Author: Toby Hicks

Angel Investment Network, the world’s largest online angel investment platform, has launched a new app, enabling investors to access thousands of startup opportunities.

The new app, which is free for investors, provides instant access to AIN’s 40 global neworks. This will  enable investors to grow their portfolios through exploring deals, connecting and investing with entrepreneurs.

The app was developed after a rigorous research and a planning process involving input from investors and experts and is available for download from the App Store and Android. 

Once logged in investors can:
– Browse thousands of investment opportunities from around the world
– Choose their own investment criteria to receive targeted dealflow
– Shortlist pitches to review later
– Connect with exciting startups and scaleups

According to AIN co-founder James Badgett: “At AIN, we understand the value of connections and are always looking for ways to make access to opportunities seamless. We are therefore excited to announce we’ve launched a new app for investors after months of testing. It means investors can explore deals, connect and invest on the move. We look forward to seeing many more business relationships flourish as investors back the great businesses of tomorrow.”

Launched by childhood friends, James Badgett and Mike Lebus in 2005, Angel Investment Network (AIN) is an online platform connecting startups with a global network of angel investors. With 40 networks extending to 90 different countries and nearly 2m users, it is the largest angel investment community in the world. Angel Investment Network has helped tens of thousands of businesses worldwide with investments ranging from £10,000 to £1m. 

Companies AIN has raised for include: What3Words, FanBytes, Rosa’s Thai and Kit & Kin.

MAGIC AI, the UK’s first AI personal trainer, is on a mission to combat obesity through its innovative fitness platform. Founded in 2021, the company utilises cutting-edge holographic technology and a wall mirror to create an immersive fitness experience at home.

In our latest Behind The Raise interview, co-founder Varun Bhanot shares his personal journey from being overweight to a transformative training experience, which inspired him to democratise personalised training. 

He discusses the problem MAGIC AI aims to solve, its appeal to investors, celebrity endorsement, and valuable tips for raising investment. Varun also reveals how he discovered a close-to-home connection in the AIN database.

Tell us about MAGIC AI, and how you came up with the idea?

In my early 20s, I became very overweight. I had developed too much of a fondness for kebabs and whisky and I realised I needed a change. So I went through a personal training experience in London. In about four months, I lost around 25% body fat and got into great shape, something I had never achieved before. 

But like so many, I was never into the gym, finding it intimidating and not knowing what to do. During this process, I noticed how old-fashioned personal training was, with a trainer manually counting reps on a clipboard, and I thought of democratising access to personalised training at home. That’s when the idea of using AI and hardware to recreate the one-on-one personal training experience was born. We started building on this idea, and that’s how MAGIC AI took shape.

What is the problem you are looking to solve?

Our mission is to tackle obesity and its associated costs, which amount to around £7bn a year in England. We aim to help people lead healthier, fitter, and longer lives, backed by scientific evidence of the benefits of personalised training. 

Our goal is to provide this one-on-one personalised experience, only affordable to some, and make it accessible to everyone. Traditional personal training in London can be costly, ranging from £40 to £100 per hour, limiting accessibility to one person at a time and requiring physical presence.

Our technology changes that by enabling the entire household to train together at a fraction of the cost, around £38 per month. This makes our solution more affordable for one month, than a single hour with a personal trainer.

What attracted investors to your company?

The AI aspect of our company is particularly interesting to investors. We utilise computer vision technologies similar to those found in self-driving cars to understand people’s movements and actions in space. Few companies worldwide are excelling in this intersection of AI, health coaching, and fitness training, making our approach unique and intriguing.

Additionally, the connected fitness market in the UK and Europe is relatively nascent, with only a few strong players like Peloton. Our presence in this space, coupled with the potential for innovative offerings, has attracted interest.

Finally, we have the privilege of working with renowned athletes who are on the platform from cricketing legend Sir Alastair Cook and Strictly’s Katya Jones.
Using AI to make it feel like these athletes are coaching users in their living rooms is a compelling proposition that helped jumpstart interest from investors.

Why did you choose to raise via Angel investment Network?

Firstly I’d had a relationship with AIN from my previous company. Given it was our first round of funding, it was the natural place to go. 

As an aside, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my parents had invested in a few companies through AIN over the years. The reason I found out? They were on the newsletter to receive updates about exciting companies raising. This clearly highlights AIN’s extensive reach and a strong network, exactly what it says on the tin!

The Angel Investment Network has proven to be an excellent platform for raising funds, and I have personally recommended it to at least five other founders who have found it helpful as well.

What would be your top tip for anyone raising for the first time?

Ensure all your assets are prepared and readily available. Have your deck, data room, financial model, market resources, and team neatly organised and accessible. 

This front-loading of assets will impress potential investors and enable you to respond promptly when they reach out. Be prepared and ready to act.

How do you see AI impacting on your business and product offering in the future?

In the future, we see AI continuing to have a significant impact on our business. We’d like to go deeper into becoming a personalised health coach, looking at the granular details of individual health goals and generating tailor-made programs. 

By leveraging data from wearables and other sources, our system would be able to continuously iterate. Then we can start to build a 3D picture of how you’re progressing.

We also see a future where we expand our AI capabilities to cover diverse modalities like yoga, dance, boxing, and pilates, catering to various user preferences and needs. Currently, such AI-based instructions are scarce in these areas, making it a compelling and promising direction to explore.

If you’re looking for an angel investor to help fund your business, then the Angel Investment Network can help. Sign up to pitch your business to investors all over the world 

In this guest post Adah Paris, chair of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England provides insight into how founders can manage workplace wellbeing.

Whether you are a founder or investor it is vital to think about the mental health and wellbeing of everyone involved, including yourselves. The emotional and physical demands of leading a startup require a laser sharp focus on wellbeing.

At MHFA England®, we know productivity and wellbeing fuel each other. We believe organisations of all shapes and sizes, including startups, can purposefully design wellbeing into their business model. As founders and investors, you have an unrivalled opportunity to ensure inclusion, wellbeing and high performance go hand in hand. 

Deloitte research showed that employers who invest in mental health make an average return of £5.30 for every £1 spent. Investing in mental health isn’t just about being a good leader or supporting your employees – it’s about protecting your bottom line.   

My top tips for supporting yours and your people’s wellbeing to create psychologically safe environments where everyone feels seen, heard and valued, are:

1) Model positive behaviour

As part of our Mental Health First Aid training, we teach learners to be mindful of people’s stress containers i.e. the lower a person’s vulnerability to stress, the bigger their container is. The size of the container is down to lots of factors, including difficult experiences. The more of these issues there are, the smaller the container will be, so it will overflow more quickly than for someone who has a larger container and is therefore able to cope with stress. When the container overflows, difficulties can develop.

This model can be used to check in on our own wellbeing and help us to think about useful coping strategies. For example, making time for self-care, getting rest and asking for help. On the other hand, unhelpful coping mechanisms such as working excessively long hours, self-medicating with drugs or alcohol and not getting enough sleep can become additional stressors to fill the container and block the tap.   

Asking for help should be one of the easiest steps to take but often, it can be the hardest. As a founder, you won’t always have access to a formalised HR function, let alone an Employee Assistance Programme. Reaching out to your network, seeking a mentor and being open and honest with family and friends, are all important ways to ensure that your stress container doesn’t overflow. By sharing your concerns, you are also showing that you find certain situations challenging and that it is ok to ask for help.

2) Enable everyone to bring their whole self to work   

My Whole Self is MHFA England’s campaign for workplace culture change. We want organisations to empower employees to bring their whole self to work – background, sexuality, religion, gender, health or mental health. By bringing together diversity and inclusion with health and wellbeing, we can drive positive transformation in workplace mental health and performance.

Employees, no matter the size of the business, need to be empowered to bring their whole selves to work and must have support from senior management to do this. This is especially important in startups, as employees are often in smaller teams and know each other well. This brings lots of benefits and can help create psychological safety but, assuming that good working relationships will develop naturally is not enough. 

Given how much value managers deliver to organisations in building cultures that support wellbeing and performance, it is important that they have the right tools, time and training to do the job of managing well. We have produced a Manager’s Toolkit which includes resources that equip managers with the confidence to support the mental health of themselves and their teams – and boost productivity.

3) Take the time to talk

Whether you have five, ten or 50 staff, make the time to talk and check in with your team. This can be done both formally and informally, to understand more about what is working well and what isn’t.  With the right support, we can all be having constructive, empathetic, and sometimes lifesaving conversations in what many might think are ‘just’ catchups. You can download our free one to one meeting template to help guide you in these conversations.  

We know that work ‘done well’ is good for our mental health and that wellbeing and productivity fuel one and other. Focusing on making everyone feel supported and part of a wellbeing strategy that has a razor-sharp focus on building a positive and inclusive working culture is vital to ensure a startups future success. 

Adah Paris is the chair of MHFA England. For more information on their workplace wellbeing strategy and bespoke consultancy and training visit the MHFA England website.   

Adah has over 20 years of experience in transforming cultures to nurture decentralised humanity-centred innovation environments. She has worked with businesses and individuals in advertising, education, entertainment, entrepreneurship, marketing, media, and technology start-ups.

In 2019, she was recognised as one of TED Talks Global Emerging Innovators. In 2018, she was recognised as one of the UK’s Top 100 Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Leaders in Technology.

Adah takes a philosophical and anthropological approach to technology, merging logic and creativity to design immersive storytelling, learning and development environments.

In our latest fundraising top tips article Xavier Ballester, Director of Brokerage at Angel Investment Network, gives us the lowdown on the 5 Ps of impressing angel investors.

Fundraising in 2023 is tough. With a re-evaluation of so many businesses and investors being far more cautious about deploying capital, startups need to change their strategy to succeed. However, with 15 years of experience in helping startups raise investment one thing I know is how adept startups are at adjusting strategies in the face of ever-changing market dynamics. 

Based on hundreds of conversations over the past few months, I believe there are five Ps of impressing angel investors in the present climate. Follow these and you will significantly enhance your chances of securing funding for your startup.

1) Pitch

In a world where investors are bombarded with pitches, it is crucial to make yours stand out from the crowd. Start with a blank piece of paper and distill your pitch into a concise paragraph. Ensure that your pitch clearly articulates the problem your startup aims to solve and how your solution stands out. 

If you think of some of the best businesses out there they can be so simply distilled in a few words. For example geocoding system What3Words, who we helped on their initial fundraise – ‘the simplest way to talk about location’ or Monzo ‘Your money made easy’. Always go for the short to grab the investor’s attention.

2) Presentation

Once you have the opportunity to present your pitch to investors, it’s time to create an impactful pitch deck. Your pitch deck should have a clear narrative that captivates the investors’ attention. Focus on highlighting the core product and its unique selling points compared to competitors. Additionally, aim to keep your pitch deck concise, ideally limiting it to around 10 slides. Remember, if your pitch extends beyond twenty minutes, investors may lose interest. 

Having worked with Fourth Wall who are the producers of the hit kids’ cartoon “Milo the Cat”, they were clear on the size of the market, the traction they had achieved so far and comparable success stories on the same channel such as Peppa Pig in a clearly laid out and attractive deck. This really won over investors.

3) Proof

In today’s market climate, evidence of traction is paramount. Investors want to see that your startup has already achieved some level of success and has a clear pathway to further growth. It is essential to demonstrate tangible metrics, such as user acquisition, revenue, or partnerships, that validate your startup’s potential. Furthermore, highlight the relevant experience and expertise that you and your founding team possess within the industry, as it adds credibility to your venture. 

A great recent example we worked with would be energy efficiency platform BOLDR. In a beautifully laid out pitch deck focusing on striking visuals and standout numbers they demonstrated rapid early growth in just a few months of trading, good profit margins and a runway to expansion. The founding team had years of relevant experience in the Internet of Things and they boast a strong advisory team. This is the proof investors are looking for in today’s market.

4) Price

As businesses reassess their plans and funding options, it is crucial to set realistic valuations. What might have been an 8x valuation last year may only be a 5x valuation now. Investors appreciate valuations that are grounded in factual analysis rather than inflated expectations. 

By adopting a rational approach to valuing your startup, you are more likely to attract prospective investors who recognize the true potential of your business.

5) Passion

Investors seek founders who are deeply passionate and committed to their startup’s success. They want to see that you and your team are willing to work tirelessly, make sacrifices, and persevere through challenges. Displaying genuine enthusiasm for your venture can be infectious and inspire confidence in investors. Let your passion shine through in your interactions and demonstrate your unwavering dedication to achieving your startup’s goals.

In summary, impressing angel investors revolves around the five Ps: pitch, presentation, proof, price, and passion.
– Craft a compelling pitch that clearly conveys the problem and solution.
– Create a captivating presentation that highlights your core product and its differentiation. 
– Provide concrete proof of traction and outline the experience of your team.
– Make sure you establish a realistic price in your valuation that aligns with market conditions.
– Finally, showcase your passion and commitment to your startup. By focusing on these aspects, you will significantly enhance your chances of successfully raising funds. 

Best of luck with your fundraising endeavours!

Xavier Ballester, Director of Brokerage, Angel Investment Network

Join the world’s largest angel investment network, where global angel investors meet the great businesses of tomorrow.

Welcome to the first of our new mini-series ‘Inside the Accelerator’. The series will showcase and delve deep into some of the exciting and diverse accelerator programs leading the way in their respective fields. This is part of our commitment to using our platform as a means of supporting the startup ecosystem beyond funding alone.

We aim to educate founders on navigating the landscape and growing in a more challenging climate. On behalf of our members, we’re looking forward to exploring the benefits and challenges of joining accelerator programs, as well as the impact that accelerators have on the startup ecosystem.

In the first in the series we shine a spotlight on Unrest. Led by Orr Vinegold and Anas Hassan, Unrest is a mission-driven startup accelerator and the only one in Europe solely focused on consumer-impact businesses. Guided by its three pillars of impact, resilience and diversity, Unrest focuses on consumer businesses because of its belief in ‘the collective power we all have in driving shifts towards a fairer inclusive economy.’

In this interview, we delve into the selection process, program structure, and the pillars that guide Unrest’s approach, as well as the invaluable resources and support it offers to start-ups. If you’re an impact-driven founder seeking the next step in your start-up journey, Unrest might just be the accelerator for you.

Tell us about your accelerator?

Unrest is Europe’s only accelerator for consumer impact businesses. We support founders of pre-seed and seed stage start-ups ready to re-imagine what business can do for the planet and people. Our companies are at the forefront of innovation and change, creating supportive cultures to grow and succeed. These companies are the future, and together, we will launch the most successful of them. 

What is the selection process for startups joining the program?

The first step for start-ups interested in joining the Unrest programme is to upload a pitch deck on our website. We invite start-ups who we think could be a good fit for the programme to an online interview with members of our team.

The objective of this interview is to learn more about the start-up and founder(s), and to answer any questions from founders about Unrest. We then invite selected start-ups to a Discovery Day, where they can meet more of the Unrest team, as well as other founders who have applied to the programme.

The final step in the process is a selection committee that reviews all applications who have made it to this stage, and makes decisions about who to invite to join the programme.

What is the duration of the program? 

The Unrest programme takes place over 4 months. The Spring/Summer programme typically runs from March to July, and the Autumn/Winter programme generally runs from September to January. 

What is the structure of the program and what do you provide in terms of resources and support for startups?

We provide a 4 month programme focusing on 4 key pillars: branding and marketing, fundraising, impact and community. We partner with world-class experts, including organisations such as Uncommon Creative Studio, BCorp, Seedrs and many others. We also provide customised 121 support for our cohort founders with weekly office hours, executive coaching and mentoring. 

What is the equity model for the accelerator program?

We take 2% equity in our cohort companies (capped at £33K worth of equity). This ensures that our incentives are aligned – we succeed if our start-ups do. It is also a realistic approach given the cash challenges of early stage start-ups.

You are guided by your three pillars of impact, resilience and diversity. Why did you choose them?

Before launching the Unrest accelerator programme, we carried out a lot of desk research and spoke to many start-up founders as well as leaders of existing incubator and accelerator programmes. As a result we identified impact, resilience and diversity as three key drivers of sustainable success. 

There is a sound business case behind this approach. Mission driven companies typically grow 2.5 times more than companies without a strong impact mission at their core. Diverse teams deliver 2.3 times more value than non-diverse teams. And the share price of companies with engaging, resilient cultures is 65% higher than for other companies.

One example of our commitment to supporting a more diverse start-up landscape is Unrest North, our programme for under-represented founders based in the North of England. 

Aside from the business case for our approach, it’s also the right thing to do. The world is changing. Consumers, founders and employees are all increasingly demanding a new way of doing business. One that demands profit, not at the cost of people and planet, but in support of it. 

Startups should join my accelerator because…

Unrest is Europe’s only accelerator for consumer impact businesses. We offer a unique 4 month programme together with world class partners. We have supported 47 start-ups so far, with well over 90% of them still going strong. Between them, our start-ups have raised over £7m in funding. We can help impact-driven founders take the next step in their start-up business journey.

Unrest have a forthcoming Demo day on 5th July which is an opportunity for you to hear from founders on the Unrest Programme as they share the fire that drives them, their vision for a fairer, cleaner, healthier, more diverse world and what they’re doing to make it a reality.

Join the world’s largest angel investment network, where global angel investors meet the great businesses of tomorrow.

In our latest Behind The Raise interview we interview Nick Torday, co-founder of Bower Collective, a sustainable consumer technology business dedicated to combatting the global plastic waste crisis. Bower Collective aims to create a more sustainable world by eliminating plastic waste through the delivery of a wide range of award-winning natural household products in BowerPack™, their unique reusable packaging system. Nick discusses their mission-driven approach, the growth they have seen and scale of the investment opportunity, how they have coped with global supply chain challenges and his top tips for raising investment.

Tell us about Bower Collective and how you came up with the idea?

I used to run a tech business that specialised in working with social and environmental impact organisations, like the UN, Greenpeace, WWF, etc – some years ago we did a major campaign on marine plastic waste which ignited my passion in this problem space. 

I then got together with my old friend Marcus, who had recently sold his successful bio-packaging business to a FTSE 100 company and was looking for his next challenge. We both share a passion for purpose-led business and put our heads together to come up with a transformational and scalable business that would directly address the plastic waste crisis. 

That’s how Bower Collective came to life in late 2019, with a clear mission to eliminate plastic waste and create a more sustainable world. Bower is a sustainable consumer technology business that delivers a wide range of award-winning natural household products in BowerPack™, our unique reusable packaging system.

What is the problem you are looking to solve?

The plastic waste crisis is one of the defining environmental challenges of our time. Globally 1 million tonnes a day of plastic waste are generated and the $1 trillion dollar consumer goods industry plays a major part in this and also in global carbon emissions.

We believe there is a better way to provide consumers with everyday products, which is why we are at the forefront of the reuse and refill revolution. Our unique BowerPack™ system is a market leading innovation that has already saved over 44,000kgs of plastic from landfill, incineration and the natural environment. 

With over 95,000 customers and a YOY growth rate of 234%, we’ve had a fantastic first couple of years in proving that we are delivering an outstanding service and solution to the problem we aimed to address.

What initially attracted investors to your company?

Most of our investors were attracted by our central promise – driving sustainable innovation in the consumer goods category. This is a market which is worth over £155bn in the UK and Europe alone, so the potential for scale and impact at scale is considerable. Also our core model is defensible, it would be very hard for the big CPG businesses to retrofit reusable packaging systems into their huge and complex supply systems. 

The Bower proposition and experience has always resonated strongly with our lead investors and all our angels too, nearly all of whom are also happy customers! 

Finally, as founders we had credible track records within the sustainable business space having between us scaled and exited impact businesses prior to launching Bower. We also have very complementary skills across technology, product and leadership.

What are you looking to do with the investment this time?

This funding round is for two investment areas specifically:

1) to support our expansion into retail and hire in specialist sales / account management leads 2) to double down on our investment into automation of our BowerPack reuse and refill system.

Why did you raise via Angel Investment Network?

We were introduced to AIN through our original pre-seed investors at Founders Factory. We’ve always believed in a strategic mix of capital between corporate venture, VC and private angel investment. We had a great experience with AIN in a previous round, so have come back to work with them again this time out!

How have you coped with the volatility of global supply chains over the last couple of years?

It’s certainly had its challenges, not least when we launched in January 2020 and then covid lockdown hit us barely 2 months later. Two things happened – first, our sales demand exploded, second, our access to product and componentry became a nightmare! Little known fact that 80% of the world’s dispenser pumps are manufactured in Northern Italy which was the first region in Europe to lock down, so getting the parts we needed was really tough.

However, we have been relatively well protected as we have a deliberately localised and low carbon supply chain, with over 85% of our products manufactured here in the UK, so Brexit and other international freight challenges have had little impact on us thankfully.

What is your top tip for anyone raising investment for the first time?

My top tip is to have complete clarity of message and proposition and to stick to your strategy when speaking with investors. It can be very tempting to keep tweaking and adjusting your thinking and message based on feedback – if you stay true to your vision it will be much more effective. Remember that you will get rejection, that is part of the process, but you have to stick to your core mission and vision principles to win through.

What additional factors do impact-led startups need to be aware of when fund raising?

There are two areas to consider. One – you have to ensure you are speaking with the right investors, if they are vaguely interested in ESG as a box-ticking exercise, is their passion for your purpose really there? Two, credibility – we are a fully certified B Corp and Certified Carbon Neutral – it is a lot of hard work to achieve and maintain these certifications, you need to be transparent and effective at communicating your impact.

If you’re looking for an angel investor to help fund your business, then the Angel Investment Network can help. Sign up to pitch your business to investors all over the world 

Fusion technology holds the key to unlocking a clean energy revolution by replicating the energy generation process of stars right here on Earth. With the world’s continuing reliance on carbon-creating fossil fuels, the urgent need for sustainable alternatives has never been greater. This is where fusion steps in, offering both an investor opportunity and the potential for game-changing startups to address critical energy transition needs. 

In our latest Sector Focus article Dr Melanie Windridge, world renowned physicist, CEO and founder of Fusion Energy Insights gives us the low down…

What is fusion technology?

In a nutshell, fusion technology aims to replicate the energy generation process of stars here on Earth for clean energy production. 

Creating a controlled fusion reaction involves generating extreme conditions similar to those in stars, such as temperatures of hundreds of millions of degrees. This can be achieved using methods like lasers or high magnetic fields. The technology encompasses various complex systems, including machines like Tokamak (a magnetic machine) or laser fusion devices. Additionally, there are supporting technologies like gyrotrons, neutral beam injectors, and cryogenic gases that are crucial for building a fusion power plant.

What are the reasons for the rising interest in fusion technology?

The increasing interest in fusion technology can be attributed to several key factors. Firstly, the field of fusion science has matured over the years, with significant progress in understanding the physics and different approaches to fusion. While challenges remain, the knowledge base is substantial.

Secondly, advancements in enabling technologies have emerged, presenting new possibilities for fusion. Innovations such as high-temperature superconductors, improved lasers, high-performance computing, and advanced manufacturing have positively influenced fusion research and development. These technologies enhance the efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and feasibility of fusion power plants.

Thirdly, the pressing concerns of climate change and energy security have propelled the drive towards clean energy solutions like fusion. Governments now prioritize sustainable alternatives to combat climate change and ensure a stable energy supply. This shift in focus has generated a stronger mandate for exploring fusion technology. We have this vision of a better future and that drives, I think, the vast majority of people who are working in fusion.

Additionally, the fourth factor contributing to the rising interest in fusion technology is increased private investment. The involvement of private companies and investors brings additional resources, expertise, and motivation to advance fusion research and move closer to commercialization.

Collectively, the convergence of mature science, enabling technologies, environmental imperatives, and private investment has fostered a heightened enthusiasm and momentum in the field of fusion technology. Its time has come.

What challenges does fusion technology need to overcome and what barriers still exist?

The transition from fusion science to commercial implementation poses significant challenges. Key obstacles include demonstrating the science of fusion reactions in various approaches and engineering practical power plants. Material selection is crucial due to extreme temperatures and high magnetic fields, while managing the damaging effects of high-energy neutrons. 

The creation of tritium, a vital fusion fuel, within the machine itself requires further research. Overcoming these challenges necessitates advancements in material science, tritium breeding, and engineering. While private companies aim for electricity generation by the early 2030s, addressing these barriers is essential for the viability, safety, and economic feasibility of fusion power plants.

In the current economic climate, investors are increasingly seeking proven returns on investment, presenting additional challenges. When it comes to fusion technology, it is crucial to adopt a long-term perspective. Although fusion is undoubtedly the future, there is a shorter-term investment challenge compared to a year ago—ironically due to an energy crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which further underlines the need for a clean sustainable energy source like fusion.

What is the investor opportunity?

Fusion technology presents a significant investor opportunity due to the ongoing reliance on fossil fuels in the global energy mix. Despite efforts to achieve net-zero targets, a substantial amount of fossil fuel is projected to remain in the energy mix by 2050. This “hard to decarbonize” segment includes industries like cement and steel production, shipping, aviation, desalination, and other processes requiring large amounts of heat. 

Fusion technology offers potential solutions by generating both electricity and heat, making it applicable to these challenging sectors. Furthermore, fusion’s ability to produce hydrogen, synthetic fuels, provide district heating, and propulsion further expands its potential applications. As a long-term solution, fusion has the capacity to eliminate fossil fuels altogether and contribute to maintaining a sustainable zero-carbon future. The scale of this opportunity is enormous, representing trillions of dollars and addressing critical energy transition needs.

Which companies are doing interesting things in this space?

In the UK, the main fusion companies are First Light Fusion and Tokamak Energy, both based in Oxfordshire. 

First Light Fusion is working on an inertial fusion approach similar to laser fusion, but instead of using lasers to trigger the fusion reactions (via implosion of a tiny fuel pellet) they use a one-sided projectile impact. This simplifies the power plant design. Much of the company’s intellectual property is in the design of the target, which takes the one-sided impact shock and bends it to compress the fuel from all sides while also amplifying the compression. 

Tokamak Energy is working on a spherical tokamak concept with high temperature superconducting magnets. The tokamak design is one of the most mature fusion concepts—a ring-doughnut shaped chamber surrounded by strong magnets that trap the hot fusion fuel away from the walls. The “spherical” tokamak is a squashed-up variation that is more efficient, and high temperature superconductors make higher magnetic fields than other materials, which make a more effective trap for the fuel and enables smaller designs of power plant.

Aside from fusion developers, there are also supply chain and enabling technology companies. 

Kyoto Fusioneering is a spin-out from Kyoto University in Japan that is developing various high performance technologies required for a commercial fusion power plant. It sees itself as an enabler for the fusion industry and, as well as international contracts and collaborations, is forging relationships with Japan’s industrial organizations as part of its supply chain and aiming to contribute towards the evolution of a new high-tech fusion industry.

Then there’s my company, Fusion Energy Insights. We help people keep up to date with developments in the growing fusion industry so that they can see opportunities emerging for their business. With all the news and developments happening in fusion (scientific, financial and political), and the information available from disparate sources, we do the work of curating it all for busy professionals, providing updates and insights. We provide a free newsletter and blogs to all; extended updates and deep-dive Q&A events for members; and Fusion Advisory Services to investors looking for specialist information. 

About the author
Dr Melanie Windridge is a specialist in fusion energy who helps people see the value, opportunities and excitement of fusion. Melanie is the founder and CEO of Fusion Energy Insights, which keeps people up to date with developments in the growing fusion industry. She has a PhD in plasma physics (fusion energy) from Imperial College London, where she remains an Academic Visitor, and she sits on the Advisory Boards of the UK Fusion Cluster and US non-profit Energy for the Common Good. Melanie was previously UK Director of the Fusion Industry Association. In 2022 she was elected a Fellow of the Clean Growth Leadership Network. Melanie is the author of Aurora: In Search of the Northern Lights and Star Chambers: the race for fusion power, as well as writing for Forbes online.  

www.melaniewindridge.co.uk

Arrears, an innovative startup specialising in AI-driven global payments and finance operations, has been named as AIN’s Startup of the Month. The pioneering debt collection platform developed by Arrears leverages advanced AI technology to streamline and enhance the debt collection process for SMEs across the USA.

It was selected from close to 150,000 startups currently raising on the platform with AIN’s expert panel of judges praising the business for ‘effectively utilising innovation to solve a real-world problem.’ 

It is also witnessing substantial interest from investors. Arrears’ solution tackles the pervasive issue of late payments, which amounts to trillions of dollars in the United States alone. The startup addresses this challenge by offering a cloud-based solution that grants SMEs access to enterprise-grade software and seamless integration with OpenAI’s GPT-4 technology.

Startup of the Month is an initiative from AIN to champion and celebrate businesses on the platform with great potential and to help raise their profile. In showcasing these startups, AIN’s aim is to highlight the qualities of investable businesses to inspire and educate others. The team at AIN were impressed with Arrears’ utilisation of innovation, product-market fit, and potential for scalability.

According to Arrears founder and CEO Trent McKendrick: “We are delighted to be recognised by Angel Investment Network. Our platform enables efficient debt collection at scale, eliminating the need for a labor-intensive workforce or complex integration. In a short period, we have witnessed significant investor interest in our mission to drive positive change in the debt collection industry. Initially managing just over $20 million of accounts receivable on our platform, we have seen this number double in the past two weeks alone. We’re actively engaging with more investors to highlight the growing demand of our business and our revolutionary platform.”

Check out their pitch here

If you’re looking for an angel investor to help fund your business, then the Angel Investment Network can help. Sign up to pitch your business to investors all over the world 

In a more competitive funding landscape, angel investors are critically evaluating startups with a more ruthless lens than ever. It is crucial that founders don’t get their fundraise off to a false start by having something that is a fundamental red flag for a potential investor. Understanding and addressing these common concerns can significantly boost a startup’s chances of securing funding.

We spoke to angel investors and experts on our network to get their take. From a lack of passion and commitment to inadequate industry knowledge, we delve into the key indicators that may raise doubts in the minds of angel investors.

1. Lack of passion and commitment

Angel investors want to see founders who are deeply passionate about their business idea and are committed to making it a success. If a founder appears disinterested, lacks conviction, or demonstrates a lack of dedication, it can raise concerns.

According to Xavier Ballester, Director at Angel Investment Network’s Startup and Property Divisions: “Investors want founders that are passionate and committed to their startup. This comes through so clearly from the investors I speak to and is more critical than ever in today’s tougher funding landscape. Investors want to see that the founders they back are willing to work hard, make sacrifices, and persist through challenges.” 

2. Inadequate industry knowledge

Investors expect founders to possess a deep understanding of their target industry and market. If a founder demonstrates a lack of knowledge about key industry trends, competitors, or customer needs, it may raise doubts about their ability to navigate and succeed in the market.

According to experienced investor Noel Duigan: “The lack of experience of the founders, or their team is the main red flag for me. Often you are investing in the founders rather than the company. If the founders don’t have any skin in the game, that’s pause for consideration.”

3. Not having your finances in order

Founders asking for too much money can be a red flag for investors. Similarly overly optimistic or unrealistic financial projections can also set alarm bells ringing. If the numbers don’t align with industry benchmarks or seem too inflated without a clear justification, it may indicate a lack of understanding or a willingness to mislead. 

 According to Ballester: “It it really important to be realistic about valuations, particularly in the present climate. Many businesses are now needing to re-evaluate their plans and potential funding pathways. What was 8x last year may now only be 5x. It is vital valuations are rooted in fact, not fantasy. You will be far more likely to gain the interest of prospective investors with this approach.”

According to angel investor and acclaimed author David Pattison: “Some pre investment red flags for me include: When the opening conversation is just about how much and when? Also if a team that is rewarding itself too well on other people’s money.”

4. Lack of traction

Investors look for evidence that the startup’s product or service has market demand and validation. If a founder cannot demonstrate any customer traction, industry interest, positive feedback, or a well-thought-out go-to-market strategy, it may raise concerns about the startup’s potential for success.

Duigan says: “Lack of traction in their space will often mean stalled growth and is a red flag.  Have a look at their runway and burn rate, you don’t want it short and wide. That could spell either bad margins or high overheads.”

5. Poor communication skills

Effective communication and active listening are essential qualities for startup founders. If a founder struggles to articulate their ideas clearly both in person and through vital communication tools like the all important pitch deck, this is a big red flag. Similarly if they fail to actively listen to feedback or input from others, or exhibit poor interpersonal skills, it may hinder their ability to build relationships with investors and stakeholders.

According to Marla Shapiro, CEO of HERmesa – a UK based angel syndicate: “Investors want a super clear, concise story that gets us excited to ask more questions and set up the first call.  As one of our members says, “pitch decks are meant to be commercials, not novels!”   

According to Addy Windsor-Clive, investment manager at Regenerate Ventures: “A pitchdeck that isn’t in a suitable format asking the typical questions a VC would ask is a red flag for me.”

Ultimately people buy people and Shapiro puts it succinctly:  “We really try to invest in nice people.  We are putting our own money into the business and we are going to be with these founders for the next 3, 5, 7 years.  Life is too short to invest in jerks!”

While these red flags can raise concerns, it’s important to stress that they are not necessarily deal-breakers. Founders can address these issues and improve their chances of securing investment by being transparent, receptive to feedback, and continuously learning and improving.

The reality is many won’t learn. But by recognising and proactively addressing any red flags, startup founders can ensure they can have a head start in attracting angel investors. Putting rocket fuel into their fundraising strategy and turning entrepreneurial dreams into reality.

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“Never give up” was the message businessman and former jewellery magnate Gerald Ratner delivered at the launch of the Scale Up Awards by Business Leader magazine. AIN were in attendance to watch the launch of the awards with several prominent speakers discussing the challenges and opportunities faced by scaling businesses.

Ratner is the former chief executive officer of the British jewellery company Ratners, who famously demonstrated the power of negative PR when he notoriously made a speech jokingly denigrating two of the company’s products at an Institute of Directors conference. 

He detailed his Icarus-like fall from the glittering heights of business leadership that saw the company’s value plummeting by around £500 million after his blunder. He then described the obstacles he faced in launching a new fitness chain and how perseverance saw him through as he went on to sell the business for £3.9m in 2001. Following that he launched an online jewellery business, after he was turned down by 15 banks for funding, before a 16th agreed. He used the example to highlight the need for startups to persevere no matter the odds.

Irene Graham, CEO and a board director of the ScaleUp Institute also spoke at the event. She highlighted the real need for the UK to invest in more scale ups, pointing out that the UK is third in the world for startups but 13th for scale ups. She told the audience “You are the future, we need to get behind you”.

Founder of Business Leader Andrew Scott highlighted that there had been a record number of entries for the awards so far. 

The Scale-Up Awards are open to UK based entrepreneurs and trading businesses, celebrating business achievement and growth.  There are still time to enter.

When it comes to investing in startups, investors are not only evaluating the potential of the business idea but also the qualities of the founders behind it. Startups can have an innovative product, a large market opportunity, and a sound business plan, but without the right team behind it, success can be elusive. This is even more the case in 2023 with investment more difficult to secure.

Based on several interviews with prominent angel investors, we explore the key traits that investors look for in startup founders. From passion and grit to adaptability and communication skills, we delve into the qualities that can make a startup founder stand out and increase their chances of securing investment.

The life of a startup is exciting but also tough and this past year has seen a combination of challenges. Many tech firms’ valuations have been radically reduced and we have a more difficult funding climate with investors having more strenuous criteria in the startups they back.

Many founders are needing to change plans quickly, look at longer runways and make really difficult decisions on staffing. All the while working harder than ever to raise funds. This can create real pressure and have a negative impact on mental health.

So how can startups support their mental health during challenging times? We spoke to a leading psychologist working with startups and several successful founders in our network to get their top tips and advice.