Aoife McDowell

Columnist Artemis Technologies Launches to Market Zero-Emission 100% Electric Foiling Workboats

Aoife McDowell

Sync NI

Let’s Talk Tech

Innovation and opportunities: The spotlight continues to shine brightly on Northern Ireland’s technology sector.

Catalyst Co-Founders Supports Ten NI Start-ups With £10k Proof of Concept Grants

Ten start-ups from Northern Ireland have each won £10,000 proof of concept grants to further develop their innovative ideas after successfully completing Catalyst’s CoFounders Programme.

Co-Founders is a unique entrepreneurship programme helping ambitious individuals to develop a new product innovation focused on science, technology and engineering. The teams validate their idea, test them in the real world, develop their business and pitch for a £10,000 proof of concept award. Department for the Economy has supported the Co-Founders programme, recognising how integral entrepreneurship and innovation are to the Northern Ireland economy. Ten teams have won £10,000 of funding from the Department for the Economy, with a total of £100k funding awarded.

Speaking about the programme, Economy Minister Gordon Lyons said: “Our 10X Economic Vision focuses on how we will nurture a decade of innovation, to transform Northern Ireland into one of the world’s leading small economies. The Co-Founders initiative, providing tangible financial support for business ideas with a focus on science, technology and engineering, aligns well with this vision.”

Winning teams also progress to CoFounders+, Phase 2 of the programme where winning ideas are further developed, and teams are given access to mentors and industry specialists to accelerate their idea.

Companies across a range of sectors including fintech, health & wellbeing, education and greentech, were all awarded with vital funding. Artemis Technologies has launched to market the world’s first commercially viable 100% electric, high-speed foiling workboat range. Developed and built in Belfast, the zero-emission vessels are the greenest workboats on the planet and represent a £12 million investment in research and development.

The vessels produce incredible energy savings of up to 90% compared to conventional fossil fuel workboats.

The company, which currently employs 60 people, is developing a range of green transport solutions which it anticipates will create 1,000 jobs over the next decade. Founder, Dr Iain Percy OBE, said: “The electric propulsion system that we’ve designed and developed is an absolute game changer for the industry in terms of range, cost savings and minimal wake created. With hydrofoils that lift the boats out of the water, we are dramatically reducing drag. This is coupled with a submerged electric drivetrain that is exceptionally efficient, as proven through rigorous testing with our partners, confirming what we had discovered through our own onshore digital simulations.”

He added: “This is only the beginning. As our vessels transform the commercial workboat and city-to-city passenger ferry sectors over the coming years, Belfast and the UK will be at the forefront, creating thousands of jobs across the supply chain and heralding a green shipbuilding revolution.”