Top Startups In Southampton To Keep An Eye On

Nestled on England’s picturesque south coast, Southampton offers far more than just its storied history and stunning coastline. For some time, this city has been charting a new course as a breeding ground for cutting-edge startups across various industries, each brimming with unique potential.

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at some of the top startups in Southampton that we think deserve your attention.

Capilaux

Aquark Technologies

A spin-out of the University of Southampton, Aquark Technologies stands at the forefront of quantum technology innovation, offering solutions in portability and miniaturisation. Leveraging over a decade of dedicated research in developing the world’s smallest cold atom system, Aquark has recently secured pre-seed investment to establish a cutting-edge facility in Southampton, UK, dedicated to fulfilling its mission.

At the heart of Aquark’s mission lies a commitment to advancing technology for the betterment of humanity. The company envisions becoming a global leader in compact cold atom cores, facilitating the next wave of quantum sensing and computing. By pioneering cold atom quantum technology, Aquark aims to democratise quantum advancements, making them more accessible and cost-effective.

Drawing upon expertise in vacuum technology, microfabrication, and laser system development, Aquark is dedicated to bridging the gap between laboratory research and real-world applications. Ultimately, Aquark Technologies aspires to harness the potential of next-generation quantum technology to serve humanity’s collective interests.

Curve Therapeutics

Curve Therapeutics is on a mission to revolutionise drug discovery with its groundbreaking intracellular screening platform. This innovative technology enables the discovery of novel therapeutics tailored to tackle complex and elusive disease targets that defy conventional drug discovery methods.

At the core of Curve Therapeutics’ vision is a commitment to transforming patient lives by addressing challenging disease targets that have proven resistant to traditional approaches. Leveraging its Microcycle® platform, Curve Therapeutics conducts direct screening for biologically active compounds within mammalian cells, streamlining small molecule hit-to-lead programs.

By harnessing the power of its proprietary discovery platform to identify functional Microcycles capable of modulating targets within their native intracellular environment, Curve Therapeutics aims to unlock the therapeutic potential of previously intractable disease targets. Through this innovative approach, the company aims to develop a robust pipeline of new small-molecule drugs, initially focusing on high-priority cancer targets.

R Reflections LTD

Have you ever found yourself in the dilemma of wanting to order clothes online, but feeling unsure because you can’t actually try them on? Enter R Reflections – a platform that offers the perfect solution with its virtual reality online clothes shopping experience, catering to both retailers and consumers across the UK and beyond.

With a focus on creating engaging and personalised shopping experiences, R Reflections’ technology allows users to virtually try on clothing within a single app, effectively reducing that oh-so-annoying customer disappointment and clothing returns. By enabling users to become models and experiment with different styles, the platform can enhance the online shopping journey.

Already collaborating with renowned brands such as New Look, FatFace, and Juicy Couture, as well as several small sustainable clothing brands, R Reflections provides its ever-growing global user base with access to a vast array of clothing options. Through partnerships with thousands of affiliate brands, users can browse, virtually try on, style, and create outfits, ensuring a more accurate selection on their first try.

Ultimately, R Reflections’ innovative technology can not only enhance the online shopping experience, but it can also contribute to reducing the environmental impact of clothing returns – an important step towards sustainable fashion consumption.

Dynamon

Dynamon is on a mission to empower transport companies to confidently embrace and accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, aiming to drive down operational costs while enhancing fleet efficiency. Through its cutting-edge optimisation software, the company seeks to pave the way for a cost-effective and sustainable future within the commercial transport sector.

At the heart of Dynamon’s innovative approach lies a comprehensive suite of market-leading software tools designed to deliver total fleet optimisation. By harnessing fleet telematics, routing data, and vehicle databases, these tools provide precise insights to optimise fleet performance. Whether utilising ZERO, Aero Analytics, Tyre Analytics, or Precision Analytics, users can identify optimal vehicle solutions and demonstrate real-world performance within fleet operations.

By seamlessly bridging gaps in the transport industry, Dynamon’s software unlocks a range of valuable benefits. These include in-depth cost analysis, reduced total cost of ownership (TCO), carbon emissions reduction, informed purchasing decisions based on accurate fleet data analysis, and streamlined fleet management processes.

Distinguishing itself within the transport industry, Dynamon’s suite of commercial fleet management software tools stands out for its unique features and capabilities.

SETsquared

Located within Southampton Science Park, Southampton SETsquared serves as a hub for entrepreneurial innovation. As part of the SETsquared enterprise partnership, which includes the Universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton, and Surrey, its mission is to unlock the full entrepreneurial and commercial potential of these academic institutions.

Consistently recognised as the world’s top business incubator managed by a university, SETsquared has held a leadership position since 2015. Over the years, it has made significant contributions to the UK economy, totalling an impressive nearly £9 billion, and has supported the growth of 6,500 companies since its establishment in 2002.

Whether you’re nurturing the seeds of a groundbreaking startup or steering an established high-tech business, SETsquared offers invaluable resources to help you cultivate a world-class organisation. From tailored business planning advice and regular review panels to market analysis, investor readiness programs, and prestigious investor showcases, SETsquared provides a comprehensive support network. Access to fellow entrepreneurs, academic experts, business mentors, and networking opportunities further enriches the entrepreneurial journey within this dynamic ecosystem.

AccelerComm Ltd

AccelerComm specialises in providing high-performance software-defined radio (SDR) and advanced intellectual property (IP) solutions tailored for 5G wireless communications networks, which heavily rely on sophisticated signal processing techniques for error correction, equalisation, and channel estimation.

At its core, AccelerComm’s mission is to turbocharge these networks by offering solutions that enhance throughput, minimise latency, and optimise resource utilisation and power consumption. Its IP is meticulously designed to meet the demands of next-generation radio networks and can be seamlessly integrated as software, programmable logic (FPGA), or custom silicon (ASIC) hardware acceleration.

With a research-driven approach, AccelerComm is uniquely positioned to translate the latest 5G innovations and algorithms into practical solutions for implementing cutting-edge wireless standards. By customising our off-the-shelf solutions and fine-tuning algorithms to specific requirements, the platform consistently achieves significant performance gains, resulting in substantial power savings or increased link capacity. Its products are complemented with comprehensive reference kits and test benches, facilitating seamless integration into end designs and its advanced equalisation algorithms offer further performance enhancements, delivering gains greater than 3dB depending on deployment scenarios.

Utonomy Ltd

Utonomy recognises that, for a sustainable future, energy must not only be affordable and secure but also have minimal impact on the climate. To achieve this, the company offers innovative products and cloud-based solutions designed to assist gas utilities in enhancing pressure control, optimising the integration of non-conventional gases like biomethane, and monitoring their networks.

What sets Utonomy apart is its unique solution, which can be seamlessly retrofitted onto existing network equipment without requiring substantial capital investment. This groundbreaking technology automates the optimisation of gas distribution network pressure – a task traditionally performed manually, often overlooking significant seasonal and daily demand fluctuations.

By precisely adjusting pressure levels, Utonomy’s solution effectively minimises gas leakage, which is directly correlated with pressure levels. Given methane’s status as a potent greenhouse gas, reducing leakage is paramount. Moreover, the company’s solution reduces operational costs and mitigates the financial impact of lost gas, providing gas network operators with a remarkable return on investment, often realised in less than two years.