Entrepreneurship
Top student entrepreneurs
Informatics PhD student Luis Berna Moya was jointly awarded first place in the StartUp Sussex 2021 competition. BSc Computer Science student Christian Saraty took third place in the same competition.
The University is keen to encourage social and commercial entrepreneurship. It organises and sponsors a number of activities for students and staff, including:
- the StartUp Sussex enterprise programme to support students and graduates in developing their ideas into commercial opportunities
- the Santander Entrepreneurship Awards for Masters and Doctoral students intending to develop a business or social enterprise
- an Enterprise Development Fund to enable staff to start new commercial activities.
Start-ups
Graduates from Informatics have formed start-up companies, many based in the centre of Brighton, but some located in the Sussex Innovation Centre on campus. The SInC provides office space and facilities, and business development support tailored for new companies.
Spin-outs
Current and recent members of Informatics staff have founded University spin-out companies, including:
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DiffBlue is automating the testing of software. Its tools replace the manual process of writing tests by generating them automatically, saving time and money and making code more reliable. Whole programs can be tested, as well as incremental changes made by a programmer; if there is a problem then the programmer is directed to the part of the code that is going wrong. Tools are currently available for Java, with further languages under development.
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iLexIR specialises in text analytics, mining, classification, and search applications — it has recently developed automatic computer-based systems for assessment of student essays, extraction of information from mobile phone text messages, and anonymisation of medical record free text. These systems incorporate state-of-the-art technology for automatic language analysis that was co-developed in Informatics.
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TribeHive (now part of InCrowd Sports) has developed technology that allows smartphone apps to crowd-share Internet bandwidth in congested areas, without the need for high capacity (and therefore expensive) wifi installations. The company has worked with leading football clubs to produce customised versions of its app, which play a key role in the clubs’ communication and fan engagement strategies.
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Ultrahaptics (now trading as Ultraleap) creates tactile sensations in mid-air, using ultrasound. The company's technology produces precisely directed, high-frequency sound waves that exert force on whatever object they are focused on. Applications include immediate tactile feedback for gesture interfaces by 'projecting' virtual buttons, switches, shapes and textures directly onto people's hands or fingertips.