INSIGHTS / News

Following a competitive application process the Digital Catapult, a national centre to rapidly advance the UK’s best digital ideas, has announced that Kemuri, a member of the Surrey SETsquared Centre, has been chosen as one of 28 successful small businesses who will be showcased at the recently announced Digital Catapult Centre.

Kemuri will demonstrate its KemuriSense Smart Power Sockets during the seven-week launch season of events to mark the opening of the Digital Catapult Centre.

“Our goal at the Digital Catapult Centre is to work with startups, SMEs, enterprises, academics and other contributors to the digital economy to unlock major challenges in data innovation, all with a view to accelerating innovation,” said Neil Crockett, CEO, Digital Catapult. “The companies chosen to be showcased at the Centre embody the principles we believe will drive future economic growth in the digital economy. They are using data to its maximum potential – using it to solve industry and social challenges.” 

By shining a spotlight on these innovative companies, the Digital Catapult Centre will provide a platform from which the companies can promote themselves in front of the nation’s foremost digital experts, entrepreneurs, businesses and media. 3,500 high-profile representatives from the digital industry are expected at the Digital Catapult Centre over the coming months.

Dr Leonard Anderson, founder and CEO of Kemuri said, “We have applied for a patent for a simple way of connecting any power socket or electrical equipment to the Internet, without needing to use broadband.  Within 5 minutes it can start monitoring ambient conditions.  For example, in the kitchens of older people living alone, it helps them to remain living at home with the help of their families and carers.  It will save £millions in residential care costs.” 

The Digital Catapult Centre will open on the 5 November with a series of launch events. The Digital Catapult aims to generate £365m of additional economic revenue for the UK economy by enabling collaborations between business, universities and other not-for-profits to jointly invest in projects that build shared platforms and capabilities to unlock four major challenges in data innovation. The four challenges are:

• Building diverse data and content sets;
• The reuse of creative content – first reducing licensing friction;
• Creating trust in the use of personal data; and
• The Internet of Things: linking data innovators to next generation connectivity

This will in turn accelerate large numbers of small digital innovators to market.