Led · Series A · Apr 2021

Springpod is a London-based provider of free virtual work-based learning experiences for students. It offers free online work-based learning experiences that allow students to demonstrate their potential and connect with best-fitting employers and universities. The company partners with universities and employers and its network includes more than 100 partners, including Airbus, Amazon, Siemens, Meta, JLL, and Barclays. Over 700,000 students have benefited from its programs. Led by CEO Sam Hyams, Springpod received a £1.9M investment from American Student Assistance and plans to use the funds to expand operations across the USA. The company intends to broaden its U.S. business reach while continuing to provide free access to work-based learning through its partner network. Springpod is an online student recruitment platform that enables employers and education providers to target, inform and engage students as they plan their futures. The platform offers virtual tasters of university courses and online work experience, producing high-quality, experiential content for young people. Springpod says it has supported over 400,000 students to date and works with around one-third of UK universities. Its client list includes employers such as Airbus, Siemens, Vodafone, Fujitsu and the NHS. Founder and CEO Sam Hyams said the company aims to scale its impact from the 400,000 young people supported to millions. The company recently secured outside capital to fund that growth. Springpod is a specialist careers platform that helps young people explore the world of work and university through virtual work experience programs, virtual events, and digital student engagement solutions. Founded in 2018 by Sam Hyams and Oliver Fisher and based in London and Liverpool, the platform connects employers, universities and organisations with students. More than 150,000 young people have used Springpod to engage with employers and universities. The company raised £2.25M in a Series A round to support growth. Springpod intends to use the funds to launch its platform in new international territories. It offers tools for employers and education providers to run virtual programmes and events to help students make informed decisions about their futures.

Participated · Series A · Apr 2018

vTime operates a social VR app that allows groups of up to four users to join private 3D chat rooms, customize avatars, and select virtual environments. The startup emphasizes conversational social experiences rather than shared social gaming. Its app launched in late 2015 and is available across many platforms, including Windows Mixed Reality, Google Daydream, Cardboard, Samsung Gear VR, Oculus Rift, Android and iPhone. The company reports more than 40 full-time employees and says it is nearing one million downloads, though it did not disclose active user metrics. Management says the immediate priority is to learn how people use the app and derive genuine value, which will inform long-term viability and product direction. vTime faces competition from larger players such as Facebook Spaces but intends to follow its own path in the social VR space.

Participated · Equity · Aug 2013

Biofortuna, launched in 2008 and led by CEO Dr Simon Douglas, is a Wirral, UK-based diagnostics company. It has developed a proprietary freeze-dried technology to stabilize molecular diagnostic products, replacing tests that are currently stored and transported frozen and requiring careful thawing and mixing before use. The company sells its own range of stabilized products, SSPGo, and has partnered with Abbott Molecular as the global exclusive distributor for these kits. Biofortuna raised £1.3m in funding, with backers including Enterprise Ventures, the Foresight Group (UK), Catapult Venture Managers, the Merseyside Special Investment Fund, private investors and management. The company intends to use the funds to expand manufacturing capability to support its custom service clients and to launch its SSPGo HLA product range in the USA. Prior financings noted in the article include a £1.1m raise in May 2010 and a £2.1m raise in April 2012. Biofortuna develops novel in‑vitro molecular diagnostic (IVD) products for the transplantation and pharmacogenetic markets, including a line of SSPGo™ HLA genotyping kits. The company uses specialist freeze‑drying technology to stabilize kit components so they can be shipped by post, stored at room temperature and used with pre‑mixed reagents; the user only needs to add a DNA sample. To date Biofortuna has 17 SSPGo™ HLA genotyping kits targeted at transplantation, disease‑association and companion diagnostic markets. The company plans to use new capital to gain regulatory approval in the USA, expand its product line and penetrate new markets. Biofortuna is hiring and is led by CEO Simon Douglas. It was established in 2008 and is based in Bromborough, UK. Biofortuna develops innovative genotyping and antibody screening diagnostics for applications including organ transplantation, blood banking, disease identification, microbiology and pharmacogenomics. The company plans to use new funding to launch its first diagnostic genotyping products and to continue development of its future product pipeline. Biofortuna was formed in 2008 and previously secured an R&D grant from the Northwest Development Agency and funding from the Liverpool Seed Fund. In 2009 the company signed sales and distribution agreements for European and North African markets and received regulatory approvals on its first product range. The management team is led by CEO Mike Bunce and Directors David Charvill and Ben Passey. Following the recent round, David Whitcombe (a member of the founding team of DXS, which was sold to Qiagen in 2009) will join the team.