Startup Spotlight

In a recent publication, Beta Bugs argued that farming requires redefinition. Pressure on farmers to consider alternative farm practices has been raised to a fever pitch, thanks to the 3-in-1 deleterious effects of food waste, deforestation, and carbon emissions of current farming methods. In navigating a viable way forward for the agricultural industry, farmers are increasingly shifting their attention to insect farming, which will help bring a new face to agriculture.

Stephen O Aderinto

December 13, 2024

‘Umkele’ take their name from the Zulu word for the Puzzle Bush, a plant said to have magical properties. Like their namesake, Umkele are setting out to do something miraculous…

Alex Gresty

December 13, 2024

Microneedle Solutions (MNS) is on a quest to increase vaccines uptake by manufacturing affordable self-adhesive vaccine patches that patients can use themselves. The self-administration means that, ultimately, MNS’s product can reduce the strain on healthcare systems and increase vaccine uptake, thus reducing health inequality whilst improving access to vaccines globally.

Ana Ivanus

December 13, 2024

With recent progress in developing tools that can manipulate genetic material, the concept of ‘Synthetic Biology’ has rapidly evolved and applies the principles of engineering to the world of biotechnology. Early research focussed on the alteration of simple pathways, but now the creation of entirely synthetic microorganisms is possible. Genetic modification has often been a controversial issue in the context of our food systems, but employing new technologies which introduce beneficial properties to our food may help to pave a new way forward for the debate in this area.

Lewis Wallis

December 13, 2024

Apeikon Therapeutics has developed a revolutionary new technology for cancer treatment. As a spin-out company, Apeikon was born out of the significant discoveries made over the last 14 years at King’s College London by Dr Maya Thanou. Apeikon Therapeutics is working on a novel technology that will substantially improve the efficacy and reduce the side effects of cancer drugs through directed activation of drug delivery.

December 13, 2024

Proteins are essential across many aspects of our lives, from food and therapeutics, to the industrial enzymes currently in use to degrade plastics and other undesirable climate-damaging products out there. Eden Bio was founded in 2022 with the vision of using machine learning to optimise how these proteins get produced. Using their suite of computational and wet-lab tools, the team quickly screen the many possible genetic modifications that can be made to fungal strains to improve how much protein the strain can produce, helping their customers improve their yield and get their exciting new protein products to market quicker.

Aonghus Topham

December 13, 2024