BioAccelerate Hopefuls Pitch for £10,000 Awards
Twelve budding entrepreneurs pitched for six awards of £10,000 and an invitation to the next phase of BioAccelerate at AberInnovation on Wednesday 23 March.
BioAccelerate 2022’s Foundation Phase is a twelve-week accelerator programme for startups and early-stage businesses in the food and circular economy sectors. Over the course of the programme, selected entrepreneurs from Wales have benefited from workshops, mentoring and group activities designed to bring their business propositions to life.
They were given a chance to impress an expert panel during Wednesday’s pitch day. The panel included representatives from the UK Innovation and Science Seed Fund, the Development Bank of Wales, Welsh Government, Aberystwyth University and the Alacrity Foundation.
Dr Wil Williams, CEO of the Alacrity Foundation and Aberystwyth University Council member, said: “The 2022 BioAccelerate pitch day presented a wide variety of entrepreneurial ideas. Some of the projects were deep tech, whilst others were based on novel approaches to marketing products. It was great to witness the enthusiasm of all the participants and their BioAccelerate support team. BioAccelerate provides a lighthouse for entrepreneurs in mid-Wales, attracting some exciting talent with great ideas. The support provided to entrepreneurs by the programme is necessary to help guide individuals through the high perilous and obfuscated journey that is entrepreneurship.”
The business ideas deemed to have the most investment potential and long-term commercial viability will see their creators awarded £10,000 to further develop their propositions and take them towards market. They will also be invited onto BioAccelerate’s Incubation Phase, where further expert guidance and mentoring will be provided.
Six Incubation Phase participants will be able to access leading expertise and cutting-edge facilities at AberInnovation, including its Biorefining Centre, Future Food Centre and Advanced Analysis Centre. AberInnovation staff will also work closely with participants to facilitate collaborative opportunities with Aberystwyth University researchers.
Dr Rhian Hayward MBE, CEO of AberInnovation said “The 2022 cohort of BioAccelerate are creative, enthusiastic and keen to succeed. These entrepreneurs exemplify the talent and future business leaders that can be found in Mid Wales, who we hope to support in future BioAccelerate programmes. The pitch day will be a keen contest and we look forward to taking the six finalists forward in their journey in the Incubation Phase toward creating high value jobs in Wales.”
The programme will draw to a close with final pitches from this year’s finalists in June. Judged against criteria including their value proposition and solution, growth plans and the quality of the presentation itself, one finalist will be awarded £50,000 to bring their innovative product or service to the market.
BioAccelerate 2022 marks the fourth year of the programme for AberInnovation and is supported this year by the UK Government’s Community Renewal Fund through Ceredigion County Council which is invested in places, businesses and communities to support the UK’s recovery following the Covid pandemic.
Previous participants of the BioAccelerate programme include seaweed-derived bioplastic startup PlantSea, cultured protein bioreactor developers Cellular Agriculture and award-winning live kombucha manufacturers Conwy Kombucha.
