Pioneering work celebrated - EDF Pulse Awards winners announced

• Second year of EDF Energy Pulse Awards attracts 142 competition entries
• Up to £100,000 of investment available to support start-ups ideas and products
• Awards are given to pioneering small and start-up businesses whose work could transform the wider energy sector
• Winners’ innovative ideas and products tackle key challenges faced by energy industry

Powervault, a London based start-up behind an new battery system designed to make the most out of smart homes, has been announced as one of this year’s winners of the EDF Energy Pulse Awards for innovation. This is the second year of the awards in the UK, which invites start-ups and entrepreneurs to enter one of five categories with up to £100,000 worth of investment available to support the development of the winning ideas and products. 

The five winners were chosen after a pitch day where they showcased ideas addressing the key challenges facing the energy industry.  The challenges ranged from cyber security and improving nuclear safety to increasing the lifetime of structures and building a diverse workforce. 

Winners of this year’s EDF Energy Pulse Awards:

• Blue Lab Innovation Challenge: Powervault has built an affordable, easy to fit internet based battery storage system for the smart home. It has been designed to help customers, save money, manage their energy more effectively and provide flexibility to the grid.
• Diversity & Engagement: Goshaba has developed a new tool to help recruiters remove the need for traditional CVs. Through cognitive science and gamification it removes unconscious bias and will help companies hire a more diverse workforce 
• Integrity of Things: Zensor has developed a new sensor based system that watches over structures and sends out alarms and status reports when preventative repair or maintenance is required.
• Cyber Security: Barac is a London-based start-up helping organisations detect early signs of cyber-attack and malware in real time, on both normal and encrypted traffic.
• Nuclear Safety: Clicks and Links specialises in immersive technology and has developed a virtual reality  programme specifically for large infrastructure projects and nuclear decommissioning

The competitive process started in November 2017 and saw 142 submissions from across the UK and Europe. Forty start-ups were invited to London this February to present their ideas to a panel of judges, including independent industry experts and representatives from EDF Energy. An awards ceremony was held in London yesterday (25 April), where the finalists showcased their work to receive support and advice and attract investment for their innovations.

Simone Rossi, CEO at EDF Energy, closed this year’s awards. He said: “The energy industry is changing at a rapid pace. Our customers’ expectations are shifting with the growth of digital technology and we also have the bigger energy challenges to tackle like balancing the grid through battery storage and safely extending the life of our existing nuclear stations. We recognise we can’t meet these challenges alone and that we need to support new talent innovating in this area and that’s why we run the EDF Energy Pulse Awards.

“It’s encouraging to see the awards growing. This year we had 142 entries with a range of ideas and products that reflect the scale of innovative work being done in the energy sector. Awards are given to pioneering small and start-up businesses whose work could transform the wider energy sector over the next few years and we look forward to helping a number of them take to the next step at this critical stage of their business.”

The Blue Lab Innovation Challenge is run in partnership with investment firm L Marks. Finalists from the pitch day in November have already received 12 weeks’ mentoring from EDF Energy through its innovation accelerator, Blue Lab, to help grow and provide a route to market. The aim is to continue the working relationship after the 12-week period. 

For more information about EDF Energy Pulse Awards, visit edfenergy.com/pulse-awards or email Pulse.Awards@edfenergy.com.

For further information:

Stephanie Robertson, external communications manager, EDF Energy
steph.robertson@edfenergy.com
07739326546

or email: media@edfenergy.com