The 24 most inspiring digital technology startups in the UK

From building AI-enabled neural networks to understand the human brain, to a multi-sensory sonic theme park, and revolutionising forensics in law enforcement, the shortlist for Digital Catapult’s Platinum Awards celebrates the UK’s brightest talent and most exciting innovation across the UK’s emerging digital technology sectors.

Digital Catapult has the immense privilege of discovering and nurturing the next generation of leading technology companies. We work with around 500 early stage and scaleup companies every year on our various activities; acceleration programmes, corporate matching programmes and collaborative research and development. This year we are celebrating these achievements at the Platinum Awards; a prestigious initiative recognising and celebrating the most innovative advanced digital technology startups and scaleups the country has to offer.

As a way of shining a light on the leading companies to have come out of our programmes and who have achieved the best market traction, the following businesses have been shortlisted. Their incredible work is helping to create new markets, innovative products, solutions and experiences that address real business challenges and demonstrate the richness and talent the UK has to offer.

Through working with Digital Catapult these startups and scaleups have raised millions in funding and grants, achieved national and international media interest, and secured strategic partnerships and new business with organisations across the world.

All Seeing Eye: Exploring the future of storytelling, film making and interactive design. All Seeing Eye collaborates with other organisations and artists from broadcast, film, theatre and opera to explore the possibilities emerging technology brings to traditional forms of storytelling and experiential marketing.

Also Known As: Also Known As is a storytelling, research and design studio, creating real stories in virtual worlds. It uses immersive technology to shape interactive experiences, working with technologists, traditional media companies and audiences to create new workflows that are the future of non-fiction storytelling.

axial3D: axial3D is a medical technology firm driving the global adoption of 3D printing in healthcare. The business has been chosen for its innovation in the medical field, where it is creating bespoke models designed to improve diagnosis, aid clinicians and help plan a personalised treatment for each individual patient.

BIOS: BIOS is a leading neural engineering company, creating the technology for the future of bionics. It is creating the open standard hardware and software interfaces between the human nervous system and AI. Its groundbreaking research enables clinicians to understand the ‘language’ of the nerves as a basis for delivering treatment.

Boom Clap Play: A production company on a mission to inspire curiosity and encourage the art of play. Boom Clap Play work across TV, gaming and VR, using design, animation and audio to create stimulating experiences for your eyes, ears and brains.

ChAI: ChAI help mitigate commodity price volatility by forecasting prices using traditional and alternative data (including satellite and maritime) and the latest in AI techniques over time horizons of one day to one year. It’s vision is to provide SME manufacturers with the same price risk mitigation tools currently only available to their larger peers.

Cyan Forensics: Cyan Forensics transforms investigators’ ability to find evidence fast and share contraband data by providing software built on new science in digital forensics. It is working towards making the world a safer place, by aiding law enforcement in catching paedophiles and terrorists.

DARKFIELD: DARKFIELD is a multi-sensory sonic theme park. Behind the doors of each shipping container a strange world unfolds. Its work is at the forefront of technology and theatre, using a variety of sensory effects to situate each audience member at the centre of intense evolving narratives.

East City Films: Best known for producing VR documentaries about issues of social justice East City Films is a dedicated VR studio focused on creating the very best In immersive experiences.

HoloMe: HoloMe puts humans into AR for brands to increase conversion and engagement. It brings humans to life via the incredible power of AR on mobile devices. Harnessing the true sense of size, scale, and detail to create a uniquely immersive visual experience.

Humanising Autonomy: Humanising Autonomy build human-centered tools that define how autonomous systems interact with people. Its pedestrian intent prediction platform makes autonomous vehicles safer and more efficient in urban environments.

Intellisense.io: Intellisense.io is an industrial AI company making mining operations efficient, sustainable and safe through trusted and open AI solutions. Its platform ‘brains.app’ and applications are used across mining operations in Chile, Australia, Kazakhstan, Brazil and South Africa with a focus on the mine to marketing value chain.

IoT Solutions: IoT Solutions Group is an IoT systems integrator with an emphasis on buildings and infrastructure solutions. It designs and delivers cutting edge end-to-end IoT solutions.

Kagenova: Kagenova develop deep tech to engineer realism and interactivity at the same time and at scale. These new immersive technologies are powered by its novel artificial intelligence methods, which are tailored to virtual reality.

Mativison: Mativision is the market leader in producing and delivering interactive 360° video content and immersive experiences from live and recorded events.

Meterian: Meterian aims to become the go-to platform for small and medium sized businesses’ continuous application security. Meterian’s platform secures open source components to prevent critical loss of basic functionality and security so that companies can ship software without vulnerabilities.

Metro-Boulot-Dodo: Metro-Boulot-Dodo brings stories to life using a blend of art and technology, it creates immersive and emotive experiences and tells compelling stories from our past and present to create a bright future.

Ori: Ori Industries is building the next generation of the cloud. Their edge technology solutions empower developers and networks to build future applications and deliver premium, innovative experiences.

See.Sense: See.Sense exists to make cycling better. It has developed award-winning bike lights that give cyclists more visibility on their ride, and cities more information on their roads. Its lights are used by more than 30,000 cyclists across 70 countries.

Smartia: Smartia provides scalable artificial intelligence solutions that drive value from operational data by digitising industrial assets.

Smartify: Smartify delivers an award-winning visitor guide, an app that allows users to scan exhibits to access related content, flexible content management and data analysis software – plus the methodology, resources and support to help arts organisations connect with visitors.

Volta: Volta is a VR/AR/3D (desktop) application for music producers, performers and content creators. It is a user interface that replaces knobs, buttons and sliders with space, interaction and movement to make audio production expressive and artistic like playing an instrument, make creating spatial audio easy, fun and intuitive and enable new forms of music consumption.

VRM Tech: VRM Tech has developed a building monitoring solution which integrates into a building’s existing management system to collect additional measurements (e.g. humidity) bringing together all the data in a powerful dashboard which helps to ensure a building’s environmental conditions can be optimised for inhabitants.

WILD: Until now, female athletes have relied on training protocols, injury guidelines and nutrition plans based on research conducted with men. WILD.AI enables women to reach their race objective with an app-based AI coach. Cycle after cycle, it helps female athletes to reach peak performance.

An exclusive group of just eight of the best and brightest UK startups from the shortlist will be recognised at Digital Catapult’s 2019 Platinum Awards, and the winners will be announced at an exclusive event on 26 November.

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