OpenBack wins €25,000 ESB Spark of Genius 2016 prize

▤ Summary

After a high octane pitch battle involving three Irish start-ups at the Web Summit in Lisbon, this year’s prize went to Dublin software company OpenBack. OpenBack has created a new standard for mobile app notifications that makes them less annoying and more practical. Wia, led by Conall Laverty, is an NDRC-based internet of things (IoT) start-up that originated in Belfast, and aims to provide makers with a platform to bring home and school projects to life. This is the sixth year of the ESB Spark of Genius start-up competition which is now as old as the Web Summit itself. One of the previous winners, SmartThings, was acquired by Korean tech giant Samsung to be the fulcrum of its IoT strategy for an alleged sum of $200m.

▦ Linked Companies