On the 30th of January seven budding entrepreneurs will start the process of taking their digital dreams to market. Meet the people behind the big ideas for the 2023 Tech Start-Up Bootcamp below.
About the Bootcamp
The Tech Start-up Bootcamp is a comprehensive twelve-week program designed to provide aspiring entrepreneurs with the best possible opportunity to explore and develop their digital business ideas. Through a combination of workshops, masterclasses and one-to-one sessions, the Bootcamp will cover all elements of starting a digital business, from nurturing the entrepreneurial mindset, to assembling a strong team, building a prototype, marketing, pitching, and fundraising.
Bootcamper: Michael Butler
Business name: Card Twister
What is your business idea?
Card Twister is a brand of mobile party games. Our first released game focuses on a market demographic of college students with the aim of turning a dull party into one that makes you wake up and say “My God, did we really do that last night?”
Who is your inspiration?
George Hotz has always fascinated me with his diverse history, from the hacker of sony to the founder of Comma AI, I’ve found it inspiring to see how much someone can achieve with some grit, determination, and a passion for coding.
Bootcamper: Cameron Pirouet
Business name: The Property Source
What is your business idea?
To create a social property investment platform for independent property brokers, that will help any investors with find their next property venture. The platform will allow investors who lack time, knowledge or confidence to access well researched property investments from around the country.
Who is your inspiration?
Steven Bartlett is an inspiration to me in the business world. His meticulous attention to detail and emphasis on fostering a strong corporate culture are traits I strive to emulate. I am impressed by his ability to adapt to the ever-changing modern landscape, his commitment to transparency and trust, and his progressive stance on mental health and wellness. I am a devoted listener of his podcast and use it as a valuable source of learning and motivation.
Why did you apply for the Bootcamp?
I decided to apply to the Tech Startup Bootcamp because I realized that my business idea has evolved from a property venture to a technology startup and I wanted to be in the best possible environment to bring it to fruition. The bootcamp offers a positive and dynamic atmosphere that is perfect for fostering innovation and creativity. Additionally, the continued support and guidance from the experienced mentors at Digital Jersey is invaluable in helping me turn my ideas into a successful tech startup. Having time to attend the Digital Jersey courses is an added bonus to the opportunity to work on my business full-time at the bootcamp.
Bootcamper: Tom Titherington
Business name: Crately
What is your business idea?
Crately enables suppliers and restaurants to make the long-overdue transition from analogue to digital workflows – a connected platform with a holistic suite of tools that automate operations and empower staff saving invaluable time and eliminating manual entry from tedious work, so that they can concentrate on growing their business.
What was the inspiration behind your idea?
Digitalisation is such an important aspect of modernising business processes and streamlining operations, and ultimately it’s where huge efficiencies are made. After my initial chats with restaurants here in Jersey, it was clear there are large aspects of the food & beverage supply industry that have been overlooked and left in a largely analogue state.
Why did you apply for the Bootcamp?
I’m fortunate to have found something I enjoy doing – programming and building digital products – and the Bootcamp allows me to do both. I can’t imagine anything more enjoyable than building a product you’re so passionate about, launching it to customers where it adds value to their lives and to do so with talented and driven individuals.
Bootcamper: Tamsin Raine
Business name: Exordi
What is your business idea?
Exordi is a white-labelled software that lets you deploy campaigns globally, in minutes through a network of the world’s best creators. The platform allows you to source, engage and manage multiple global, creators on one centralised platform.
What the inspiration behind your idea?
To streamline the often painful pre-production process for clients whilst giving creators the opportunity to work with brands they can align their values with wherever they are in the world. Also, leveraging technology in order to and build and nurture creator communities around the world.
Why did you apply for the Bootcamp?
I was born and raised in Jersey before spending 8 years travelling, studying at university and working in an award-winning advertising agency. I always wanted to live in Jersey during these times but felt there was not the same opportunities as there was in the UK and abroad in order to fulfil my dream career. That was until I met my current business partner who inspired me to move back to Jersey and still work with international clients. When I then heard of DJs bootcamp programme I knew this was a great opportunity to further grow my business in Jersey and still call it my home. I also have a lot of gratitude for our island and believe in the ability to nurture local talent instead of loosing them to other destinations due to their career aspirations.
Bootcampers: Joao Oliveira & Elliott Lamb
Business name: Alli
What is your business idea?
Alli is an AI driven, interactive Mental Health companion app. A safe space where you can learn about mental health, reflect on your thoughts and build healthy habits.
What is the inspiration behind your idea?
The inspiration for the idea came after my own battle with mental health. I was young and did not understand what was happening to me until I had to seek professional help. This helped me realise that the first step in looking after your mental health is understanding what mental health is and through understanding you become more aware of your own self and the appropriate steps to take.
Who is your inspiration?
Elon Musk, I think he is a great example of someone who believes in himself and isn’t afraid to take risks and embrace failure in order to achieve his goals. He is also a great visionary who wants to take the human race to the next level.
Bootcamper: Dr Manthan Patel
Business name: TBC
What is your business idea?
Simply put – to enable dental business owners and staff to regain control over their business! I want to improve business and clinical efficiency of dental practices by extracting ‘dark’ data from dental practice management software; present it in a visual manner and use AI to analyse it to provide simple, actionable insights.
What was the inspiration behind your idea?
Having worked as a dentist in multiple practices, I’ve found that most practices are running very inefficiently which makes staff miserable and inevitably affects patient care. I’ve always had an interest in the power of data and the power it wields – and believe this may be the key in bringing the whole industry one step forward.
Why did you apply for the Bootcamp?
My business ideas have evolved from real-life struggles at work, that can be solved with existing tech advancements. I applied to the bootcamp to be around like-minded individuals as well as learn from the actual ‘techie’s’ that can help me bring solutions to these real-world problems.
Bootcamper: Jack Smith
Business name: Not A Mortgage
What is your business idea?
A new home equity investment business, which aims to provide homeowners with a smart new loan alternative for tapping into their home equity without taking on debt – meaning no loans, no repayments.
What was the inspiration behind your idea?
Being a homeowner can often be a struggle especially given periods of volatility in income and increasing costs not just in relation to debt but general living. Finding myself in a position where we needed to remortgage and my wife soon to be off on maternity leave, I was shocked to find that our monthly repayments were to almost double. Going through the archaic, longwinded process of remortgaging, countless meetings in person and due diligence requirements to find that rates had moved by the end was another contributing factor which led me to think that this could be done a lot better. NotAMortgage.com, aims to make homeownership less stressful and more accessible. We are enabling homeowners to access equity in their home without getting a loan, allowing them to have more flexibility and control over their finances, whilst benefiting from no monthly repayments ever.
Tech Start-up Bootcamp in collaboration with:
Digital Jersey
Tekex
JT
PwC
Natwest International
