⚡ How This No-Code VR Platform Got Started

Morning Innovators ⚡ In less than 5 minutes, we’ll cover…

🥳 The best funding opportunities, events and jobs in the start-up world
📰 The biggest news stories in the start-up world
🥽 How this no-code VR platform got started
🍕 How this controversial brand event went viral
📝 A tool to help make meetings more productive

✨ Last weeks most clicked link was this opportunity to win up to £25k with the AXA Start-Up Angel competition.

Happy hustling,
Rich & Gary

🎤 Events/Opportunities

💷 Praetura Ventures' new cohort-based investing programme - PraeSeed officially opened for applications last week. Open until 27th May, this programme is designed to support very early stage companies who want to build something amazing in the North. The programme is the first of its kind in the region and will invest £200k in up to 7 start ups each year for the next five years.

🌱 Seedcamp are currently investing in exciting start-ups attacking large and global markets through disruptive technology.

💸 SolidBond are on the lookout for UK based tech/tech-enabled companies, raising between £150k - £500k pre-seed,

⚡ Founder + Lightning are looking for founders to invest in. They look for UK-based companies, with founders who need a tech partner to take them to the next level. Start-ups that have an MVP or early product that is revenue-generating to a B2B audience, or tech companies that need a tech partner to scale, or companies with offline revenues that they want to digitise.

💼 Job opportunities

💸 Product Designer, Injective Labs
💳 Marketing Manager, Updraft
💳 Software Engineer, Fidel API

🚚 London-based autonomous driving software start-up Wayve has raised $1.05bn (£840m) from SoftBank, Nvidia and Microsoft in the largest-ever venture investment for a European AI firm. UKTN

🐙 Octopus Energy’s valuation has jumped to $9bn (£7.16bn) after existing shareholders, including a fund chaired by former US Vice President Al Gore, increased their stake in the business. UKTN

🪙 X10, a new crypto exchange for professional traders founded by three former Revolut employees, has raised a $6.5m round. The platform aims to address a gap in the market that FTX once occupied. Sifted

💘 Match Group, the company that owns several dating apps, including Tinder and Hinge, released its first-quarter earnings report on Tuesday, which shows that Tinder’s paying user base has decreased for the sixth quarter in a row. On the other hand, Hinge has seen an increase in members who are willing to pay for the app. TechCrunch

In a twist to our story of the week, we’ll be sharing details of a start-up we love and sharing how they got to where they are, highlighting their earliest days such as how they got their first customer, raised funding, and made their first hires.

🥽 Virtus Tech: Pioneering the Future of VR/AR Content Creation

In the rapidly evolving world of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), Virtus Tech has emerged as a ground-breaking player. Much like WordPress simplified website creation, Virtus Tech's no-code platform enables businesses across various industries in the UK and US to swiftly create, modify, and deploy VR content. The platform's industry and device agnosticism paired with AI-driven analytics for continuous improvement make it a powerful tool for achieving individual and organisational goals.

The Inception: Capturing the First Customer

Virtus Tech’s journey began with a strategic yet straightforward approach—cold emailing followed by a cold call a week later. This direct method not only helped to confirm receipt of the initial email, but also put potential customers in a position where they were more likely to engage. This approach, although daunting to many founders, proved effective, landing Virtus Tech its first user and setting a foundation for future sales strategies.

Scaling Through Reputation and Marketing

Once the initial customer base was established through direct outreach, Virtus Tech shifted its focus to building a strong brand and reputation. This pivot was crucial for organic growth, leveraging word-of-mouth from satisfied customers complemented by a robust social media presence. These efforts collectively enhanced the company's credibility, paving the way for scaling operations more effectively.

Bootstrap Financing: A Self-Funded Journey

Starting in 2018, Virtus Tech spent two years on market research and refining their product. The start-up’s bootstrap approach kicked off in 2020 with their first commercial sale, marking a new phase of self-financed growth. By reinvesting profits and maintaining strict financial discipline, the company was able to grow without external funding until 2022, when they first sought investment from angel investors and venture capitalists, facilitated by referrals and direct outreach.

Overcoming Challenges and Continuous Learning

Reflecting on the early days, the founders of Virtus Tech acknowledge the emotional challenges of cold outreach but recognise the resilience it built. The key takeaway for the team was the importance of persistence and emotional detachment from rejection, viewing each no as a step closer to the next yes.

One of the biggest challenges Virtus Tech faced was the platform's rapid maturation, which outpaced the company's ability to make key hires that could accelerate revenue and sales growth. This situation highlighted the importance of aligning team expansion with technological development to maximise business opportunities.

From their student house beginnings to a prominent player in the VR/AR space, the founders of Virtus Tech have embraced their entrepreneurial journey with all its inherent challenges and rewards. They acknowledge that while the path has not always been smooth, the lessons learned are invaluable, shaping not only their business strategies but also their personal growth as entrepreneurs.

Advice for other founders

Don’t compare yourself to others and especially to your competitors. At the end of the day, we all have our own paths which can take differing amounts of time to get to where we need to be. Let's not forget that the start-up myth of overnight success in reality takes time, like Rovio, The Makers Of Angry Birds who built over 51 games before getting it right and succeeding big.

Are you a new founder launching a start-up? The process of getting your product launched can be long and costly, particularly for those without a technical co-founder.

This is where Verticode comes in. Specialising in building Minimum Viable Products for ideation stage founders, Verticode streamlines the journey from idea to MVP in just 2 weeks. Founders no longer need to raise VC funding to kickstart their vision; instead, Verticode offers a cost-effective solution, reducing development costs by up to 80% compared to competitors. Using cutting-edge technology like AI and proprietary templating, Verticode ensures high-quality MVPs, allowing founders to focus on building traction for their business. Trust Verticode to bring your start-up vision to life efficiently and affordably.

Ready to launch your MVP? Book an Intro Call today

🚨🚨 Also founders using code Uncensored5 will get a 5% discount!

We’ve all heard that saying, “All press is good press”, but is that phrase really true? Well, the streetwear brand on everyone’s lips right now, Pizza Slime, really put that to the test.

Pizza Slime aren’t afraid of being in the middle of a bit of controversy, and that’s exactly the situation they’re in right now. They invited a bunch of Instagram and Tiktok stars to their most recent brand event. However, at the front of the venue, there was an opinion splitting twist. They had 2 lines, one for people with over 1,000,000 followers, and one for people with less than 1,000,000 followers. Naturally, people plastered this ALL OVER social media, and it racked up millions and millions of views.

It was great for Pizza Slime, because this type of campaign fits with their brand identity of almost mocking modern society. This meant that a lot of people who could see through the joke, suddenly became fans of this up and coming streetwear brand. These two signs got them millions of views, how can you use a bit of controversy to spark social media chaos?

Each week we highlight our favourite tools - either something we’ve been using in our businesses, or tools that our innovator community have recommended.

Fathom is an AI-driven notetaking tool designed to enhance productivity during meetings by recording, transcribing, summarising, and highlighting key moments. It syncs with CRM systems for efficient follow-ups, supports video conferencing platforms, and complies with various language and compliance requirements. Fathom allows users to share clips and integrates with tools like Slack, Google Docs, and Gmail. It's praised for its quick turnaround of AI-generated summaries and seamless integration, making it ideal for a wide range of professionals, including sales and customer success teams.

Next week we’ll be highlighting another awesome start-up (if you want us to feature you, drop us a message), as well as sharing all the usuals including funding opportunities, start-up news, plus plenty of awesome tips, tricks and tools.

P.S. Connect with us on LinkedIn…