Irish startups pitch for €3.9 million at Prep4Seed Investor Day

• 11 high-growth startups completed the national Prep4Seed programme delivered by the Irish BICs in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland
• Investor Day marked the culmination of the 12-week, investor-readiness programme
• Awards presented include One To Watch and Best Pitch.

The twice-yearly Prep4Seed programme culminated this week with the investor day, where early-stage companies pitched to an audience of angel investors and venture capital firms. Prep4Seed is delivered nationally by the four Irish Business Innovation Centres (BICs) AxisBIC, Furthr, Propelor BIC and WestBIC in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland. The programme brings founders through a focused investor-readiness journey, from first principles to a confident pitch and a clear path to funding.

The cohort reflects strong regional breadth and sector diversity across Digital Technologies, Enterprise Solutions, Food Tech & Food FDI, FinTech & Financial Services and Lifesciences & HealthTech. The participating companies are:

Ascension Digital Services
Biovit Technologies
Capisso
Chuzeday
Cybervigil Pro
Fire&5th
Flexible Power Solutions
Restore Blue
Unturn 
Veloton
Weighless Wonders

Conor O’Donovan, Head of Startups at Enterprise Ireland said “Programmes like Prep4Seed are essential in unlocking the next generation of high-potential startups. By supporting founders at such a critical stage, we are strengthening startup investor readiness to accelerate their growth and scale. Enterprise Ireland looks forward to supporting Restore Blue and Fire&5th, both with the potential to be high-growth startups on their investment journeys.”

Mary Ryan, Deputy CEO WestBIC said: “Prep4Seed exists because securing investment is one of the hardest steps a founder takes, and it is a step no founder should take alone. As the four Irish BICs, we work side by side with these companies in their regions every day, and this programme allows us to bring that hands-on support together at a national level in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland. We congratulate today’s award winners and the full cohort, and we look forward to seeing where they go next.”

Restore Blue, an AI-powered software platform that helps offshore and coastal developers embed biodiversity protection directly into project design was awarded the One to Watch Award. Commenting on the achievement, Sarah Cosgrove CEO & Founder said “Being recognised with the One to Watch Award means a great deal to us and it is a testament to the hard work our team invests daily. The BICs and Enterprise Ireland have built something that meets early-stage founders exactly where they are, the expertise and one-to-one support we received through Prep4Seed would be hard to find anywhere else at this stage. The programme challenged us to pressure-test every aspect of our business and present it with real clarity and conviction. We came in with a strong idea; we leave investor-ready and confident about the funding conversations ahead.”

Fire&5^th, an Irish-made, female-founded, range of dedicated non-alcoholic cocktail and aperitifs was awarded the Best Pitch Award in recognition of its compelling presentation.

Over twelve weeks, participants took part in five Masterclasses delivered by the Irish BICs and a series of tailored one-to-one sessions with BIC consultants, supported by intensive pitch preparation and trial pitches, ensuring each team applied the learning directly to their own business ahead of today’s Investor Day. 

ENDS

Notes for Editors

Prep4Seed is a national, 12-week investor-readiness programme delivered by the Irish BICs (AxisBIC, Furthr, Propelor BIC and WestBIC) in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland. It combines structured masterclasses with bespoke one-to-one support and investor-led pitch practice, culminating in The Investor Day.

About the Irish BICs: The four Irish Business Innovation Centres (BICs) are Ireland’s official EU-designated Business Innovation Centres, supporting innovation-driven entrepreneurs to start, scale and access investment. Working in partnership with Enterprise Ireland, the BICs deliver a national network of regional supports for high-potential startups and growth-stage companies.

For more information

Nicola Corboy
Press & Media Relations, Enterprise Ireland
press@enterprise-ireland.com
 

Irish Business Innovation Centres (BICs)
AxisBIC
Fionnuala Wall
fwall@axisbic.com
www.axisbic.com
 

Furthr
Majella Murphy
majellamurphy@furthr.ie
www.furthr.ie
 

Propelor BIC
Rosemary Ward
rosemary@propelorbic.ie
www.propelorbic.ie
 

WestBIC
Colleen Baxter
cbaxter@westbic.ie
www.westbic.ie