15 Digital Start-ups Named for Launchpad Programme

Following an intense competition, 15 high-potential digital start-ups have been identified from a field of almost 100 applicants for the NDRC Launchpad acceleration programme, which started last week. NDRC Launchpad will culminate in a year-end Liftoff competition for a follow-on investment sourced from venture capitalists and private investors.

The National Digital Research Centre (NDRC) is fuelling the Launchpad participants with up to €20,000 in micro-seed investment for each business during the programme, plus a structured programme of hands-on mentoring during the 12 weeks from the NDRC which includes executives with experience in start-ups, multinational companies, venture capital investment, and research.

The new Launchpad entrepreneurs have brought a diverse range of innovative ideas to the programme.  They have already invested considerable time and money in their projects, many have given up full-time jobs to start their companies and Launchpad will support them intensively in bringing their businesses and products to market.

The projects range from web-based systems for customer analytics, inventory management, accounts administration and regulatory compliance to multilingual marketing, temping, fashion networking, customer loyalty schemes, sports, lifestyle and music networking services and entertainment.

NDRC Launchpad will help the new innovators to evolve their businesses with support from experienced professionals and potential investors.  NDRC is a partner in the start-ups, helping them to connect with customers and to evolve their business model and value proposition.

The teams ‘eat, breathe and sleep’ at NDRC during their 12 weeks, with full office space provided, and the start-ups work closely beside each other, meeting regularly for presentations and sharing, comparing and discussing their plans.

NDRC Launchpad Director Gary Leyden said: “Everybody can be entrepreneurial, all you need is a clever idea and the ambition to bring it forward.  What we provide is the know-how and structured approach that our Launchpad entrepreneurs will benefit from long after this programme has concluded.

“Our job is to help them to refine their product offering, research and identify their target markets, check their commercial and business projections and answer the requirements of the investment community which they will ultimately pitch to for funding. Considering the intense competition for participation in Launchpad, this is an excellent opportunity for these new businesses to move rapidly from ideas to income, creating jobs and market value in the process.”

Details of Participating Enterprises:

Prescience AI

Prescience AI increases game purchases for freemium game developers by tracking and analyzing the behavior of successful players who have purchased items and using that information to influence the behavior of other players.
www.prescienceai.com

Stockenvy
Stockenvy aims to disrupt conventional B2B Buying models by enabling small businesses to obtain the same high volume discounts as larger businesses, while only buying the quantities they require. By facilitating buying groups, Stockenvy will help small businesses collectively meet higher MOQ levels & significantly reduce their overall inventory costs.

Update 2018: Stockenvy did not meet projections and went under. Domain no longer active.

ZenDoc
ZenDoc is transforming compliance for businesses in regulated industries. It is a web-based tool that simplifies the management of policies, procedures, and compliance. It reduces costs through automating workflow and compliance data recording, in addition to improving compliance visibility and staff buy-in.

Voucher Link
Voucher Link enables Facebook users to give gift vouchers from local businesses
to their friends.
www.thevoucherlink.com

VideoScamp
VideoScamp will be online retailers’ number one destination to harness the power of video. Its web-based B2B video review management system delivers massive SEO gains and drives customer loyalty and conversions through user-generated content. Through a better shopping experience and educating consumers with product information, retailers experience fewer cart abandons and returns.

 www.videoscamp.com  

Tempity
Tempity directly connects businesses with available temps. Its platform allows employers to instantly see all of the available temps in their vicinity, sorted by skills match and location. Tempity also creates a more flexible work environment; temps can work when they want, how they want.
Note: As of Aug. 2019, this site was suspended and no longer accessible.

BusyMoos
BusyMoos is a booking network, allowing busy ladies to connect with their most frequently used businesses.  It is quicker, cheaper and allows “always on” access to products, services and available times.

Prowlster
What Will I Wear Today is a fashion and lifestyle site based in Ireland. The people behind it are developing this static site into a lifestyle-focused social network that provides an innovative platform for young people and brands to engage more effectively online. What? is a social-media marketplace.

Buzzoo
Buzzoo is an innovative social music solution and the digital hub that connects people to music and others at social venues.

 buzzoo.fm  

Reverbeo
Reverbeo is a real-time, rapid, multilingual communication platform set to revolutionize global marketing. Canjingo enables organizations to effectively manage their marketing translation and localization globally, taking the pain out of antiquated translation workflows by organizing and leveraging localization professionals in a real-time, rapid collaboration environment.
Reverbeo.com  

Sendrr
Senddr is an online invoice exchange where businesses can send and receive sales and purchase invoices. Using Senddr, businesses no longer have to manually key in invoices as they are received, they are instead posted directly into their accounting software.

www.senddr.com

balls.net
Balls.net is an up-to-the-second social media-driven sportswire that provides fans with an enhanced experience of the online conversation taking place around every relevant sporting event while equipping sports media organizations with the tools they need to stay ahead of the latest news breaking online.

PowWow
Powwow is a Digital Entertainment and Transmedia Production company that develops, produces and delivers multi-platform entertainment content to broadcasters and also direct to the consumer. Recognizing that audiences are becoming increasingly fragmented across a range of devices, it aims to create entertainment that bridges this fragmented landscape.

Mobstats
From the stadium spectators report activity using their smartphone to record events from a game, producing data available for statistical analysis and syndication. It attributes each action (pass, shot, booking) to a player in real-time as fans engage with a game-like app while building up a rich map of each match throughout a season.

IGeoComms
iGeoComms Ltd is the providers of an online location-based communications system.  Through its secure platform, clients can send alerts, notifications and/ or advisories to geographically targeted audiences facilitating the immediate and timely dissemination of key, up-to-date information.  Its platform can be used at any time, in any setting, by anyone