Here’s your weekly roundup of news about startup competitions, awards, accelerators, and any other exciting developments in the UK tech sector.
The Europas 2017 winners
The Europa Startup Conference and Awards ceremony took place in London this week.
More than 10,000 and 30 judges voted to pick the top tech startups in the continent.
The winners were:
- Hottest Media/Entertainment Startup: Jukedeck
- Hottest E-commerce/Retail Startup: Trouva
- Hottest Education Startup: Kahoot
- Hottest Startup Accelerator: Entrepreneur First
- Hottest Marketing/AdTech Startup: Lobster
- Hottest Games Startup: Space Ape Games
- Hottest Mobile Startup: Grabble
- Hottest FinTech Startup: Revolut
- Hottest Enterprise, SaaS or B2B Startup: OnFido
- Hottest Hardware Startup: Elvie
- Hottest Platform Economy / Marketplace: Uniplaces
- Hottest Health Startup: Babylon Health
- Hottest Cybersecurity Startup: Ravelin
- Hottest Blockchain/Crypto Startup: Setl
- Hottest Travel Startup: GetYourGuide
- Hottest Internet of Things Startup: relayr
- Hottest Technology Innovation: what3words
- Hottest FashionTech Startup: Thread
- Hottest GreenTech Startup of The Year: Podpoint
- Hottest Tech For Good: WeFarm
- Fastest Rising Startup Of The Year: Improbable
- Hottest A.I. Startup: BenevolentAI
- Hottest CEO of the Year: Gareth Williams, Skyscanner
- Hottest Startup Founders: Monzo (Tom Blomfield, Jonas Huckestein, Jason Bates, Paul Rippon and Gary Dolman)
FinTech regulatory sandbox
The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has announced new regulations to create a regulatory sandbox that will allow UK FinTechs to test and experiment their banking ideas and solutions.
The regulatory sandbox will provide firms with the opportunity to expand and thrive in the gulf and will seek to strengthen Bahrain’s position in the global FinTech scene.
The framework provides a virtual space for companies to test their technology-based innovative solutions, and is open to existing CBB licensees and other local and foreign firms. The testing duration is nine months, with a maximum extension of three months.
To apply, solutions need to demonstrate innovation, customer benefit, technical testing, and an intention to be deployed in Bahrain after the sandbox period ends.
H.E. Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj, governor of the CBB, said: “These new initiatives are a continuation of the CBB’s efforts to provide the right mix of policies and products to develop and enhance the quality and competitiveness of services in the financial sector. We are living in an era of unprecedented changes mainly brought about by technological advancement, where we are witnessing how technology is defining financial services and CBB remains at the forefront of these developments to enable the industry to advance similarly.”
Google’s Digital Skills Academy
Google has announced the opening of a 40,000-square foot space in Central London dedicated to educating and inspiring everyone from school children to CEOs.
The space will house internal and external industry experts and will act as a base for building events in partnership with everyone from government to charitable organisations to further drive the digital skills agenda.
The opening of the new Google Academy space follows the news that Google will open its new headquarters in London and provide up to 3000 new jobs by 2020.
Ronan Harris, Google UK MD said: “London’s ambition to grow, harness new technologies, and build the brightest and best companies has been a constant over the last decade.
“When the tech community with industries ranging from fashion and music to automotives and AI have worked in partnership with government, the Mayor’s office and passionate communities supporting startups and scaleups, new jobs have been created and London has shown it can lead the way in a competitive global environment.
“It’s fantastic to welcome London Tech Week to Google’s new Academy to discuss how we can ensure the next decade of growth for our capital city. With over 40,000 sqft of innovative educational space in central London The Academy has been created to educate and inspire everyone from schoolchildren to CEOs as part of Google’s plans to help build digital capability across the country.”
Rajesh Agrawal, deputy mayor for business, added: “London Tech Week is shining a light on this incredibly important sector of our economy.
“The capital is already home to some of the best tech and creative minds in the world but we must continue to ensure that our city’s workforce has the right skills to meet the jobs of tomorrow.
“I am pleased that Google is helping to make digital training and educational programmes available to people from all backgrounds.”
Ford Smart Mobility Innovation Office
And last but not least, Ford has announced it will be opening a dedicated Smart Mobility Innovation Office in London focusing on future mobility solutions for Europe.
The new office located on the Here East campus on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, will have an initial capacity for around 40 specialists and is set to open later this year.
“Basing our rapidly growing team here in the heart of mobility innovation in London is critical to accelerating our learning and development of new technologies. The location at Here East will allow us greater collaboration and the out-of-the-box thinking needed to tackle the urban transport challenges of tomorrow,” said Steven Armstrong, group vice president and president of Europe, Middle East and Africa,Ford Motor Company, at the opening of London Tech Week.
“We will also be ideally placed to build on existing partner projects and have access to London’s world-class digital talent. Both will be key as we build towards our ambition of being a global leader in mobility solutions.”