Fledgling business seals nearly £1m of investment
FORGET The Apprentice - award-winning Loughborough University alumnus Alex Nash is set to get 2019 off to a flying start, having secured almost £1m in investment for his company, Alcuris.
Alex founded the company in 2017 while studying product design at the university and was inspired to do so following his grandfather’s diagnosis of dementia in early 2015.
Within 15 months of graduating with a first-class degree, Alex has secured almost £1m worth of investment for his business with investors including PureGym founder Peter Robert and the Nottingham based founders of HD Decisions.
The company’s first product range, memo, is a digital telecare platform that monitors the day-to-day activities of vulnerable people and builds a database of behaviour patterns, alerting family members if there is any unusual activity.
It aims to ensure independence for vulnerable individuals living with conditions like dementia, peace of mind for their loved ones and actionable insights for the health and social care sector.
The system, which has started trials with two major local authorities in the UK, works with third-party smart devices in the home including Amazon Alexa and Google Home Hub.
Alcuris was launched at the Loughborough University Science and Enterprise Park (LUSEP); it now consists of a team of 10 highly experienced software engineers, including several fellow alumni, and its management board includes the former global CEO of telecare company Tunstall.
Alex has had a number of successes with Alcruis and in November last year he won two NatWest Great British Entrepreneur Awards.
Alcuris has also had its potential recognised through the BMW iTech and Santander Universities Entrepreneurship awards, and Loughborough Enterprise Network Start-Up Fund, which awards students and recent graduates up to £5,000 to progress new businesses.
The company is also engaged in the Dementia House – a £300,000 interdisciplinary collaboration between the university and BRE (Building Research Establishment) that aims to help educate builders, carers and relatives on how to better support those living with dementia.
The flagship facility on BRE’s Watford Innovation Park provides the clinical setting for Alcuris to test the memo platform and improve its ability to detect changes in behaviours which can indicate the presence of health conditions.
When asked what 2019 holds, Alex said: “It’s going to be another busy, exciting and I hope rewarding year as we continue to trial the technology and bring it to the marketplace.
“I look forward to seeing where we are in another 12 months’ time.”