The Venture Codex

Participated · Seed · May 2026

Zonova develops Z-ROS®, an antimicrobial additive designed to be engineered directly into the polymers of medical devices to create infection-resistant surfaces. The company's licensing model allows global device manufacturers to integrate Z-ROS® into existing product lines without rebuilding supply chains. Early laboratory studies reported by Zonova show greater than 99.99% effectiveness against MRSA and other organisms commonly involved in hospital-acquired infections. Following the recent seed raise, Zonova plans to prioritise integration into vascular access devices, with urology, women's health and orthopaedics planned next. The company has added Dr Pamela Walker Geddes to its board as part of the recent financing. Financially, Zonova has just closed a £2.1m seed round led by THENA Capital with participation from multiple impact and angel investors.

Participated · Seed · Oct 2025

Gladys offers an AI-supported marketplace that directly connects people seeking home care with vetted local carers, eliminating traditional agency intermediaries. Its technology automates matching, scheduling, and back-office logistics, which reduces client costs and enables carers to earn up to 65% more than standard agency rates. Since launch, the platform has delivered care across a 20,000 km catchment area and facilitated tens of thousands of hours of independent living support. Co-founded by Georgina Robinson and Alex Sorisi, the company emphasizes fair pay, career development tools for carers, and high-quality support for clients. With fresh seed funding, Gladys plans a nationwide rollout, deployment of additional AI back-office agents, and investment in local care communities. The team aims to provide hundreds of thousands of hours of support by the end of 2026, positioning the business for rapid scale across the UK.

Participated · Equity · Apr 2024

Nebu-Flow develops a nebulizer platform intended to improve inhaled drug delivery, claiming advantages over existing technologies. The company is positioning its platform for inhalation delivery of RNA-based formulations and says it enables targeted delivery to the lungs, cardiovascular and central nervous systems. Partners in the UK and North America are trialling the product as Nebu-Flow prepares for regulatory approval. The announcement cites the global inhalable drug market at roughly $33 billion in 2023 and the nebulizer market at over $1 billion. Nebu-Flow is a former spinout from the University of Glasgow and is based in Glasgow, Scotland. The company recently won a £1m Innovate UK project and the Institute of Physics Business Start-up Award, and is preparing for final product development and commercialization. Nebu~Flow develops a next-generation nebuliser designed to improve delivery of respiratory pharmaceuticals, including drugs that are hard to nebulise such as biologics. The company was spun out of the University of Glasgow and co-founded by CEO Dr Elijah Nazarzadeh, who led the underlying research. Nebu~Flow positions its device against a global nebuliser market valued at over $1 billion and the wider inhalable drug market estimated at over $43bn in 2022. Management says the technology could enable delivery of cutting-edge treatments, including gene therapies, and improve outcomes for conditions like cystic fibrosis and COPD. The company plans to commercialise its technology and hire additional scientific, research, product design, and developer staff this year. Dr John Pritchard was recently appointed chair to support product delivery and market entry.

Participated · Equity · Aug 2023

Kamma builds a property data engine that acquires, integrates and calibrates thousands of property data points to deliver optimal routes to achieve net zero across residential and commercial properties. The company combines data collection and address-matching technology with analysis to support ESG risk management, reporting, and retrofit optimisation solutions. Its data empowers climate change solutions used by asset managers, property funds and mortgage lenders. Current clients named in the article include CBRE, JLL, Knight Frank, Foxtons, LendInvest and Gresham House. Led by CEO and co-founder Orla Shields, Kamma intends to use new funding to accelerate expansion of its property data engine. The company is based in London, UK, and announced a £3.6M funding round.

Participated · Seed · May 2022

Foodsteps offers a platform and impact database that enables businesses to calculate, reduce and label the environmental impact of food from farm to fork. Its database covers carbon footprint, pollution, water use and land use for more than 1,000 ingredients and generates traffic-light A–E ratings with QR-code-backed labels for consumers. Food providers can upload recipes to view ingredient-level sustainability impacts, monitor targets, develop new recipes and improve menus or products. The company works with customers including Pizza Express, Wagamama, Ask Italian, allplants, Mindful Chef and caterers at Kew Gardens. Founded in 2021 by Anya Doherty, Foodsteps plans to expand its database to integrate additional environmental impacts such as farm-level biodiversity and water use and to consolidate its market position. It recently raised seed funding to support these product and growth plans.