Ireland is home to some of the biggest companies in the world, from tech giants such as Google to medical multinationals like GSK.

However, amongst these enterprises, there are countless startups that are aiming to disrupt their industries, create new ways of solving problems, and leave a mark at home and abroad.

You will see that a lot fo them are within Dublin, the capital of the country, but will find some around the whole nation.

Here’re the top 53 Irish startups you should be watching this year.

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Top Irish Startups

1) Aid:Tech

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Joseph Thompson and Niall Dennehy

Year Founded: 2014

Category: MedTech

Aid:Tech uses blockchain technology to provide a platform where welfare, remittances and donations can be processed and delivered in a completely transparent way. The startup recently received a €1M funding deal with investors including SGInnovate and Block Asset Ventures. 

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2) Abodoo

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Vannessa Tierney

Year Founded: 2017

Category: SaaS

After a period of working remotely due to medical treatment, Vanessa Tierney decided to set up Abodoo. It is a career matching platform that is specifically aimed at remote workers or workers that want to work on a flexible schedule. The companies that are looking to hire are matched with remote workers that don’t mind working remotely. It has over €1M in funding and is proving to be an international leader on a global stage. 

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3) Apis Protect

HQ: Cork

Founders: Dr Fiona Edwards Murphy

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Internet of Things / Bee Technology

By no means the biggest startup on the list but one that has created a lot of buzz. ApisProtect is all about using agricultural technology to take care of bees. It gives beekeepers data on which hives are performing well or which are alive or dead and helps turn data into useful information for beekeepers.

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4) Artomatix

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Eric Risser, Neal O'Gorman, and Barthélémy Kiss

Year Founded: 2014 

Category: Artificial Intelligence Software

This is an AI software firm whose main product automates up to 90% of the most tedious and time-consuming tasks of the 3D artistic workflow. Artomatix was recently bought by Unity Technologies as their team is set to grow exponentially over the next few years. 

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5) AudioSourceRe

HQ: Cork

Founders: Derry Fitzgerald & John O’Connell

Year Founded: 2018

Category: Audio Software

AudioSourceRE develops innovative demixing technology that can separate sound. It’s software reverse engineers music and audio without the need for original content, delivering high-quality individual layers of instruments and sounds to be reused in music recording, broadcast, digital music, social karaoke (incl. video), music education, audio forensics and voice biometrics.

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6) Bamboo

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Luke Mackey and Alan Havert

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Food / App 

Bamboo is all about saving time and money. The app allows users to order from their favorite cafes and restaurants without having to queue up. You can track your order in real-time and make your way to collect it when the app notifies you when it’s ready. It’s a very simple but genius idea. 

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7) Bluedrop Medical

HQ: Galway 

Founders: Chris Murphy and Simon Kiersey

Year Founded: 2015

Category: MedTech

Bluedrop is aiming to lower the impact of diabetes. They are using the Internet of Things technology to identify diabetic foot ulcers. With an estimated 25,000 people per year having to get amputations due to diabetes, this technology has the potential help lower those numbers dramatically. 

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8) Cerebreon

HQ: Donegal 

Founders: Dr Gillian Doyle and Dr Kenneth Doherty

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Tech 

Cerebreon is a tech firm that utilizes algorithms and machine intelligence to identify insolvency failure in advance and helps to correct the mistake before it becomes an issue. This year alone they have been able to raise €1.69million which is a huge amount for any business. 

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9) Circit.io

HQ: Dublin

Founder: David Heath

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Software as a Service

Circit.io aims to help companies by providing them with a platform for communication and automation during the financial audit process. Ciricit.io brings together banks, accounting firms and clients during the highly stressful audit process. All at the fraction of the time, that it takes traditional methods. Ciricit.io is shaking things up in the fintech industry and is building on early successes. 

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10) CitySwift

HQ: Galway 

Founders: Brian O’Rourke and Alan Farrelly

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Data as a Service / Transport

CitySwift is one of the few Irish startups that have been featured in Forbes. This is a very useful platform which provides data-driven bus scheduling to make public transport more efficient and to improve customer satisfaction. They have taken on more team members and experienced a steady since they were established in 2016.

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11) CloudKPI

HQ: Wicklow 

Founders: Maeve Kneafsey and Brenda Jordan

Year Founded: 2012

Category: Software as a Service

Since its founding in 2012, CloudKPI has received over $1 million in funding. They provide software that helps cloud businesses to make better data-driven decisions. They recently secured a contract with Amazon Web Services which will give them access to over 5,000 potential SaaS clients.

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12) Coindrum

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Lukas Decker

Year Founded: 2012

Category: Financial exchanges, Retail, Travel

Ever find yourself with a load of coins that are no good in your home country? Coindrum helps travelers use up their leftover currency when they are leaving a country in exchange for shopping vouchers. They have self-service machines all over the world and are helping travellers get rid of unwanted cash and increasing footfall for airport retail shops.

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13) EverVault

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Shane Curran

Year Founded: 2018

Category: Data Protection, Software

A great startup from one of Ireland’s brightest young minds, 19-year-old Shane Curran. EverVault’s mission is simple: to make data privacy simple and accessible for all. They are basically creating a one-stop data toolkit that developers can incorporate into new products. With over €3m in seed funding already invested, this is a promising startup for the future to keep an eye out for. 

14) Evocco

HQ: Meath

Founders: Ahmad Mu’azzm and Hugh Weldon

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Sustainability and Retail

The team at Evocco are aiming to make your shopping more eco-friendly by helping customers find the most nutritious food with the lowest environmental impact. You can track your progress and learn more with helpful tips and tricks to reduce your carbon footprint. 

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15) Farmeye

HQ: Galway

Founders: Dr Eoghan Finneran and Brendan Allen

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Agriculture

Ireland is famous for its rolling hills and agricultural background. But it’s fair to say that the agricultural sector is one of the slower sectors to embrace the latest technology. The team at Farmeye has created a map-based system for sustainable soil nutrient management. Which also helps monitor sustainable fertilizers on farms. It helps farmers monitor their produce from the soil to the supermarket. It also helps the farmers make sure they are adhering to fertilizer guidelines and can save them wasting money by spreading excess fertilizer. 

16) Fenergo

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Marc Murphy

Year Founded: 2009

Category: SaaS

Fenergo aims to help financial institutions streamline the end-to-end client lifecycle management from regulatory compliance and regulatory checks. WIth massive clients like BBVA, Scotiabank, and BNP Paribas and with 10+ offices all over the world, this fintech startup is one of the most successful Irish startups on the list. 

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17) Fillit

HQ: Dublin

Founders: John Carroll

Year Founded: 2015

Category: SaaS

The goal of Fillit is simple, they aim to connect businesses with commercial retail space. Companies can create a profile and choose which space is most suited to their business, in a very short amount of time. They are asking people to rethink what space is, from shelves to ship they believe their technology can help. And since going live in 2015, they have proved they can.

18) Flender

HQ: Dublin 

Founders: Jeremy Davies Betancourt, Kristjan Koik and Oli Cavanagh

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Peer to Peer Lending 

Flender is a “Peer-to-Peer” lending platform that makes it easier than ever for businesses to raise expansion finance fast. Giving businesses the capital to grow and giving investors a healthy return on the investment. In 2019 they received a huge line of funding of €75 million, which should put them in a good position to challenge and disrupt the financial lending industry

19) Flipdish

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Brothers Conor and James McCarthy 

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Food App

Set up in 2015 by brothers Conor and James, Flipdish provides an online platform for small restaurants and takeaways to create an easily set up website, take online orders and to build an online presence. Due to COVID-19 at the start of 2020, the platform has seen a massive amount of growth and are helping out 100s of Irish restaurants set up food deliveries for customers during the lockdown in Ireland. It’s during these pressing times that a platform like this is proving so valuable, as it is providing restaurants an income that would have dried up otherwise. 

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20) CorribPoint

HQ: Galway

Founders: Caitriona McGuckian and John Rushe

Year Founded: 2016

Category: FinTech

CorribPoint is a FinTech startup helping smaller financial institutions to meet anti-money laundering obligations using cloud-based technology. Making the process more efficient, cost-effective and consistent for financial institutions that would normally struggle during this time. Since starting in 2016, they have seen the demand for their technology grow every year, as they aim to make the financial industry in Ireland more secure.

21) Indeemo

HQ: Cork

Founders: Eugene Murphy

Year Founded: 2011

Category: Market Research

Founded originally as a safe social media platform by one of Ireland’s most charismatic entrepreneur Euegene Murphy. Indeemo has grown to become a major player in a very specific field: Mobile Ethnography. Indeemo uses a mobile app and platform that uses ethnography and insights to conduct market research to help companies identify customer behaviours and attitudes in more detail than ever before. 

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22) ID Pal

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Colum Lyons, James O'Toole, Patrick McClafferty, Robert O'Farrell

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Tech

ID-Pal lets businesses verify the identity of their customers through a simple, secure and convenient process. Making their businesses safer and more efficient for customers and the business itself. Having won the Industry Breakthrough Award from Payments Industry at PayExpo in London in 2018, and with exclusive deals for their technology in the US, the sky’s the limit for this simple yet genius technology. 

23) Kite Medical

HQ: Galway

Founders: Sarah Loughney and Professor Prem Puri

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Medical Tech

Kite Medical is a small team making waves in the medical industry. Their potential was spotted early on with an investment of €1.5m in 2018. They have invented a medical device that helps to detect kidney reflux in children. Their technology helps detect kidney problems at a young age to prevent kidney problems in the future. 

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24) LetsGetChecked

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Peter Foley 

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Medical 

Based in Dublin and New York, LetsGetChecked helps people conduct their own health tests. They are able to test for STI/STDs, fertility, cancer and general health checks. The online platform helps connect people with global labs and lets people check their tests online. In 2019, they raised over $30m in funding to make their American dream of expanding into the US markets a reality. 

25) Manna Aero

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Bobby Healy

Year Founded: 2019

Category: Drone as a Service

One of the more experimental and futuristic startups on our list. Entrepreneur Bobby Healy is hoping to make food deliveries via drone a reality. With over 10m in funding, it’s looking like this futuristic delivery system is sure to become a reality this year. Manna Aero was also earmarked by Forbes as one of the most exciting Irish startups.

26) MeetingRoom.io

HQ: Dublin 

Founders: Jonny Cosgrave

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Virtual reality 

With remote work more common than ever before, MeetingRoom makes it easier to collaborate with coworkers face-to-face in different locations by using VR technology. Their goal is to completely revamp how online meetings and work conferences are held, which is becoming more relevant today with businesses like HubSpot and Buffer experimenting with letting their employees work from home more often. 

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27) NewsWhip

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Andrew Mullaney, Paul Quigley

Year Founded: 2011

Category: Information services

NewsWhip realised the importance of relevant news content for your business. They track and predict the impact of millions of stories, empowering the world’s news and communications professionals. They have an impressive portfolio of clients, including; Washington Post, Reebok, Walmart and IBM to name a few.

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28) Nexalus

HQ: Cork

Founders: Cathal Wilson and Kenneth O’Mahony

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Science and Engineering

Nexalus is helping to improve sustainability by taking electronics that produce excessive heat and finds a way to make that thermal energy useful. Increasing efficiency and reducing energy costs. There is no shortage of demand for Nexalus as areas such as gaming, high-performance computers and data centres will be looking to make use of any excess energy usage. 

29) Nova Leah

HQ: Louth

Founders: Anita Finnegan

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Cybersecurity 

Cyber security is becoming a pressing issue and Nova Leah is doing their best to achieve it. Since securing an investment of €2.25m in 2018 they have expanded their team and they are increasing cybersecurity by providing a service that helps protect medical devices through cybersecurity. They basically help connected medical devices meet cybersecurity regulations throughout the entire product lifecycle.

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30) Nuritas

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Nora Khaldi

Year Founded: 2014

Category:

Nuritas uses artificial intelligence and genomics (the study of the complete genome of an organism) to uncover and release the natural bioactive peptides with extraordinary health benefits. I know, quite a mouthful! Nuritas basically are using their technology to discover extraordinary health benefits in natural foods. In 2018, they secured €30m in funding from the EU, which ensured that this startup would have a healthy foundation to grow on during the coming years. 

31) Oroson

HQ: Antrim

Founders: Daniel McGlade

Year Founded: 2014

Category: SaaS

Oroson provides an intuitive online platform to bring your deliverables and feedback together in one clear view. No more trawling through emails and endless attachments. Get feedback from your team and clients all in one place. McGlade originally set up Oroson as a platform for students to collaborate but with more demand for collaborative software by companies, it quickly shifted and became very successful of late. Oroson has already raised over £1.25 million in funding.

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32) Over-C

HQ: Cork

Founders: Greg Gleinig, Michael Elliott

Year Founded:2011

Category: IT and Services

Over-C is a digital transformation solution that uses big data and analytics to deliver detailed insights into business operations for vital, time-sensitive decision making. In 2019, their total funding surpassed €10m. Demand for their services has grown as companies are now seeing the power that AI has. 

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33) Parkio

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Joseph Valo, Michael Matus, Pali Gasparovic, Rob Kramer

Year Founded: 2017

Category: SaaS

Parkio is a tech startup that aims to solve the parking problem by implementing software that tackles problems around transportation and parking. Now based all over Europe this startup is looking like it’s going to continue to grow and hopefully go global.

34) PilotPhotonics

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Frank Smyth, Philip Perry

Year Founded: 2011

Category: Semiconductors

The team at Pilot Photonics have developed a new type of laser that can be used across a wide variety of applications, including increasing the amount of information that can be packed into the optical fibre networks that make up the majority of the internet. In 2019 they raised new investment, expanded the executive team, and secured a number of significant awards including a new contract with the European Space Agency, and the prestigious and highly competitive EU Horizon 2020 SME Instrument Phase 2. The company is looks set to grow strongly in 2020 and beyond.

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35) Pointy

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Charles Bibby, Mark Cummins

Year Founded: 2014

Category: Ecommerce

Pointy has created revolutionary technology. It helps brick and mortar stores put their products online, allowing them to get found online by people searching the web for their products online. Earlier this year, Pointy was bought by Google for a cool $163m which should signal the importance of the data that the Pointy team has developed. 

36) Popertee

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Lucinda Kelly

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Retail

Popertee is a data-driven platform helps brands discover brick-and-mortar places for their experience-orientated campaigns and offers very detailed data in the process. They use AI to match the perfect consumer with the perfect location. Using social media data and behavioural data to connect with the brand. This technology works particularly well for live events and experiential brand experiences. 

37) SalesOptimize

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Liz Fulham

Year Founded: 2014

Category: SaaS

SalesOptimize uses software to scan the internet to help sales and marketing teams generate leads. Their patented tech helps identify online shops and create a pipeline of qualified B2B leads. They have received over €2.2m in funding during their first four years and have grown to become on their market in their niche within the B2B lead generation field. 

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38) ServiceDock

HQ: Dublin

Founders: 2016

Year Founded: Leonardo Daruiz Correa, Oisin Ryan

Category: IT and Services

ServiceDock aims to help retail and restaurant chains thrive in a more digital world. Their service helps businesses capture feedback and provide customer service in-store by using messaging apps consumers love using while delivering insights to the companies head office. 

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39) PestPulse

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Brian Monaghan, John O'Gara, Tim O'Toole, Wassim Magnin

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Pest Control IoT (Internet of Things)

PestPulse uses IoT technology to monitor commercial buildings. Their smart technology can be used to monitor sites 24/7 and when alerted they will send out a technician asap. All at the fraction of the cost of traditional services. 

40) StrongRoots

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Samuel Denningan

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Food 

Strong Roots offers healthy, plant-based frozen food products including oven baked sweet potato fries, kale & quinoa burgers, cauliflower hash browns and spinach bites. It's products are sold in over 4,000 stores worldwide including major retailers in Ireland, the UK, and the U.S., as well as Singapore, Iceland, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Qatar. It has sold over 8 million packs of its foods worldwide.

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41) Sweepr

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Alan Coleman, Jim Hannon, John Maguire, Liam Davis

Year Founded: 2017

Category: Customer services

Sweepr is a device to help people with their ‘connected home’. Think Alexa that can pinpoint any problems with connected devices in your smart home. Whether it’s the internet or the oven, Sweepr will analyze it and contact a technician if needed. 

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42) SoapBox Labs

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Dr Patricia Scanlon

Year Founded: 2013

Category: Artificial Intelligence and Speech Recognition

Not many startups can boast that they have been officially endorsed by Mark Zuckerburg. The SoapBox Labs team are aiming to improve literacy amongst children. Unlike other voice assistants, this one is made specifically for kids and helps improve literacy through games, toys, language learning and more. They recently got a $30m contract with the University of Florida to use their technology in an educational program. 

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43) Tines

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Eoin Hinchy

Year Founded: 2018

Category: Cyber Security

The Tines platform is all about automating the cybersecurity process. Their handy platform can help security teams automate any manual task they may have. It’s an impressive and well-funded startup that looks like its going to be around for a long time as cybersecurity gets more important.

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44) Trade IX

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Andy Berti, Marcus Wade, Richard Tynan, Robert Barnes

Year Founded: 2015

Category: Financial Tech

Trade IX is a fast-growing trading platform that uses blockchain technology to create a secure and reliable service. It’s an award-winning company with some of the biggest clients in the world and looks to be going from strength-to-strength. ‍

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45) Trezeo

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Flavien Charlon, Garrett Cassidy

Year Founded: 2016

Category: FInTech App

Being a freelancer isn’t easy with a lot of uncertainty and varying incomes, Trezeo aims to solve this problem by providing security for freelance or self-employed people. Offering affordable financial products like pensions, long term pensions and even mortgages. 

46) UX Design Institute

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Colman Walsh

Year Founded: 2013

Category: Information Technology / Education

The UX Design Institute is the leader in UX education and certification. They offer university credit rated online courses. The courses are also validated by their Industry Advisory Council which is made up of experts within the UX and tech sector.

47) Uleska

HQ: Belfast

Founders: Gary Robinson

Year Founded: 2016

Category: Cyber Security 

Uleska is helping to guide people through the modern-day cybersecurity landscape. Uleska helps by automating the software and cloud services security process. In an industry worth an approx 9bn, they’re ones to keep an eye out for. 

48) UrbanVolt

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Declan Barrett, Graham Deane, Kevin Maughan

Year Founded: 2014

Category: Sustainability 

UrbanVolt is an energy efficiency company that helps large companies to reduce their energy consumption and cut their energy costs for no money down. UrbanVolt supply, install and maintain LED lighting for commercial properties, via their zero capex Light as a Service offering. As more and more businesses seek to reduce their carbon footprint and having won an investment of €55m from UK Investment firm Low Carbon in 2018, the future looks bright for UrbanVolt.

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49) VR Education Holdings

HQ: Waterford

Founders: David Whelan

Year Founded: 2014

Category: Virtual Reality Education

While Dublin is the tech startup, it hasn’t stopped this Waterford-based startup to delve into the tech startups. The team at VR Education Holdings were one of the early adopters of Virtual Reality technology. Their mission is to use VR for education and immersive experiences for students of all ages. In 2018, they raised €6m in funding and they’re small team has been growing strongly in the last couple of years thanks to that funding. 

50) ENBIO

HQ: Dublin

Founders: John O’Donoghue

Year Founded: 2006

Category: Aviation and Aerospace

ENBIO is the inventor of an amazing technology called CoBlast, which is redefining the metals industry. One thing ENBIO provides is sunscreen for satellites so they can withstand the corrosive effects of the sun so metals on spaceships and satellites can last longer. 

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51) Web Summit

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Daire Hickey, David Kelly and Paddy Cosgrave

Year Founded: 2009

Category: Information Technology and Events

Web Summit is a conference for everyone involved in the technology and online industry. It came from humble beginnings, with a mere 400 attendees at the start to over 70,000 today.

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52) WoodcoEnergy

HQ: Tipperary

Founders: Brothers Ger and Declan Crosse

Year Founded: 2014

Category: Renewable Energy

The greatest surprise to many is that this product, the Biogenic Processor by Woodco, was conceptualized, designed and built in a small village in rural Tipperary where some of the most innovative minds in renewable energy are based. By combining years of experience and the very latest mechanical, electrical and environmental engineering skills Woodco designs products that are cost-effective and create added value and be transformative for the Customers that use them.

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53) ZiggyTec

HQ: Dublin

Founders: Peter Murphy and Kieran Murphy (unrelated)

Year Founded: 2018

Category: Sustainability and Utilities 

It was a step into the unknown for the duo, with over 30 years of experience combined in engineering and trading energy, they decided to delve into the world of IoT technology, ZiggyTec (named after Ziggy Stardust) uses IoT technology to monitor utilities in commercial buildings. Capturing the data and presenting it on their own custom platform. This data can then be used in reports to help lower carbon emissions and increase property value. With a small passionate and hard-working team combined plenty of experience, ZiggyTec is one of the ones to watch in the sustainability category.