutting-edge solutions in biodiversity data collection and analysis.

Business research and development (R&D) investment in the UK has fallen, according to new data. In real terms, investment dropped by 3% to £50 billion in 2023 compared to 2022, continuing a downward trend that has seen a decline of over 6% since 2021 - a drop of £3.4 billion in real terms.

MADRID, Spain: Dcycle, Spain's leading ESG data management platform, has closed a €6 million Series A round led by Samaipata, with continued support from existing investors Ship2B Ventures, Sabadell Venture Capital, Draper B1, Decelera Ventures, and Angels Capital.

Seneca Partners, the North West-based private equity and investment manager, has successfully exited its investment in 23.5 Degrees, the UK’s largest Starbucks franchise, generating a 7.5x return for their investors from the transaction.

carbmee, a leader in AI-powered carbon management software, has completed a €20 million funding round.

The round was led by CommerzVentures, the leading climate fintech investor, with participation from Fly Ventures and a number of angel investors This fresh infusion of capital will be used to drive product innovation and expand carbmee's reach to enterprises around the globe.