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6 Remarkable Women Entrepreneurs Stirring Up a Tech-Storm in the UK

By: GWL Team | Sunday, 23 July 2023

Technology is no longer a playground for men alone. Over the past several years female entrepreneurs have made great advancements in the global tech landscape and have shattered boundaries and dispelled preconceptions. Women-led tech projects have brought to the fore ground-breaking tools, platforms and ideas that have reshaped the technology industry as a whole.

Despite the strides made by women tech leaders, gaping disparities remain. A study by CodinGame revealed that among the 137 fastest-growing tech companies in the UK identified by Deloitte and The Sunday Times, only seven have female founders or co-founders. The list includes Elvie, which creates tech products for women, Phrasee, an AI copywriting tool, and Seeker Digital, an SEO agency. Shockingly, Buddi, a personal emergency alarm system, is the only tech firm on the list founded solely by a woman. The research highlights the gender inequality in the tech sector, with just four percent of these companies having female founders despite the talent and interest among women to launch tech businesses.

However small women’s percentage be in the statistics, yet their achievements are always worth highlighting. With odds stacked against them, their victories shine even brighter.

We bring to you six amazing women tech entrepreneurs from the UK who have founded groundbreaking Tech-companies and are helping make the UK tech landscape a more gender-neutral space.

Nyobolt- Professor Clare Grey

A renowned professor at the University of Cambridge, Dame Clare Philomena Grey is well-known for her proficiency in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for battery research. She is a pioneer in the investigation and improvement of lithium-ion and lithium-air batteries and has held several important positions, notably at the State University of New York. In order to focus on niobium-based batteries, Grey co-founded Nyobolt.

Nyobolt is a top battery technology firm that was established in 2019 following substantial research at the University of Cambridge. The company aspire to produce ultra-fast charging lithium-ion batteries with longer lifespans, safety, and dependability by hiring great brains like Anna Wise and Shane Davies. To construct facilities and satisfy demand from multiple industries, Nyobolt has secured $10 million in series A investment.

Pollinate International- Fiona Roach Canning

Co-founder and CEO of Pollinate International Fiona Roach Canning has twenty years of expertise in management consulting and customer-focused positions. Her area of expertise is managing and creating programmes for consumer involvement. Prior positions held by Fiona include managing Nectar's operations and customer experience, overseeing loyalty programmes for numerous companies, and driving intelligence for Visa Europe.

A London-based software company “Pollinate” is transforming merchant acquiring for banks all over the world. Their cutting-edge cloud-based platform equips banks with the tools they need to compete with disruptive payment startups and improve client experiences. Pollinate helps banks forge closer ties with their consumers and merchants by enabling merchants to manage operations, interact with customers, and create loyalty programmes while connecting smoothly with legacy payment systems. Notably, Pollinate gave the Royal Bank of Scotland Group the opportunity to return to merchant purchasing with NatWest Tyl, bringing a customer-focused offering.

CareAlgo- Maaha Suleiman

CareAlgo was formed by social entrepreneur Maaha Suleiman with the goal of revolutionising the care industry and enhancing the lives of senior citizens, particularly those from BAME communities. The tech-based business specialises in AI-based cultural matching, connecting care recipients and staff according to their origins, languages, and talents to provide respectable and comfortable care.

Basically, CareAlgo is a PaaS technology platform that helps care companies and councils link care workers with clients based on cultural competency and other parameters. It was launched in January 2022. Utilising data analytics and machine learning, the application offers culturally competent treatment and training, empowering healthcare professionals and enhancing outcomes.

Financielle- Laura Pomfret

Laura Pomfret is the co-founder of Financielle, a well-known app for financial health that is upending the fintech sector. Users of the programme, which targets women, are given the authority to manage their finances. It has collaborated with well-known businesses, received press attention, and is a participant in the Tech Nation Exchange Programme for entrepreneurs. Reduce the wealth disparity between men and women.

A financial health software for women “Financielle” equips women with budgeting tools and informational resources for managing their money and investing. It was started in 2018 as a side project on Instagram. The company has now attracted 40,000 other like-minded women and received funding from Haatch Ventures and angel investors.

Twirl- Lara Stallbaum

Professional Lara Stallbaum has a wide range of experience. She co-founded Twirl, an on-demand platform for scalability of user-generated content, in 2022, and rose to the position of CPO. In the UK5 Cohort, they also joined Antler as an Entrepreneur. In 2018, Lara co-founded Swedish Fall, a tech-driven design business that fights fashion waste. She previously worked on initiatives at EDEKA Aktiengesellschaft and Panorama Mountain Resort as part of Harvard Innovation Labs' Venture Incubation Programme. Lara attended the University of Victoria and earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Fachhochschule Nordakademie Elmshorn. She also studied entrepreneurship there. They attended Domschule Schleswig, where they earned their Abitur in English and Economics, as part of their scholastic adventure.

A remote content studio “Twirl” offers paid video social content such as Instagram Reels, endorsements, demonstrations, and unboxings. In order to ensure the development of "authentic" content, brands provide briefs to the producers listed on Twirl's platform. Antler provided the firm with £120,000 in money to boost its operations and expansion.

PlayThru- Rose Tan

Rose Tan's tech skills class appeared disinterested and engrossed in video games in the middle of 2019. A student's earnest apologies led to the realisation that studying ought to be just as exciting as gaming. PlayThru is a platform for gamifying online classes that Rose built using her teaching expertise and background in video game design. This ensures engagement and participation. PlayThru evolved to provide a joyful educational trip when lockdowns forced education to go online.

A fun tool “PlayThru” uses gamification to increase student engagement in the classroom. PlayThru is a platform that transforms lesson information submitted by educators into interactive games, creating a joyful and productive learning environment.