#OnetoWatch initiative showcases innovation

After months of research, Cofinitive’s #OnetoWatch initiative launched last month and has got off to a flying start. As an entrepreneurial company itself, Cofinitive is compiling THE list of Ones to Watch.

A #OnetoWatch can already be doing great things or just about to start, the main criteria is the potential to go on to even bigger and better things. This gives start-ups, emerging organisations and established firms a golden opportunity to be profiled in the region’s science and technology spotlight for something that is, or could be, ground-breaking.

Faye Holland, founder and director of Cofinitive, says

We’re very excited to lead this #OnetoWatch initiative. There are so many amazing things happening across the region and we are enjoying seeking out those hidden gems and bringing them to light. #OnetoWatch has got off to a great start – we are currently sifting through 198 submissions and are continuously updating the lists to reach the top 25 for each category. But this is just the tip of the iceberg; we want people to share their Ones to Watch with us, to tell us who they think should be on the list as we facilitate the annual listing.

While a #OnetoWatch can be almost anything, Cofinitive has mapped out three groups to classify them: companies, people, and ‘things’. Each group has its own list which is both broad and varied. Here we have selected three noteworthy contenders from each of the categories:

COMPANIES

Cydar – developing a revolutionary surgical guidance system that acts like an anatomical sat-nav for surgeons
Herdsy - presenting a world first with their ‘plug and play’ herd analytics tag and software
Telensa – a global leader in smart city street lighting leading the way to a brighter tomorrow

PEOPLE

Jack Lomas – SenSat – co-founder of SenSat and new addition to the Cambridge Wireless board of directors
Karolina Zapadka – Babraham Accelerate – leading Babraham Research Campus’ bio-incubator and life science accelerator Accelerate@Babraham
Prof John Daugman - Cambridge University – pioneer of iris recognition technology with which over one billion people have had their eyes encoded

‘THINGS’

Ooho the edible water bottle – Skipping Rocks Lab – a biodegradable and edible capsule of water being trialled at events as an alternative to plastic bottles of water
Cambridge Launchpad – Form the Future - inspiring children from 8 through to 18-years-old to tackle the gender gap in STEM careers in our area
Fingerprint drug testing - Intelligent Fingerprinting – transforming how we test for drugs that’s hygienic, fast and easy-to-use anytime and almost in any place

Each list can be viewed on the Cofinitive ‘Insights’ page of their website, compiled from researched content and also nominations through a crowd sourced initiative.

Faye continues,

As well as highlighting deserving innovators, we’re also helping the wider business network. We’re giving mentors and investors alike a shortlist of high-potential talent, making it easier to spot potential, which clearly benefits the innovators too. It’s a fantastic outcome of the #OnetoWatch lists and makes it all the more worthwhile for anyone considering putting themselves or someone else forward.

So get your application in! Submissions for the #OnetoWatch can be anything, from a company, person, team to even a ‘thing’.Tell us who your Ones to Watch are by emailing us at [email protected] or post on Twitter to @Cofinitive #OnetoWatch.

The first 25 listing will be published in September 2018 and we are hopeful that most of those will also apply for the Cofinitive sponsored #OnetoWatch Cambridge Independent awards too.