The Dublin Tech Summit 2024, held earlier this month, solidified its reputation as Europe’s fastest-growing tech conference. This year’s event featured an impressive lineup of speakers, including renowned sports stars like Jamie Heaslip and Andrew Trimble, PR insights from Beachhut PR, and venture capital discussions. Workshops spanned diverse topics with presenters from Canva to InterTrade Ireland, emphasising the conference’s breadth. A significant focus on Diversity and Inclusion was evident, with talks on DEI in gaming and efforts to increase women’s participation in STEM, particularly on the Prism stage. A huge component of this year’s summit was Artificial Intelligence (AI). The Start-up World Cup pitching competition highlighted this focus, with over 50 companies presenting (many presenting their AI-driven innovations), culminating in a final round judged by industry experts. Many exhibits and stands prominently featured AI technologies, reflecting the sector’s pervasive influence.
Having explored the stands, pitches, workshops, and talks, here are some of the standout Irish companies from The Dublin Tech Summit 2024:
The B!G Idea fosters creative and critical thinking among 13-19 year olds across Ireland. Founded with a mission to bridge the gap between traditional education and the rapidly evolving demands of the modern world, The B!G Idea focuses on empowering students through project-based learning and real-world problem-solving. By partnering with schools, businesses, and communities, the organisation provides students with hands-on experiences that encourage them to think outside the box and develop solutions to pressing societal challenges, linked to the UN SDGs. The emphasis on collaboration, creativity, and practical skills equips students not only with academic knowledge but also with the confidence and competence needed to thrive in a dynamic global environment.
Their unique mentorship mode connects students with industry professionals, online through their Edtech platform, who then guide them throughout their projects. This mentorship, combined with a curriculum that emphasises design thinking and innovation, ensures that students receive a holistic education that is both relevant and engaging. The organisation’s programs are designed to be inclusive and accessible, reaching a diverse range of students across Ireland. By nurturing the next generation of creative thinkers and problem solvers, The B!G Idea aims to contribute significantly to Ireland’s future economic and social prosperity, fostering a culture of innovation that benefits the entire country.
The BT Young Scientist Award, one of Ireland’s most prestigious science competitions, continues to inspire and recognize the brightest young minds in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Recent winners like Shane O’Connor, who took the top prize in 2023 for his innovative project on artificial intelligence and climate modelling, demonstrate the high level of talent and ingenuity nurtured by the competition. His work on using AI to predict climate patterns not only showcased cutting-edge technology but also addressed a critical global issue, reflecting the competition’s emphasis on impactful research and real-world problem-solving. Such achievements highlight the BT Young Scientist Award’s role in fostering a new generation of thinkers and innovators.
The competition has a history of producing winners who go on to achieve remarkable success in various fields, such as the famous Collison brothers, Patrick and John. They won the award in 2005 for their project on developing a new programming language, and later co-founded Stripe, a leading global technology company that revolutionised online payment processing. Their journey from young scientists to tech entrepreneurs exemplifies the transformative impact the BT Young Scientist Award can have on its participants. Other notable winners include Sarah Flannery, who gained international recognition for her work in cryptography after winning in 1999. These distinguished alumni underscore the competition’s ability to identify and nurture talent, ensuring that Ireland remains a leader in innovation and scientific excellence.
They had students who were consonants in last year’s awards manning the stand at The Dublin Tech Summit.
Career Lab experiments with career success Career Lab, created by Conor Lynch, is an innovative Irish career accelerator program dedicated to helping the ambitious maximise their career potential, through a unique approach to collaborative career design. Conor has personally built a successful career by combining various jobs, side hustles, and business start-ups. His notable achievements include creating and selling Connector, an international digital consultancy business, which grew from his own humble personal brand.
He established himself as a respected digital business designer, and now after selling Connector, he has reinvented himself as a self-styled Career Designer.
As part of his own career journey, Conor conducted extensive research on career development, uncovering that despite extensive new career opportunities, many people struggle to take them. Conor is therefore committed to guiding others on their career journeys, helping them to take control and seize opportunities for growth.
Career Lab stands out by offering comprehensive accelerator programs that go beyond traditional career advice to get a job. His innovative approach is designed to map multiple career paths, including employment, and self-employment, sometimes simultaneously.
Additionally, his career accelerator program aims to empower career seekers through personalised career plans, but with a focus small steps towards big ideas. With resources like free eBooks and engaging content, Career Lab ensures that ambitious talented individuals stay informed about the latest career trends and tools to enhance their professional growth.
Career Lab is hosting some free interactive career events in Dublin this summer, to bring his career collaboration ideas to life.
Join Career Lab today to embark on a transformative journey and take the first step towards realising your personal potential.
ConnectedHubs.ie is a pioneering initiative in Ireland designed to facilitate remote working by providing access to a nationwide network of connected and flexible workspaces. Launched to support the growing demand for remote and hybrid working environments, the platform serves as a comprehensive resource for individuals and organisations seeking convenient and professionally managed hubs. These hubs are strategically located across urban and rural areas, ensuring that users can find suitable workspaces close to home, thereby reducing commuting times and promoting a better work-life balance. ConnectedHubs.ie integrates various facilities and services, from high-speed internet and meeting rooms to networking opportunities and community events, fostering a collaborative and productive work atmosphere.
The platform is not only beneficial for remote workers but also plays a crucial role in regional economic development. By providing high-quality workspaces outside major cities, ConnectedHubs.ie helps to distribute economic activity more evenly across the country, supporting local businesses and communities. It also offers an essential service for start-ups, freelancers, and small businesses, who can access professional environments without the overhead costs associated with traditional office spaces. Additionally, ConnectedHubs.ie promotes sustainability by reducing the environmental impact associated with daily commuting. Through its extensive network and commitment to fostering innovation and collaboration, ConnectedHubs.ie is reshaping the future of work in Ireland, making it more accessible, flexible, and sustainable.
Coso.ai is at the forefront of leveraging artificial intelligence to transform business processes and enhance operational efficiency. Specialising in AI-driven solutions, Coso.ai offers a range of products and services designed to automate complex tasks, provide deep data insights, and support strategic decision-making. By integrating advanced machine learning algorithms and natural language processing, the company helps businesses across various industries to streamline operations, reduce costs, and improve customer experiences. Coso.ai’s solutions are tailored to meet the specific needs of each client, ensuring that they can harness the full potential of AI to achieve their organisational goals.
A finalist in the Start-Up World Cup competition, the impact of Coso.ai extends beyond mere automation; it empowers businesses to gain a competitive edge in the rapidly evolving digital landscape. The company’s AI platforms can analyse vast amounts of data in real-time, uncovering patterns and trends that would be impossible for humans to detect. This capability enables businesses to make informed decisions swiftly and accurately, enhancing their agility and responsiveness to market changes. Moreover, Coso.ai places a strong emphasis on ethical AI practices, ensuring that their technologies are developed and implemented in ways that are transparent, fair, and respectful of user privacy. As a result, Coso.ai is not only driving innovation but also fostering trust and reliability in AI applications across the business world.
The Dublin Fringe Festival is a celebration of creativity, innovation, and diversity in the Irish arts scene. Founded in 1995, this annual event has evolved into a dynamic platform for emerging and established artists alike to showcase their talents across a myriad of disciplines, including theatre, dance, music, comedy, and visual arts. Spanning several weeks each September, the festival transforms Dublin into a bustling hub of artistic exploration, inviting audiences to engage with boundary-pushing performances and thought-provoking exhibitions in venues across the city.
At the heart of the Dublin Fringe Festival is a commitment to pushing artistic boundaries and challenging societal norms. With a focus on inclusivity and accessibility, the festival embraces diversity in all its forms, amplifying voices that may otherwise go unheard. From avant-garde theatre productions to experimental dance performances and interactive installations, the Dublin Fringe Festival fosters a spirit of creative freedom and expression, inviting audiences to immerse themselves in the rich tapestry of contemporary Irish culture while pushing the boundaries of traditional artistic conventions.
GreenTill.co offers a cutting-edge digital receipts solution designed to enhance the retail experience for both businesses and consumers. Their plug-n-play system allows retailers to issue digital receipts from day one, with a setup process that takes less than ten minutes. This innovative service not only reduces the environmental impact of traditional paper receipts but also integrates brand advertising with Green Till’s Basket Based Promotion™ technology, enabling personalised offers on digital receipts. The solution also includes in-built loyalty services, allowing customers to manage digital receipts and loyalty cards with a single QR scan, thereby increasing customer retention and driving repeat business. Furthermore, GreenTill.co provides retailers with actionable customer insights by linking receipt data to individual consumers, facilitating the delivery of personalised discounts and promotions to loyal customers.
In addition, GreenTill’s digital receipt solution enhances the utility of existing customer display devices by displaying QR codes that provide access to digital receipts, product information, and advertisements. Green Till Consumer App on the other hand, available to download from apple and google play store, empowers consumers by securely storing their retail receipts, loyalty cards, and warranty cards, ensuring they are accessible anytime, anywhere. By offering Green Till coins as rewards for uploading receipts, the app encourages user engagement and fosters a sense of value.
Addressing the environmental impact of paper receipts, GreenTill.co collaborates with recycling companies to safely recycle toxic receipts and is on the brink of a significant breakthrough in this area. With billions of receipts printed globally each day, GreenTill.co’s mission is to reduce the demand for paper receipts, cut down on the use of toxic chemicals, and support legislative efforts to mitigate the environmental and health impacts of traditional receipt paper.
Hunter Marshall are Irish specialists in remote working recruitment, assisting employers from Ireland and the UK in enhancing business performance through remote talent acquisition. With a keen focus on delivering cost-effective solutions, Hunter Marshall manages the entire recruitment process, including hiring, ongoing payroll, and compliance, allowing clients to tap into the best global talent while minimising employment costs. The company recognizes the challenge of finding skilled individuals at affordable rates and offers dedicated highly skilled remote workers at significantly lower costs than those based in higher-cost economies. Embracing a win-win philosophy, Hunter Marshall ensures fairness for both employees and employers, offering attractive opportunities for candidates to work for modern international companies while providing employers with highly educated and dedicated remote talent at reduced costs.
Hunter Marshall’s recruitment services are designed to streamline and enhance the remote hiring process for businesses. Beginning with a thorough understanding of each client’s business needs, the company crafts precise job descriptions and strategically advertises remote positions to attract top-tier talent. Rigorous applicant screening and first-round interviews ensure that only the most suitable candidates progress to the next stages of the hiring process. Hunter Marshall then presents clients with a curated shortlist of candidates for their consideration, handles all recruitment process administration, and provides ongoing support post-hiring. With a commitment to payroll management, compliance, and dedicated placement, Hunter Marshall ensures a seamless and compliant working relationship between employers and remote workers, allowing clients to focus on their core business activities while accessing the best talent from around the globe.
Inspeq AI’s proprietary evaluation framework combines established metrics, fine-tuned models, and self-reflecting Large Language Models (LLMs), and has a superior, comprehensive framework for evaluating LLM outputs. Standard metrics like ROUGE, BLUE are efficient in assessing textual similarity, but lack depth in semantic analysis. Fine-tuned pre-trained models like BERT bring a deep understanding of language structure and meaning, offering insights into the contextual appropriateness. This aspect is particularly crucial where the contextual alignment plays a significant role in determining the quality of the response. Self-reflecting techniques add a layer of creativity and relevance assessment, pushing beyond the constraints of conventional evaluation techniques.
CEO and Co-Founder of Inspeq AI, Apoorva Kumar commented: “Recent cases of production-grade Gen AI applications going wrong have highlighted the challenges businesses face in scaling Gen AI. By using Inspeq AI as an ops layer, businesses can overcome these bottlenecks, ensuring trust, safety, and ethical standards. We are thrilled to be working with significant enterprise companies globally, like HCL, helping them develop production-grade Gen AI applications that deliver immense benefits to their customers.”
One of the most popular exhibits (because they had a hydrogen powered car racetrack in the hall!) Kinia serves as a catalyst for fostering a culture of lifelong learning, uniting individuals who believe in the transformative power of education equality. With a commitment to equipping young people with the tools they need to shape their futures, Kinia operates as a capacity-building organisation, providing funded, professional development training, ongoing support and equipment to schools and youth services in the areas of STEM and creative technology. By delivering programs in both English and Irish, Kinia ensures accessibility and inclusivity for all learners.
Partnering for Progress: Kinia collaborates with stakeholders to unlock potential, offering programs that empower creativity, foster resilience, and celebrate achievements. Kinia prioritises communities most at risk of being left behind during the digital transition with a particular focus on disadvantaged communities and gender inequity, ensuring all young people have access to educational opportunities in the areas of STEM and creative technology. Together, Kinia and its partners collectively create pathways of opportunity for children, young people, and communities nationwide, impacting hundreds of thousands of individuals through their innovative initiatives.
Reach out to Kinia to discuss how you can create partnerships to support young people in your community at www.Kinia.ie .
Square Root Solutions, is a prominent Irish software development company known for its innovative approach to creating custom mobile applications, web development, and digital transformation services. The company is committed to delivering high-quality, scalable solutions that cater to a diverse range of industries, including healthcare, education, finance, and retail. Their team of skilled developers and designers works closely with clients to ensure that each project meets rigorous standards of functionality and aesthetic appeal. By leveraging agile methodologies, Square Root Solutions maintains flexibility and responsiveness, adapting to evolving client needs and ensuring timely, cost-effective project delivery. This led the company to being voted Ireland’s software development company of the year 2024.
Square Root Solutions’ client-centric approach is fundamental to their success. They prioritise understanding each client’s unique challenges and objectives, crafting bespoke solutions that drive business growth and enhance user experiences. Their extensive portfolio highlights successful projects that have made significant impacts on their clients’ operations and expansion. Beyond development, the company provides ongoing support and maintenance, ensuring that their solutions remain robust and up-to-date amidst the rapidly changing technological landscape. This commitment to long-term partnerships and continuous improvement underscores Square Root Solutions’ dedication to excellence and client satisfaction, establishing them as a trusted partner in digital innovation.
This was one of the best workshops of the entire event. Simply Voice which is (owned by Clodagh Swords) transcends conventional voice coaching to foster exceptional leadership presence through the transformative power of voice. Clodagh exemplified this by having a professional operatic signer to open her workshop, which left the entire audience mesmerised..
Clodagh’s mission is to catalyse a societal shift towards empowerment, self-acceptance, and radical transparency. The company challenges the status quo by envisioning a world where authenticity reigns supreme and true voices are revered. Clodagh’s pioneering method blends advanced vocal techniques with holistic approaches to unearth the innate resonance of each individual’s natural voice. Through personalised coaching and immersive experiences, Simply Voice empowers individuals to embrace their authenticity, navigate self-doubt with resilience, and unleash their most genuine voice—a voice that resonates from the depths of their soul.
Skillvista stands as a leading provider of innovative workforce development solutions tailored to meet the evolving needs of businesses in today’s dynamic landscape. With a focus on empowering organisations to unlock the full potential of their employees, Skillvista offers a comprehensive suite of training programs and learning experiences designed to enhance skills, foster professional growth, and drive performance excellence. Leveraging cutting-edge technology and industry expertise, the company delivers impactful learning solutions that address critical skill gaps and propel businesses toward success.
A finalist at The Startup World Cup pitching competition at the summit, Skillvista mission is clear: to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity by equipping individuals with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the digital age. Through a blend of online courses, and personalised coaching, Skillvista empowers learners to stay ahead of the curve and adapt to the rapidly changing demands of the modern workforce. With a commitment to excellence and a passion for lifelong learning, Skillvista is dedicated to shaping the future of work by empowering individuals and organisations to achieve their full potential.
WowThanks is a dynamic employee reward and recognition platform designed to motivate, engage, and inspire employees while promoting core company values. Offering a range of modules including reward points, discounts, cinema and restaurant memberships, wellness benefits, and more, WowThanks serves as a comprehensive hub for recognizing great work and showing appreciation to team members. The platform aims to enhance company culture, boost productivity, and improve recruitment appeal, ultimately fostering a positive and vibrant work environment.
With WowThanks, employers can easily manage employee recognition efforts through intuitive features such as shout-outs, milestone celebrations, and personalised rewards. The platform not only provides access to a wide range of discounts and rewards from leading consumer brands but also offers tools for competition management, prize fulfilment, and engagement reporting. By empowering businesses to engage and retain their employees effectively, WowThanks helps organisations cultivate a culture of appreciation, boost morale, and drive overall success.
Another incredibly popular booth (mainly because they had cool toys to play with!) Virtual Reality Ireland is a pioneering company at the forefront of immersive technology, dedicated to transforming how businesses and individuals experience virtual reality. Established in Dublin, this innovative firm offers a range of VR solutions tailored to various industries, including entertainment, education, healthcare, and corporate training. With a team of expert developers and creative professionals, Virtual Reality Ireland crafts bespoke VR experiences that engage, educate, and entertain, leveraging the latest advancements in technology to provide unparalleled immersive environments.
The company’s offerings include VR event services, custom VR content creation, and VR equipment rentals, making high-quality virtual reality experiences accessible to a broad audience. Virtual Reality Ireland also emphasises the educational and therapeutic potential of VR, developing applications that aid in training, rehabilitation, and mental health treatment. By pushing the boundaries of what is possible with virtual reality, the company not only enhances user experiences but also opens up new avenues for learning and development, positioning itself as a leader in Ireland’s growing tech landscape.