Trinity College Dublin has officially opened its ‘ideas workspace’ Tangent, an innovation centre that is part of the college’s Business School.

The space will be home to all of Trinity’s innovation supports and education programmes. The college says the new facility has been specifically designed to foster the creation of ideas, with flexible workspaces and event spaces, providing for co-working and innovationl.

Provost Patrick Prendergast said: “Cultivating innovation and entrepreneurship is central to our education mission. Trinity is responsible for generating a fifth of all spin-out companies and is ranked number one in Europe for educating entrepreneurs. Tangent provides a creative home with the right supports and investment to enable budding entrepreneurs to share ideas and succeed.”

Tangent chief executive Ken Finnegan added: “When you consider that two-thirds of all new job creation comes from businesses in their first five years, and small businesses make up 99% of the enterprise community,  our goal in Tangent is to enable and foster this ambition.

“This is an exciting start to an ambitious overall strategy to establish a globally competitive innovation district in Dublin, including plans for a campus at Grand Canal Quay.”

In Association with

The Tangent programme has already produced ventures such as Foodcloud, a social enterprise that helps businesses redistribute surplus food to those who need it; Touchtech, a payment processing venture; Artomatix, which develops tools for automating digital media creation; Equine MediRecord, which digitises the medical records of the horse racing industry’s horses; and Change Donations, which allows users to round up purchases to the next euro and donate spare change to causes that mean the most to each donor.

And there are 11 new startups following in their wake, all competing for a chance to join in Bank of Ireland’s four-day international programme at its New York innovation lab at the end of October.

Launchbox Accelerator Programme Finalists

Aquahomes: Founded by James Kennedy, this is a unique solution to the housing crisis that involves upcycling decommissioned rescue boats.

Bounce Insights: For companies struggling to understand their customer, Bounce Insights takes the guesswork out of marketing. They provide a smartphone solution to market research, allowing companies to reach the mobile generation. Unlike competitors, Bounce offers clients the ability to hyper-target their audience, allowing them to reach anyone, anywhere, and at any time.

Way Home: This team is dedicated to finding a way to facilitate cashless donations to people experiencing homelessness.

Ethicart: Makes sustainability simple by providing a user-friendly app, with quick, easy to understand information around the sustainability and ethical standards of products. If you want to shop more sustainably but lack time to research and a place to get the information needed, EthiCart enables and empowers you to buy products that align with your values.

Bélú: A waste analytics product that aims to reduce avoidable food waste in the hospitality and food sector. By giving users information on the type, amount, and source of the waste, Bélú users can make informed decisions about their menu and shopping patterns to reduce waste and save money.

LadyBird Dynamics: For residents who want to save money and time, LadyBird Dynamics provides technology enabled smart saving services on energy bills. Jolt Analytics services include a sensor and a Jolt app which enable you to monitor your utility spending, among other features.

KeepAppy: The app that puts wellness into pockets everywhere. With a combination of eight different features, KeepAppy empowers users to engage in their full wellbeing potential. KeepAppy is a social enterprise, with a mission to destigmatise mental illness and reduce the number of lives lost to suicide each year.

Elucid Audio: Between podcasters, radio presenters, musicians and sound technicians, Elucid Audio aims to tackle the challenges facing new users who try and enter the world of sound. Macallas’ team has over five years of AV production experience with a background in engineering, computer science, and business.

NeuronWoods: A Data Science and AI solutions company which operates on two business lines – Services and Products. NeuronWoods have launched their first product AI-logist, which is an AI assistant for radiologists.

Study.ie: Study.ie is an aggregator of learning experiences that reduces the amount of steps someone needs to take in order to find learning that suits them. Study allows the individual to refine their search, compare and contrast offerings with their standardised offering layout, and ultimately make a booking or reserve their place.

Two White Socks: Traditional equestrian wear can be stiff, austere and lacking in colour. Not anymore! Two White Socks brings fun patterns and bright colours to the outfits of horse-riders, helping to brighten up their outfits (and lives). Designed for riders by riders, this game-changing equestrian apparel brand seeks to shake up rider wear for good.

Photo: Charlie Butler, co-founder of Bounce Insights and Katelyn Prenderville, founder, Two White Socks. (Pix: Julien Behal)