Ukrainian startups have been shortlisted for the Investment Accelerator, giving them an opportunity to access British capital and expand their presence in the UK.
The recently launched Accelerator is part of the UK-Ukraine Tech Bridge, a strategic partnership aimed at forging connections between the tech ecosystems of the two countries.
Now the Department for Business and Trade – along with the Ukraine Ministry of Digital Transformation, Ukraine Startup Fund and 1991 Ventures – has selected 20 pre-seed and seed companies to take part in the 10-week programme.
They include FlyAgData, an AgriTech startup that provides farmers and large agro companies with valuable insights transformed and collected from agronomic and machine data from the equipment in the field; Medvoice, a HealthTech company enabling affordable continuous skills development for healthcare professionals through an online education platform; Deus Robotics, a startup automating warehouses with intelligent robots and developing an AI-powered logistics ecosystem linking manufacturers and clients; Cardiomo, an AI-based wearable solution for long-term and remote heart monitoring; and NeuCurrent, an AI and data-driven customer retention platform for small- and mid-size retailers.
While the Accelerator is centred around one-on-one mentorship, startups will also attend customised workshops on mastering market entry strategies and navigating international expansion as well as networking sessions with other innovators and industry leaders.
Additionally, 1991 Ventures will introduce its own network to help connect startups with potential stakeholders and provide founders guidance on raising funds from UK-based investors.
As part of the programme’s finale, participants will attend a boot camp in London to have the chance to join lectures with experts and meet potential partners. Each founder will pitch their startup to investors at the Demo Day during London Tech Week.
“Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the UK has been steadfast in its support for our Ukrainian allies,” said Alan Mak, Minister for Industry and Economic Security at the Department for Business and Trade and Minister for the Investment Security Unit at the Cabinet Office.
“Under the UK-Ukraine TechBridge programme, we are bringing together innovative UK and Ukrainian tech businesses to help Ukraine’s digital economy continue to flourish despite the impact of war. The Investment Accelerator pilot scheme is a key part of this offering mentorship, creating jobs and stimulating growth for Ukraine’s tech sector.”
Oleksandr Bornyakov, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, added: “The key advantage of this Accelerator is the ability to tailor all the company’s activities to the British tech market. I strongly believe that the Investment Accelerator will become a powerful boost for the development and scaling of Ukrainian companies.”
The announcement follows the recent official launch of 1991 Ventures’ £15 million fund in the UK.
“As 1991 Ventures has a presence in both Ukraine and the UK it is our mission to help Ukrainian startups scale in both of those markets as well as the whole international arena,” commented Denis Gursky, founding partner of 1991 Ventures.
“Thus being aligned in our values and global strategy with the UK-Ukraine Tech Bridge, we are honoured to be joining the partnership and fulfilling our mutual goals.”