Top 10 Startups to Watch in 2023

Did you know, the UK, is increasingly becoming known for the opportunities it provides to startups? In fact, the number of startup incubators in the UK has doubled over the last five years. It’s now over 700.

The startup culture is predominant throughout the country, and we’re loving it. Recent stats have shown that London remains the top city for businesses looking to make a name for themselves. There are many diverse startups to watch out for in the UK, let’s take a look.

Top 10 Startups to Watch in 2023

1. NCLE

NCLE is the brainchild of Walid Hosni and was founded in 2022. Its headquarters are in London, UK, with up to 10 employees. NCLE is one of the leading startups to watch in the UK’s Ed Tech industry. They offer courses and expert lectures that allow students to upgrade their management skills.

Their course material involves face to face sessions, online learning materials, and activities. Although the information about the company and its investor is unknown, it went through a pre seed funding round on December 1st - so congratulations there!

Some of the many courses the company has to offer include:

• Internal Auditing

• Project Management

• Human Resource Management (HRM)

• Supply Chain Management (SCM)

• Doctorate of Business Administration (DBA)

NCLE is one of the most rapidly expanding startups in the UK, with over 11,000 students enrolled throughout various disciplines.

2. Builder.ai

Builder.ai, founded by Sachin Dev Duggal and Saurabh Dhoot in 2016 is one of the most successful tech startups in the UK. Boasting a team of over 500 and counting, they provide an innovative platform that allows non developers to build and launch software projects without having to code.

Their innovative no code approach allows them to provide software development services at unmatched and affordable prices. Builder.ai is backed by nine investors and has raised funding slights lower than $200 million. Their most recent Series C funding round concluded on March 30th. Some of their solutions include:

• Builder Studio - create your app and own the code

• Studio Store - use apps to sell products or services

• Builder Now - develop a prototype for your app

• Studio Rapid - build and launch enterprise level apps

As Builder.ai sails into their scaleup phase, we can’t wait to see what they do next.

3. Atoa

Atoa was founded by Sid Narayanan, Cian O'Dowd, and Arun Rajkumar in 2022. It currently has up to 50 employees. It’s one of the UK's leading FinTech startups and aims to reduce payment fees for merchants. Their flat fee is 70% lower than card machines and allows instant payment access.

The company is backed by a single investor and has managed to secure $2.2 million in pre seed funding. Atoa allows customers to simply scan QR codes and approve payments using internet banking. Their biometrics and face ID scanning serves as an added security feature that eliminates the risk of fraud. Some of their features include:

• In-Store QR - a safe and reliable alternative for card transactions

• Phone QR - customers can scan QR codes and make payments

• Payment by SMS - send payment requests via SMS, Whatsapp, or Email

Atoa is a low cost, secure payment alternative that offers 14 days of free transactions for downloading the app. And we see big things coming for them in 2023.

4. Nothing

Nothing is one of the more diverse startups to watch out for in the UK. The company was founded by Carl Pei and Akis Evangelidis in 2020 and currently has over 3000 employees. As a result of their recent equity based crowdfunding campaign, the company has managed to raise €6.3M.

They aim to strengthen customer and technology relationships by providing gadgets with innovative designs and features. The Nothing Phone (1) remains the company's main offering. It comes equipped with the Snapdragon 788G+ and has a 50-megapixel (MP) camera. Some of their other products include:

• Ear (1)

• Ear (stick)

• Phone (1) case

• Phone (1) screenprotector

As well as their crowdfunding investors, Nothing has been backed by around 25 investors since December 2020 - impressive stuff!

5. Solvo.ai

Solvo.ai is the brainchild of Gaurav Bajaj and was founded in 2021. The company aims to use artificial intelligence (AI) to assist supply chain management. The AI platform uses logistical expertise, past performance, and market data to improve supply chain operations. In addition, it allows organisations to use automated decision making.

The company is backed by four investors and recently completed a seed funding round in November 2022. As a result, Solvo.ai has managed to raise more than £3.5 Million. Some of Solvo.ai’s features include:

• Optimal pricing that caters to changing customer preferences

• Quick response to changes caused by supply chain disruptions

• Uncertainty metrics are used to predict supply and demand changes

Their solutions enable business leaders to develop and test pricing strategies, by combining domain expertise and machine learning.

6. Napo

Napo was founded by Jean-Phillipe Doumeng and Ludovic Lacay in 2021 and has up to 50 employees. It’s a prominent startup in the InsurTech market and aims to provide fair and transparent pet insurance. Napo has made caring for pets easier and more affordable with yearly prices of just £75 per condition.

The company managed to raise around £2 million through seed funding. Since then, they’ve won over the investors and secured around £15 million in their Series A funding round. Napo currently has a simple online claim process that can be completed by the customer’s vet. Some of their services include:

• Dental work

• Behavioural treatment

• Emergency boarding

• Finding a missing pet

On top of their affordable solutions, their support and assistance services are available through free video calls.

7. Bactobio

Bactobio is a rapidly growing UK startup, that was founded by Daniel Blicher Holst Hansen in 2020. The company currently has around 35 employees, and aims to shake the biotechnology industry. Currently, the company wants to limit the issue of bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics.

The company is backed by six investors and has successfully completed three funding rounds. Due to the importance of the mission, they’ve managed to raise around $12 million to research new possibilities. Bactobio currently aims to:

• Create new anti infectives

• Boost food production

• Support the transition to a sustainable industry

This startup aims to create a greener world by harvesting metabolites from biological dark matter. We think 2023 will be big for Bactobio!

8. Surfboard

Surfboard is an innovative UK startup that was founded by Natasha Ratanshi-Stein in 2021. Its head office is located in London, UK, and currently has around 20 employees. They’ve created innovative solutions that allow customer service teams to simplify their workforce management.

This innovative solution allows managers to develop schedules that are error free. In addition, it also helps them reduce errors leading to under or overstaffing. The startup is currently backed by thirty-seven investors. During its seed funding round, the startup managed to secure €4.8 million. Some of its features include:

• Detailed forecasting

• Shift planning

• Activity scheduling

This innovative solution is built for both startups and enterprises. Their yearly prices start from just £12 per seat.

9. Anything World

Anything World was founded by Gordon Midwood and Sebastian Hofer in 2018. The startup currently has around 120 employees. It uses AI to create 3D models that can be used in game development. This decreases wait time by 40% and allows developers access to pre-animated models.

The startup aims to create a new AI-powered wave of 3D creation. One of its differentiating features is that it allows developers to create and control 3D worlds with just their voice. It can integrate various 3D assets from:

• Sketchfab

• Free 3D

• 3D Warehouse

Anything World is currently backed by seventeen investors and has secured investments of around $9.7 million.

10. Netacea

Last but certainly not least, we have Netacea. It was founded by Andy Still and Jeremy Gidlow in 2018. It provides an AI based security platform that can tell the difference between bots and human traffic. It also uses machine learning algorithms to constantly improve against new threats.

Its capabilities allow organisations to protect their applications, websites, and APIs. The startup currently provides services for ecommerce and retails, telcos, and financial services. It helps protect against various threats, including:

• Web scraping

• Account takeover

• Credential stuffing

The startup is backed by nine investors and has raised around £9 million in capital from its Series A funding round.

Final thoughts

The UK, specifically London, remains a popular destination for startups to flourish. Most of the startups we’ve mentioned use the digital landscape to their benefit. This allows them to create innovative solutions regardless of their industry.

Although the digital environment simplifies most business operations, startups require on-premise financial expertise. Professionals with such capabilities may have compensation requirements that startups are ill equipped to meet.

Do you need financial expertise for your brainchild? Get in touch with us now to learn more about how we can help!