London Is Playing Matchmaker Between Startups And Investors

Love is in the air – for London startups and top investors.

The first in a series of 20 planned matchmaking events for London tech startups and top investors has kicked off this month as part of the Mayor of London’s TechInvest Programme.

The events, which will run over the next four years, aim to boost investment and showcase top startups spanning across various tech sectors. The series is backed by City Hall and the UK British Angels Associations (UKBAA).

The TechInvest Programme is matching startups with investors

The first event, to take place January 18, will focus on artificial intelligence (AI) startups, and will spotlight businesses in transportation, retail, healthcare, manufacturing and financial sectors.

A leading panel of AI experts chose businesses from across the capital that had the potential to scale and truly catapult London’s sector globally. Judges included Wendy Tan-White MBE, a partner at BGF Ventures and Tabitha Goldstaub, a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of CognitionX, a market intelligence platform.

Startups as diverse as London-based data insights platform Duel to Skin Analytics, which allows users to track the health of skin moles using a smartphone, were awarded a spot.

“These events will showcase the fantastic creativity of London’s tech community and will enable entrepreneurs to connect with leading investors,” said Mayor Khan. “I’m confident that this programme will help even more companies to realise their potential to grow and develop.”

There will be five events each year, each focusing on a specific tech sector. Future events will reportedly showcase virtual reality (VR) and ‘govtech’ companies, which look to digitise government services.

Like this? Find out which tech sector is dominating London’s entrepreneurship scene, learn why London is Europe’s tech capital, or read our tech editor’s take on the 2018 lookout for European entrepreneurship.

About the author

Claire Lancaster

Tech & Entrepreneurship Editor

English-American, Claire has lived and worked in the U.S., South America, Europe and the UK. As Culture Trip’s tech and entrepreneurship editor she covers the European startup scene and issues ranging from Internet privacy to the intersection of the web with civil society, journalism, public policy and art. Claire holds a master’s in international journalism from City University, London and has contributed to outlets including Monocle, NPR, Public Radio International and the BBC World Service. When not writing or travelling, she can be found searching for London's best brunch spot or playing with her cat, Diana Ross.