tech deal of the year award

sponsored by Rothschild & Co

The 2024 shortlist:

Darktrace plc

Cambridge-based Darktrace is a pioneer in AI cybersecurity. The group has revolutionised autonomous cyber defence and has been a stand-out business in the UK tech landscape for more than a decade.

In October this year, leading software investment firm Thoma Bravo announced the completion of an all-cash acquisition of Dartrace, valuing the group at approximately $5.3bn. The offer represented a premium of 20% over Darktrace’s closing share price of 517p, which was the last trading day prior to the announcement. The acquisition enables Darktrce to pursue further scale and innovation for its next stage of growth.

IRIS Software Group Limited

IRIS Software Group provides industry leading business critical software solutions and services to manage core business operations. The group is based in Slough and is a regular on the shortlist at the UK tech awards. 

In December 2023, amidst ongoing challenging market conditions, IRIS signed one of Europe’s largest software transactions The group secured a co-controlling investment from LA-based private equity firm, Leonard Green & Partners, who invested alongside existing long term investors Hg Capital and Intermediate Capital Group. This fund raising round gave Iris  an enterprise value of approximately £3.15bn. The deal more than doubles IRIS’ £1.3bn valuation, cited in 2018, and supports the group’s ambition to expand and scale  its North American operations.

Monzo Bank Limited

London-based Monzo is a digital bank offering a mobile app for managing money, budgeting, and saving. The group was one of the earliest of a number of new app-based challenger banks in the UK.

In March this year, Monzo announced that it had raised £340m in a funding round to help boost its expansion plans. This was closely followed by a further fundraise in May 2024 of $190m, boosting Monzo’s total funding this year to $610m and raising the value of the business to $5.2bn post-money, making the group one of the most valuable digital banks in Britain. Earlier this month, Monzo also announced it was launching a secondary share sale that is set to increase the group’s value even further.

Raspberry Pi Holdings plc

Cambridge-based Raspberry Pi is a leader in low-cost, high-performance computing used by engineers and enthusiasts across the world. The group created The Raspberry Pi foundation to widen access to computing through the availability of low-cost computers.

Raspberry Pi listed on the LSE Main Market in June this year. The group raised £166m in a significantly oversubscribed IPO, giving the business a market cap of £541.6m, a total that has since increased to over £800m since the start of trading. Demand for the stock has been significant and the group’s shares increased by more than a third on the first day of trading.

Revolut Group Holdings Ltd

Headquartered in London, Revolut is a digital banking app that offers a range of financial services. The group is among the top digital-only financial providers for regular travellers and those sending money overseas. 

In August this year, Revolut secured a $45bn valuation in a share sale by employees, cementing its status as Europe’s most valuable start-up. This valuation is more than a 20% jump on the group’s 2021 valuation of $33bn, achieved when raising cash from investors including Vision Fund and Tiger Global Management.

Wayve Technologies Ltd

London-based Wayve is the leading developer of Embodied AI technology for automated driving. The group’s advanced AI software and foundation models for autonomy enable vehicles to perceive, understand, and navigate any environment, enhancing the usability and safety of autonomous driving systems.

In May this year Wayve announced a $1.05bn Series C investment round led by SoftBank Group, with contributions from new investor NVIDIA and existing investor Microsoft. This is the largest known investment in an AI company in Europe to date, and helps the group accelerate its mission to reimagine autonomous mobility through embodied intelligence.

tech commentator of the year award

sponsored by Gracechurch Group

The 2024 shortlist:

Anisah Osman Britton MBE

Anisah regularly writes for Sifted, reporting on European tech. Anisah covers the practicalities of running a company, in addition to a weekly newsletter titled ‘Startup Life’. Anisah also writes for the Evening Standard, Courier Media and The Guardian.

Anisah is well respected voice in the industry, driven by her steadfast belief that tech can be a force of good if it employs a workforce that represents the diversity of society today. She has been deeply involved in the founding and/or operating of both technology and community driven initiatives. Anisah is currently Director of Operations at WVC:E, an organisation dedicated to promoting the inclusion, integration and empowerment of women in venture capital. 

Amy Lewin/Sifted

Amy is an experienced journalist having worked in the industry for over a decade. Amy leads Sifted’s team of journalists, hosts the monthly podcast, writes Sifted’s weekly VC newsletter Up Round and regularly speaks at tech events across the continent. Amy was shortlisted for the tech commentator of the year award in 2023.

Amy has a particular interest in the ‘human side’ of companies and making the tech and financial sectors more appealing and accessible to all. As such, she reports on issues including female representation in venture capital and the role of startups in addressing societal issues such as climate change. Amy provides a fresh voice to the global tech debate and highlights the considerations that matter to European startups and innovators. 

Hannah Murphy/Financial Times

Hannah is a tech correspondent at the FT, leading the conversation around social media giants such as Meta, X and TikTok, in addition to covering topics including AI, the metaverse, disinformation, cyber and election security. Hannah regularly moderate panels for FT Live and at other conferences and c-suite events. She has also appeared on live slots and documentaries with national broadcasters such as the BBC and Channel 4.

Hanah is driven by a passion for the intersection of social platforms with other aspects of the tech world, including fintech and cybersecurity. Prior to her time as tech correspondent, Hannah worked as a finance reporter where she worked on issues including online trading, stockbroking and market structure.

Katie Prescott/The Times

Katie is the Technology Business Editor at the Times and is one of the most prominent technology and business journalists in the UK. She covers key developments across the technology, media and telecoms space and their impact on our day to day lives. Katie recently provided some of the most incisive journalism on AI available, from the dangers of deepfakes, to the twists and turns of the journey of Open AI. 

Katie has been a trusted voice to millions of listeners during her time on both Times Radio and presenting business news on Radio 4’s Today Programme where she analysed and explained global issues such as climate change, COVID-19, and the latest developments in cutting edge technologies. In addition, Katie also hosts a number of major events staged by The Times.

Simon Thompson/Investors’ Chronicle

Simon is Associate Editor at the Investors’ Chronicle and is an experienced and influential investment writer with a significant following. He has almost two decades experience at the publication and as part of this role, having begun his career with IC as Companies Editor in 2001.

Simon publishes a daily column on stock-picking, which is widely read and well-respected by potential investors. He is the creator of Investors Chronicle’s ‘Bargain Shares’, a value portfolio that has beaten the market in 18 of the last 22 years. In addition, Simon is a published author with multiple stock picking guides to his name.

James Titcomb/The Telegraph

James is one of the leading technology journalists in the country, with a significant UK following. He is currently the Technology Editor at The Telegraph, having worked with the paper for almost a decade, first as a general business reporter and then heading up the paper’s Silicon Valley Bureau in the US. Prior to his time with the Telegraph, he also worked as a reporter for City AM and the Daily Mail. 

James is an important and influential voice in the tech world, particularly on the intersection of technology and current affairs where he is trusted to provide incisive journalism on issues such as COVID censorship, the perpetuation of conspiracy theories through online bots and a potential looming TikTok ban in the US. 

scale up award

sponsored by J.P. Morgan

The 2024 shortlist:

Cera Care Limited

London-based Cera is Europe’s largest provider of digital-first home healthcare. The group is redefining healthcare by moving more and more services out of hospitals and into people’s own homes.

Cera is one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies, having rapidly expanded since it’s launch in 2016. The group’s annualised revenues have grown from £3m to £300m by growing its NHS and local government contracts from just five to 350 in only four years. This growth is reflected in Cera’s workforce, with the group now employing nearly 10,000 carers and nurses, and delivering 2m in-person community visits every month, which is equivalent in capacity to almost 100 hospitals.

ComplyAdvantage Ltd

Headquartered in London, ComplyAdvantage is the financial industry’s leading source of AI-driven financial crime risk data and fraud detection technology. The group’s mission is to neutralise the risk of money laundering, terrorist financing, corruption, and other financial crime. 

In April this year, ComplyAdvantage announced its acquisition of Golden, a San Francisco-based innovator automating the construction of one of the world's largest knowledge graphs. The deal strengthened the group’s foothold in North America by delivering an extensive base of US customers and fuelled ComplyAvantage’s significant growth following its expanded client roster.

Finbourne Technology Group Ltd

London-based Finbourne provides investment management solutions and a cloud-native data management platform. The group’s interconnected investment functionality and data management solutions power financial services professionals to make better, faster decisions.

In September this year, Finbourne successfully raised over £100m in a secondary funding round, building on its £55m Series B earlier this year. The investment, led by CommerzVentures and HSBC Ventures, will accelerate Finbourne’s high-growth go-to-market strategy, in addition to expanding its sales, product and marketing capabilities in the US, UK, Ireland, Singapore and Australia.

Fresha.com SV Ltd t/a Fresha

Headquartered in London, Fresha is the leading marketplace platform for beauty & wellness. The platform allows consumers to discover, book and pay for beauty and wellness appointments with local businesses via its marketplace, while beauty and wellness businesses use an all-in-one platform to manage their entire operations. 

Fresha has quickly established itself as the world's largest beauty and wellness software marketplace. The group has translated its platform in to 14 languages, which has fuelled its global expansion and has delivered 70% revenue growth year-on-year, compared to the average SaaS growth of 20%. Fresha has raised $185m in total in venture capital to help deliver further rapid expansion.

Immersive Labs Ltd

Bristol-based Immersive Labs is a leader in people-centric cyber resilience. The group’s tailored approach to cyber skills development continuously assesses, builds, and proves cyber capabilities, whilst keeping teams ahead of an ever-evolving threat landscape.

Immersive Labs is trusted by the world’s largest organisations and governments, including Citi, Pfizer, Humana, HSBC, USPS, the UK Ministry of Defence, and the UK National Health Service. The group achieved ARR CAGR growth of 50% over a 3 year period, with organic expansion into 13 countries with customers in over 35 countries. Immersive Lab’s organic growth has been fuelled by VC investors Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Summit Partners, Insight Partners, Citi Ventures, Ten Eleven Ventures, and Menlo Ventures. 

Quantexa Limited

Quantexa is an innovative global tech firm, based in London. The group is highly experienced in helping organizations across a variety of industries solve some of their biggest business challenges with data and AI.
 

In April last year, Quantexa completed its Series E funding round. The latest investment round secured the group’s unicorn status with a valuation of £1.5bn and accelerated the execution of its growth strategy within the $500bn Decision Intelligence space. The group also completed its first acquisition last year of an award-winning provider of AI-based risk and market intelligence solutions, which further accelerated Quantexa’s growth plans. 

Rovco Ltd t/a Beam

In September this year, Rovco and Vaarst merged, creating a new brand, Beam. Based in Bristol, Beam is a leading deep technology company, using AI and autonomy on robotic ships and underwater robots to service offshore wind farms. 

Beam is changing the way its industry operates, moving it from a low margin 20-30% model to a high margin 60-70%+ automated business model with AI at its very heart. The group now holds contracts in over 90% of the USA’s operational windfarms, has operated in over 70% of the UK’s windfarms, and is rapidly growing in Europe. Rovco/Beam has raised $38.5n in total over 9 rounds of fundraising and is backed by Foresight, L&G and Equinor. 

tech for good award

sponsored by Heidrick & Struggles

The 2024 shortlist:

Arenko Cleantech Limited

London-based Arenko is a market-leading technology provider enabling the clean energy transition. The group’s mission is to build a sustainable future by enabling a zero-carbon grid worldwide.

Arenko has created a complete software solution which connects and optimises the battery’s technical and commercial performance using automation technology, AI, enhanced analytics and deep-learning algorithms. The group digitally connects energy assets with revenue opportunities in real-time through autonomous data driven decision-making and execution. This enables trading desks, utilities and asset owners to maximise revenues and reduce cost to serve. 

Cera Care Limited

London-based Cera is Europe’s largest provider of digital-first home healthcare. The group is redefining healthcare by moving more and more services out of hospitals and into people’s own homes.

Cera is one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies, having rapidly expanded since its launch in 2016. The group’s annualised revenues have grown from £3m to £300m by growing its NHS and local government contracts from just five to 350 in only four years. This growth is reflected in Cera’s workforce, with the group now employing nearly 10,000 carers and nurses, and delivering 2m in-person community visits every month, which is equivalent in capacity to almost 100 hospitals.

eyeWitness to Atrocities

eyeWitness to Atrocities is a London-based charity that combines law with technology to ensure footage of mass atrocity crimes meets evidentiary admissibility standards applicable before international and national courts. 

The group offers the only system – the free eyeWitness to Atrocities app and a secure database – specifically designed by legal professionals for human rights defenders to collect, verify, and safeguard digital evidence of atrocity crimes, including war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. In addition to the app and database, eyeWitness provides training on photo and video documentation, legal expertise and links to key investigative bodies, streamlining the process from documentation to justice.

KareHero Ltd

KareHero’s mission is to radically change the lives of carers. The group aims to prevent employees from having to take a step back or suffer caregiver burnout because they lack access to the support they need.

KareHero was founded in 2022 by Stephanie Leung who has been the default adult family caregiver to her parents since the age of 14. Prior to founding KareHero, Stephanie was a Venture Partner at LocalGlobe VC. The group’s offering comprises a care matching service (CareSourcer.com) that is free and open to the public, as well as a digital plus human care concierge service, (KareHero), offered as an employee benefit to employers and insurance companies.

Raspberry Pi Holdings plc

Headquartered in Cambridge, Raspberry Pi is a leader in low-cost, high-performance computing used by engineers and enthusiasts across the world. The group’s aim is to democratise technology by providing access to low-cost computers. 

The group created The Raspberry Pi foundation, which is a registered charity to enable young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. The foundation launched the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, three years ago, and continues to work closely with businesses, foundations, and governments to ensure that its work reaches as many teachers and young people as possible. 

Unmind Ltd

Unmind is an enterprise SaaS mental health platform, based in London. The group is creating a new era of work by combining proactive and reactive mental health solutions with AI and advanced data-led strategies. 

Unmind has partnered with some of the world’s biggest brands such as Uber, Nationwide, Standard Chartered, Mediacom and British Airways, to give over 2.5m people the right support at the right time. The group helps Human Resource Officers shape the future of work through tailored strategies, measuring organisational health, educating leaders to power positive business performance and ensuring all employees have the right care at the right time.

ZOE Limited

London-based Zoe is a healthtech company that specialises in gut microbiome testing. The group has run the world’s largest in-depth nutrition study in order to produce a personalised program to give individuals insights into how their body responds to food.

Zoe’s PREDICT study encompasses a collection of rigorously designed clinical trials that have helped the group understand and predict personalised metabolic responses to foods, in order to  move beyond a “one-size-fits-all” approach to nutrition. The group’s at-home test kit helps people gain a better understanding of their unique metabolism and gut microbiome. People who follow the ZOE program report impressive results, with 85% of it’s members reporting they feel healthier. 

tech investor award

sponsored by Teneo

The 2024 shortlist:

Accel 

Accel is a leading venture capital firm with offices in Palo Alto and California, in addition to operating funds in London, India and China. Since inception, the group has invested in over 300 companies, including Facebook, Slack, and Dropbox and was one of the first Silicon Valley venture firms to set up a European team.

Accel has raised more than $12bn in total capital commitments and has invested in over 700 companies in its history. In May this year, Accel announced it had raised $650m for its eighth early-stage fund to invest in start ups in Europe and Israel. In addition to its investments, Accel is involved in various community and philanthropic initiatives. The firm has launched several programs to support entrepreneurship and innovation in underrepresented communities, including a partnership with the nonprofit organization, All Raise, to increase diversity in the tech industry.

Balderton Capital (UK) LLP

London-based Balderton is a venture capital firm investing in early-stage, technology and startups in Europe. The group is considered to be among the four-biggest venture capital firms in the UK.

Since launch, Balderton has invested in over 275 technology companies from across Europe. The group’s current portfolio includes global leaders such as Revolut, GoCardless, Wayve, Writer and PhotoRoom. In addition, many of the group’s previous portfolio companies have successfully exited, including Darktrace, Depop, MySQL and THG. In August this year Balderton announced a $615m Early Stage Fund IX and $685m Growth Fund II, to back Europe’s most ambitious entrepreneurs from seed stage through IPO, marking the first time the group has raised early and growth funds simultaneously.

Dawn Capital LLP

London-based Dawn Capital is one of the few European venture capital firms with deep expertise in SaaS. The group backs European founders to build the next generation of global software leaders. 

Since launch, Dawn Capital has raised over $2bn from global investors and backed more than 80 companies across 16 European countries. The firm’s portfolio includes Mimecast, iZettle, Tink, LeanIX and currently established unicorns Collibra, Dataiku and Quantexa.  In September 2023 Dawn Capital raised capital of $700m; $620m was channelled to its dedicated early-stage B2B software fund, with $80m allotted to a follow-on fund.

HgCapital LLP

Hg is a leading investor in European and transatlantic software and services businesses. The group was founded in 1990 as Mercury Asset Management and then became part of Merrill Lynch Asset Management in the late 90s. In 2000, the partners spun the business out of MLAM to become Hg, a fully independent leveraged buyout firm. Hg has won the tech investor of the year award, most recently in 2022.

Hg has delivered outstanding performance for its investors and as a result, has achieved strong growth, increasing fund sizes by an aggregate of 88%. In September this year, the group announced the closing of multiple fundraisings include Hg Genesis 9, closing on €4.4bn; Hg Mercury 3 closing on €1.3bn and Hg Saturn 2 which closed on $4.85bn, with all three funds hitting their hard-caps.

Index Ventures (UK) LLP

Index Ventures work with entrepreneurs and their companies at every stage, across every sector. The firm was born in Geneva in 1996, and quickly expanded to London with the goal of bringing Silicon Valley-style investment to Europe.

Index has a long history of identifying, nurturing, and partnering with visionary founders, with an impressive portfolio that includes Figma, Discord, Notion, and Roblox. In July this year, the group announced it was adding $2.3bn in new funds with its 12th venture fund of $800m and its 7th growth fund of $1.5bn, bringing total capital raised since its founding to £11.6bn.

Summit Partners LP

Summit Partners is a leading growth-focused investment firm with offices in Boston, New York, London and Luxemburg. The group invests across growth sectors of the economy and, since its founding has invested in over 550 companies in technology, healthcare and other growth industries. 

Summit’s global team includes more than 100 investment professionals with deep domain knowledge within key growth sectors. In October this year, Summit raised $9.5bn for its twelfth US Growth Equity Fund.  The new fund, Summit XII, will target majority and minority investments of $75 to $500m primarily in profitable, category-leading growth companies. With this new capital, the group is now managing more than $46bn in assets across its fund complex.

best use of tech in the digital economy award

sponsored by Edison Group

The 2024 shortlist:

1Spatial plc

Cambridge-based 1Spatial is a global leader in Location Master Data Management (LMDM) software and solutions. The group’s software is primarily used by enterprises and government bodies to make better business decisions through improved accuracy and sharing of location data.

In July this year, 1Spatial announced it had secured several new contracts in the US, supporting the digital transformation of transport and emergency services departments. The new contracts delivered, in aggregate, at least $500,000 in annual recurring revenue. Alongside its newly launched SaaS offerings,  1Spatial has a number of growth vectors available to enable the group to deliver on its ambitions.

Cantab Research Limited t/a Speechmatics

Cambridge-based Speechmatics specialises in automatic speech recognition (ASR). The group’s advanced ASR solutions leverage neural networks and statistical language modelling to convert spoken language into written text. 

Speechmatics’ technology supports real-time transcription and translation across over 50 languages, making it a leader in the speech-to-text industry. As voice becomes a primary way to interact with technology, inclusive technology will be more important than ever. In October this year, Speechmatics showcased its inclusive technology in a film produced by BBC StoryWorks, which demonstrated a look at the future of voice technology.

Eagle Eye Solutions Group plc

London-based Eagle Eye is a leading SaaS company enabling retail, travel, and hospitality brands, such as John Lewis and Pret a Manger, to earn the loyalty of their end customers by powering their real-time, omnichannel, and personalised consumer marketing activities.

The group’s cloud-based platform, Eagle Eye AIR, provides the most flexible and scalable loyalty and promotions capability in the world. The group plans to launch a growing number of EagleAI offerings, including 'Personalised Flyer', an AI powered personalised digital flyer in 2025.

Trainline plc

London-based Trainline is Europe’s leading independent rail platform, selling rail and coach tickets to millions of travellers worldwide. The group operates through three business segments: UK Consumer, International Consumer and Trainline Solutions.

Trainline’s technology has transformed the way the public buy their train tickets. In July this year the group created a new booking portal, called platform One, which is home to Trainline’s own retail channels, as well as handling ticket sales for several train operators. The new platform covers more than 270 rail and coach companies across 45 countries, including over 80% of rail routes in Europe.

Windward Ltd

Windward is a leading predictive intelligence company, fusing artificial intelligence and maritime expertise to digitise the global maritime industry, based in London. The group’s customers include leading participants across the maritime industry covering banks, commodity traders, insurers, government agencies, and major energy and shipping companies.

Windward’s AI-powered software solutions provide real time information and insights on major seafaring vessels at sea, enabling stakeholders within the maritime eco-system to make intelligence-driven decisions to manage risk and achieve business and operational insights. In October this year, the group announced a number of key developments, including significant business expansion and new contract wins in the Government sector amounting to $1.9m.

Youth Group Limited

Youth Group is a group of companies that solves challenges for the next generation. Its mission is to help 100 million young people with their work, money and health goals and it is used by some of the world’s leading brands including Pret A Manger, Easyjet, Google, and Mars.

Youth Group provides tailored solutions to help brands connect and engage with the next generation. One of its most recent collaborations is with Easyjet and My Duvet Flip, which is hailed as the UK's Leading Career Show and was created to provide comprehensive guidance and support to viewers. EasyJet was announced as an official brand partner for Season 4, which will feature a conversation with Training Pilot Captain Kate West, who became the world’s youngest female Captain at the age of 26.

tech businesswoman of the year award

sponsored by PwC

The 2024 shortlist:

Kerry Baldwin/IQ Capital Partners LLP

Kerry co-founded IQ Capital in 2006 and has over 20 years deeptech venture capital experience. Kerry was Chair of the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association and is an international advisor and speaker on venture capital, deeptech ecosystems, research and innovation. 

Kerry invested in the first wave of UK deeptech companies and has focussed on deeptech early-stage technology over her five funds which invest from seed to £30m. Kerry specialises in GTM, Strategic Marketing, Competitive Intelligence and heads up IQ’s cybersecurity, climate tech, supervisory tech, big data and neuro-tech portfolio. She sits on several boards including Risilience,  FNA and CyberSmart.

Joanna Drake/THG plc

Joanna is CIO at THG, with a rich career spanning over two decades in senior IT leadership. With a relentless focus on driving global transformations, Joanna is a stalwart in the technology sector. Joanna has also held pivotal positions at organisations including Skyscanner, Wood Mackenzie, Betfair and Yahoo.

In her current role at THG, Joanna spearheads the delivery of world-class global operations and technology services across various platforms, ranging from corporate to retail and beyond. She is a people orientated leader who is passionate about leadership, Diversity & Inclusion. In addition, Joanna sits on the advisory boards of the Global CIO Institute, Hottopics, Forrester and the UK IT Leaders group.

Siân John MBE/NCC Group plc

Siân is the CTO at NCC Group and is responsible for intelligence, insight and innovation within the business. Siân has worked in Cybersecurity for 25 years across strategy, business risk, privacy, and technology. 

Since joining NCC Group last year, Siân has defined the future direction of services through close interaction with clients, industry, and academia. As a recognised cyber security thought leader and strategist, Siân held previous roles at Microsoft and is the current Chair of techUK’s Cyber Security Management committee. Siân was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s 2018 New Year’s Honours List for services to Cybersecurity.

Martina King/Featurespace Limited

Martina King joined Featurespace in 2012. Formerly the MD of augmented reality company Aurasma, she has an extensive career in media and technology, including MD of Yahoo. 

Under Martina’s leadership, Featurespace has become the world’s leading provider of Enterprise Financial Crime prevention software, risk scoring events and preventing fraud and financial crime in more than 180 countries. The group has raised over £100m in funding, supporting its ongoing expansion and ability to protect more than 30 major global financial institutions, including HSBC, Worldpay, NatWest Group, Danske Bank and Barclays. Since 2018, Martina has been honoured by PaymentsSource as one of its Most Influential Women in Payments in addition to being named in the Top 40 Powerful Women in Tech by Silicon Republic.

Catherine Ramsdale/Pragmatic Semiconductor Limited

Catherine is SVP Technology at Pragmatic Semiconductor, where she oversees the maturation of its technology platforms, from early process development through to release of its Process Design Kit to external users. Formerly at Plastic Logic (now FlexEnable), Catherine has worked in the flexible electronics sector since completing her PhD at the University of Cambridge in 2002. 

Catherine has played a major role in the development of ultra-thin semiconductor circuitry on flexible substrates, taking early proof-of-technology concepts through to manufacturing readiness. She is named inventor on over 15 patents in the field and co-author on numerous research publications.

Liz Upton/Raspberry Pi Holdings plc

Liz Upton is Executive Director of Communications at the Raspberry Pi Foundation. She was an award-winning journalist before becoming one of the co-founders of Raspberry Pi along with her husband Eben. 

Liz has steadfastly guided the communications at the Foundation and Trading since founding the group. The Raspberry Pi story began in 2006 with the creation of the first prototypes inspired by the BBC Micro of the 1980s. Six years later, the first Raspberry Pi was created and today, following the group’s recent very successful IPO, the business has a market cap of £690m. Liz and Eden received Honorary Fellowships from The National Museum of Computing for their services to technology in 2022.