Three start-up businesses founded by DCU students won reputable titles from DCU Ryan Academy in a pitch session on October 1st.
DCU Ryan Academy consists of the Propeller accelerator and UStart programmes, which provide early stage funding to start-up companies. To date Ryan Academy has provided more than €800,000 in funding 29 start-up businesses, with the 24 Propeller alumni companies raising over €9.5million in follow-on funding.
Theo Lynn, Associate Dean Industry Engagement and Innovation in DCU, picked up the award of Propeller Company of the Year 2015 on behalf of the Rendicity team.
Rendicity designs and develops software solutions that allow users to schedule processing capacity in the cloud on-demand, then deliver it to customers. This software services the 3D component of computer-aided design (CAD) market, used by architects, engineers, and in animation studios.
Liam Sexton, a DCU Biomedical Engineering graduate, won UStart Company of the Year for his mobile app PhotoCAD. The app is capable of generating a computer-aided design (CAD) drawing file of an object captured using a phone’s camera.
This new technology aids the product design process by allowing a team member to create electronic drawing files quickly while out of office and then send the files to the desktop team for further work.
Colm Byrne, a recent graduate of DCU Ryan Academy, won the award for UStart Most Innovative Company. Byrne’s business, DaysE (Donate as you save Energy) serves as a platform to raise funds for projects using energy saving measures. The funds raised are donated to social enterprises and charities involved in energy saving.
The CEO of DCU’s Ryan Academy Eoghan Stack said that the connection between their two programmes this year showed “a strong indicator of the entrepreneurial potential and appetite for ongoing support required in this country”.
Clara Hickey
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