Investors and founders gear up for final of UK’s largest startup competition

Eight startups will compete in the final of the UK’s largest pitching competition, which will be streamed live from Google in London on 27 October 2022.

The Pitch UK gives founders the platform to practise their pitching skills and get connected with investors. They can also win prizes worth more than £10k, as well as a money-can’t-buy mentoring package.

Around 500 businesses entered the annual competition, with 60 startups selected to pitch at the regional finals held across the UK in Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, and London.

The winners of the regional finals, selected by leading investors and founders, will now compete in the final alongside the winner of the People’s Choice vote and the winner of a competition specifically for side hustle founders.

A panel of investors and founders will select the overall winner through a rigorous scoring process – looking at the business idea, the pitch, the team behind the startup, and how much traction the business can demonstrate.

Judges include:

• Andreas Georgiou, VP and Head of Product Marketing of Sage
• Darren Westlake, co-founder and CEO of Crowdcube
• Anthony Fletcher, founder of Believe in Science and ex-CEO of Graze
• Louise Hill, co-founder and COO of GoHenry
• Romina Savova, founder and CEO of PensionBee

Simon Squibb, founder of The Purposeful Project, will host the event.

The startups competing at Google are:

• Rowdy Kind - winner of the Side Hustle final 2022: leading the way in plastic free bodycare for kids, making bath times more sustainable.

• Corus - Bristol regional final winner: AI-powered data driven insights showing businesses the impact of investing in their employees' wellbeing.

• Talk Twenties - Manchester regional final winner: a community platform committed to creating a safe and trusted space for twenty-somethings to ask those big life questions and learn what they aren't learning in school.

• nested loop - Birmingham regional final winner: a 5kWh smart energy storage system that saves you money and makes going green possible.

• Sukoon Care - London regional final winner: personalised cardiac rehabilitation support in your home through an app.

• Lilk - London regional final winner: plant-based milk that mixes seeds and grains, on a mission to change the way people think about plant-based alternatives by making them tastier than anything else on the market.

• io fibrewater - Edinburgh regional final winner: combines ultra-filtered water, prebiotic plant fibre and natural fruit flavours to create a perfectly balanced fibre water that is designed to help improve your gut and overall health and make you feel fuller for longer.

• COYOSY - People's Choice: taking ownership of tech away from the industry and giving it to the people.

Romina Savova, founder of PensionBee and judge, says:

“What inspires me about early-stage founders is that they are always exceptionally passionate about their business. I think it’s incredibly important for founders to feel that they have a sounding board in other entrepreneurs who have been through the same journey. I’m hoping I can provide some input and advice, and ultimately stay connected to early-stage businesses.”

Darren Westlake, co-founder and CEO of Crowdcube and judge, says:

“At heart, I’m an entrepreneur. I love entrepreneurialism and seeing new ideas and people be passionate about them. I want to help people in any way I can to get through that hard early stage and on that trajectory to growth. The Pitch massively helps people do this."

Chris Goodfellow, Founder and CEO of Inkwell who run The Pitch, says:

“The Pitch is an annual competition. We work hard to give the startups who enter access to the platform, support, and advice they need to help them succeed. Our 2021 finalists have gone on to raise more than £1.3m in seed funding through our connections. This year was the first time we took the competition to Birmingham and Edinburgh, making sure we represent founders from across the UK. From food and drink to tech innovation, this year’s final is one not to miss.”

Sign up to watch the event live streamed from Google on Thursday 27 October between 6-9pm: https://bit.ly/ThePitchFinal2022