Irish Company Brings Start-ups to Silicon Valley

North-West based Company Seedups recently returned from SxSW in Austin, Texas after a successful visit to the prestigious SXSW Interactive festival to launch their service to the US market. "With Ireland and Northern Ireland being in the news for the wrong reasons, it's important that not only are we open for business, we're spearheading new initiatives" said Seedups founder Michael Faulkner.

The innovative online matching engine for Entrepreneurs and Investors launched in Ireland and the UK in February and is enjoying a whirlwind spell in America, including the establishment of an office in Silicon Valley and a launch party alongside some of the other digital talent from Ireland in Austin. The launch was picked up by Entrepreneur Magazine, and has quickly been adapted by American entrepreneurs.

The Seedups office in Silicon Valley is in the Enterprise Ireland offices situated near San Jose, and places Seedups, and Irish businesses looking to raise funds right at the heart of the most vibrant launching area for Tech startups in the world.

To mark their launch, Seedups are giving away $5,000 (or Euro equivalent) to 1 lucky entrepreneur. To win the prize, all entrepreneurs have to do is submit a 60 second video pitch, which is hosted on the seedups.com website, and the pitch with the most votes will win the money. “$5,000 cash can be a great boost for new companies, and at Seedups we’re determined to help startups” continued Mr. Faulkner. The competition will run until 1st May, and is open to startups from anywhere in the Ireland, the UK and US.

Of what this will mean for Irish companies, Mr. Faulkner said “After months of preparation and following the set up of an office in Silicon Valley, we’re really looking forward to working with tech start-ups in the US. We’re also ecstatic at being part of what is a strong team of delegates from Ireland who are supported by Invest NI. It's important to remember that the next generation of entrepreneurs will not be in traditional industries, but will be coming up with innovative answers through web-based app development, and these brightest minds will need funding to match their ideas.

Seedups model works on the concept of "fair value" for both Start-ups and Investors. This allows entrepreneurs the chance to hold on to more control of their business, while allows investors the chance to diversify their portfolio. This financing model is beginning to take a hold in many countries around the world, and has been used quite successfully in funding creative and community projects. With Seedups disruptive technology, it is now available to business start-ups in the US, Ireland and the UK.

Seedups are now calling on innovative entrepreneurs to list their business on the Seedups.com platform, and get funded through the growing number of investors, from both sides of the atlantic.

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Connor Doherty

Online Community Manager, Seedups

Web: www.seedups.com

Twitter: @seedups

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