High-growth start-ups pitch for investment at Prep4Seed Investor Day
- 12 high-growth start-ups complete the national Prep4Seed programme delivered by
the Irish BICs in collaboration with Enterprise Ireland - Investor Day marks the culmination of the 12-week, investor-readiness programme
- Awards presented include One To Watch and Best Pitch.
The bi-annual Prep4Seed programme culminated today with The Investor Day, where these early-stage companies pitched to an audience of angels and VCs. Prep4Seed is delivered nationally by the four Irish Business Innovation Centres (Irish 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 Food; FinTech & Financial Services; Lifesciences & HealthTech; Enterprise Solutions and Digital Technologies.
AxisBIC are delighted that this year both of the Award winners were mentored by the AxisBIC Team.
Conor O’Donovan, Head of Start-ups at Enterprise Ireland said: “At Enterprise Ireland, we are committed to supporting 1,000 new startups over the next 5 years as part of our strategy to 2029. We know that securing investment is a key challenge for startups and the Prep4Seed programme, run in collaboration with the four BICs, supports founders to develop their business proposition to attract further investment. I would like to congratulate MCS-Tech and Ocras on their awards today and all the participants on the programme and to commend the hard work it took to get them to this point. Enterprise Ireland looks forward to supporting these high-growth start-ups on their investment journeys.”
Winners, One to Watch, Fichra O’Driscoll and Nick Condon from MCS Tech with Conor O’Donovan, Enterprise Ireland and Evelyn Smith, Enterprise Ireland.
Picture by Shane O’Neill, Coalesce.
MCS-Tech Recognised with One to Watch Award
MCS-Tech, a healthcare software company specialising in the automation of hospital billing, claims processing, and patient admissions. Commenting on the achievement, MCS-Tech co-founders Fiachra O’Driscoll and Nicholas Condon said: “Winning the One to Watch award is a powerful validation of our vision for MCS-Tech and a testament to the dedication of our team. The Prep4Seed Programme has been transformative, providing the clarity and structure needed to sharpen our commercial strategy and refine our investor proposition. We extend our sincere gratitude to Enterprise
Ireland and the Irish BICs for delivering such a valuable programme.”
Ocras Founders
Picture by Shane O’Neill, Coalesce.
Ocras Wins Best Pitch Award
Ocras, a producer of frozen foods designed to support individuals with varying levels of swallowing difficulties (Dysphagia), 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. To date 88 startups have participated in the 12-week Prep4Seed investor-ready programme.
