8 Innovative Startups Graduate From the New Frontiers Programme

Eight founders graduated recently from Phase 2 of the New Frontiers Programme at South East Technological University (SETU) in Waterford.

The showcase event marked the end of an intensive six months for the startup founders, during which they received a number of supports, including mentoring and a tax-free allowance of €15,000, while they built a solid foundation for their business.

Showcase day is an opportunity to recognise the stand-out participants from the programme. This year, the Most Innovative Business Idea award for the concept that is most innovative or uses innovative technology went to Tom Weldon of Lagertha; the Best Business Opportunity award for the concept that has best prospect for early adoption in the market and strong growth potential went to Brian Cusack of Supp Genie AI; and the Best Business Plan award for the best researched business plan went to Clare Mansfield of Flowering Fertility Support.

The event at SETU’s Cork Road Campus was attended by various stakeholders from the startup community, including Dr Patricia Bowe, Head of Department of Management and Organisation at SETU; Dr Thomas O’Toole, Dean of Faculty of Business at SETU; and Ciara Concannon, National New Frontiers Programme Manager at Enterprise Ireland.

The audience heard insights from speaker Paul Savage, a programme alumnus and COO of Brightbeam. Paul, an experienced technology entrepreneur who has led a range of early-stage startups through significant growth, shared his perspectives on leveraging agile thinking and action to identify and overcome challenges.

He encouraged New Frontiers founders to engage with their target market to understand the lived experiences of prospective customers. He also discussed the capabilities of AI and gave advice on how early-stage businesses can harness it to, for example, analyse customer insights, iterate product design, test product-market fit, and manage resources.

In her welcome speech, Dr Patricia Bowe said, “These entrepreneurs have worked diligently on Phase 2 of New Frontiers over the past six months to increase the knowledge of their target markets. As part of their market research, they have engaged with target customers to gain deep understandings of the customers’ pain points in order to develop desirable solutions, in pursuit of achieving the best possible Product-Market Fit solutions for their prospective customers’ problems.”

Addressing the crowd, Dr Thomas O’Toole remarked, “SETU is more than a place of learning; we are an anchor university for the South East, working to ensure our region is vibrant, competitive, and forward-looking. The New Frontiers programme is a leading example of how SETU delivers on this vision. Through the New Frontiers programme, SETU is building the skills, confidence, and networks that founders need to succeed, and in doing so is directly supporting Enterprise Ireland’s strategy to increase the number of new startups and scaling businesses in line with their Strategic Plan 2025-2029.”

New Frontiers Programme Director in Waterford, Dr Eugene Crehan, praised the cohort for their engagement throughout the programme. “I would like to commend you on your dedication in staying focused on the market opportunity, increasing your knowledge of your market and developing solutions for your target market customers. I hope that you can continue on your growth trajectories and that many of you will follow in the footsteps of former Waterford New Frontiers participants who scaled their businesses, securing investments and Enterprise Ireland’s PSSF and HPSU funding.”