Just a little update on Innovation in Ireland – some musings:
So what’s new in Irelands Innovative landscape, let’s have a look at what young companies have come on the scene in the last few years that have turned investors heads with their highly innovative products and services. Were going to look at what companies are the ground breakers and potential money makers coming out of Ireland.
Here’s how the journey usually starts for young and aspiring Irish entrepreneurs or even established companies with new and innovative ideas. In the search for money , advice access to players , markets and mentors the fist port of call is usually Enterprise Ireland – The Irish enterprise and development agnecy in charge ot assisting companies who can develop products or services to sell internationally.
Enterprise Ireland who helps young companies with grant aid and investment funding has seen its fair share of bright stars as well as a plethora of duds over the past number of years. However it’s newly structured and standardised High Potential Start Up Group is more discerning these days in which projects it allows in and sends up the ladder for approval into the system. On talking to Gerry O Brien their gatekeeper to the HPSU group, new companies need to be able to show that their products or services will perform on an international stage employ at least 10 people in Ireland over the following three years and within that period have a turnover of at least one million Euro. Once the start-up has proven it has the potential and ability to deliver and has what it takes to be a potential international success then the company gets enrolled into the system and a Development Advisor (DA) or handler is assigned to the company to help them move forward in the system toward grant aid and/or investment funding.
Some of the companies I will be discussing have qualified and are in this program have either receive d EI funding or are awaiting funding approval. Some of the companies we will be analyzing haven’t yet approached Enterprise Ireland or might not fit into their required profile of a HPSU Start-Up. Some of the companies will be campus funded and supported companies. In Ireland this means that they have an affiliation of some sort with a learning Institution usually a University and we call these “University Spin-Outs”.
Companies To Keep and "EyeOn"
- Aqua-Nu Filtration Systems Ltd. www.aqua-nu.com
- Intelligent Design Technologies Ltd. www.ezcdstack.com
- Beyond Encryption Technologies Ltd
www.beyondencryption.com
