- Oracle’s UK-wide six-month support program is delivered in partnership with SETsquared Bristol
- The program provides mentoring and invaluable connections and support for tech startups
- The partnership is calling for new applicants from across the UK to join its second cohort
- UK Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator Demo Day launched Cohort Two search and celebrated success of the Cohort One startups
Applications are now open for the second cohort of startups in the UK to join Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator’s support program. The six-month program provides mentoring from technical and business experts, state-of-the-art technology, a co-working space, access to Oracle customers, partners and investors, and free Oracle Cloud credits to five startups selected to join the cohort. Oracle’s UK program is being delivered in partnership with SETsquared Bristol who recently retained their title as ‘Global No.1 incubator – managed by a University’.
The search for the next cohort of cloud-based tech startups was launched at the Bristol-based Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator Demo Day on 8th March 2018. Current program members Trail, Duel, iGeolise, and Interactive Scientific, presented their projects and products, and reflected on the invaluable support they have received from Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator and SETsquared Bristol over the past six months.
Interactive Scientific uses simulations and VR to help students visualise otherwise abstract and intangible scientific methods, so they can build mental models to aid learning. In their time on Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator’s support programme, Interactive Scientific have cloud-enabled their product, Nano Simbox , so users can connect with peers around the world to experience molecular simulation through VR headsets.
Duel offers rewards to customers who submit testimonials after buying a product, ranking the best advocacy for brands to use in advertising. Working with Oracle, Duel has received support in honing their product, and is now live in four major customer experience tools.
Trail is an app that makes multi-site management manageable and reduces the need for expensive and time-consuming training. Trail has benefitted from Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator’s Cloud Identity Service and has seen an 800% revenue increase over the past 12 months.
iGeolise’s TravelTime app allows users to search maps and specific locations by time instead of distance. Oracle has helped iGeolise map their data using its worldwide Geocoder, which has decreased processing time from one week to eight hours, and can process thousands of simultaneous requests using its virtual machines Massive Elastic Search Instance. Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator facilitated introductions with clients who iGeolise speculate could have taken years to meet, including Barclays, CERN, and Mothercare. The app now ranks and sorts 1.6 billion locations each month, and serves 500,000 consumers daily.
Offering advice to startups interested in applying for Cohort Two at the Demo Day, iGeolise Co-Founder Charlie Davies said:
“Make sure that what you’re applying for is beneficial to you – it’s important to know [the experience] is going to be valuable. If you’re using large volumes of data, data processing, and computational processing, the Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator program will be useful for you. It’s important to understand what the symbiotic relationship between yourself and Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator will be – it flows both ways for the relationship to work.”
SETsquared Bristol Centre Director Emma Thorn said:
“It has been wonderful to work with Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator and its first UK cohort, and we’re delighted to continue the partnership with the launch of Cohort Two. These startups have brought innovation and diversity to Bristol’s already thriving tech scene, and it has been great to follow their journey through the program. We believe that collaboration is the key to success, and look forward to working with the new Cohort.”
The end of the Cohort One marks the beginning of the startups’ alumni status with Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator, which will continue to offer access to tech development support, cloud adoption, and enterprise connect opportunities. Bristol-based start-ups Duel, Interactive Scientific, and Trail will maintain their SETsquared Bristol membership during this period.
Oracle Program Manager Marina Traversari said:
“I’m so proud of what we’ve accomplished together during the last six months. They are a tremendous bunch that is addressing big global business problems with cloud-based innovation. The Bristol tech community, SETsquared, universities and Engine Shed – Bristol is an incredibly vibrant ecosystem that we are proud to be part of.”
The Demo Day event fell on International Women’s Day, and highlighted Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator and SETsquared’s shared drive for inclusion and diversity in their ventures. Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator recently launched the Stepping Up programme in partnership with Deputy Mayor Asher Craig, who opened the evening, and SETsquared Bristol is working with Ashley Housing and Up Our Street on its Diversity and Inclusion Research Project.
Oracle is now officially open for applications for its second cohort for the Bristol program, as well as the new global Oracle Scaleup program. To qualify for one of the five spaces available on Oracle Startup Cloud Accelerator’s Cohort Two support programme, start-ups must have a minimum viable product, and have been formed for more than six months. Applicants will be scored on four areas: Team, Traction, Tech, and Market Opportunity. Applications close on 28th May, with the Cohort Two programme launching in July. Interested startups can find out more and apply here.