1. What does winning the Best PEIC Startup at the 4th edition of PEIC mean to you?
It was a real honor to be selected - especially by industry experts. It has opened up and expanded our network within the Ports and Maritime. I came away with dozens of new contacts. I now have a lot of follow-up! Already I have had at least a dozen video calls since coming back home.
2. How would you describe PEIC to someone who has never attended?
Awesome! A great event for immersing oneself in the world of Ports and Maritme. Lots of opportunities for networking, exchanging ideas, hearing from many startups, and meeting VCs. Also great to have VDS going on in the background, with many countries represented. It created a real buzz. And, then you had the Port and the beautiful City of Valencia as a background.
3. Beyond the award, what did you take away from these days in Valencia?
It was my first visit to Valencia, though I have been to Spain many times on business and holidays. I found the City to be very vibrant, and a nice mixture of history and culture mixed with commerce and business. The Port of Valencia was an eye-opener in terms of scale and activity. The amount of innovation going on was impressive. There was a real buzz around the City.
4. What would you say to other startups considering applying for the next edition?
Do it! It is competitive, of course. But, the opportunities that happen as a result of being at PEIC are superb.
5. Every startup is born from a conviction. What problem drove you to create your solution?
It may sound like a cliche - but, we wanted to make the world safer and more resilient. We thought we could build world-class technology to protect machines and hard assets from cybersecurity attacks, with a focus on autonomous systems. We have accomplished this.
6. What’s next for you? Where would you like to be a year from now?
International expansion! We already offices in Belfast, London and the Hague. We would like to expand into Germany and Saudi Arabia. And, possibly set up in Valencia! for expansion in Spain, as well as for our global Ports, Maritime and Space domains.
7. What advice would you give someone who wants to start a business in the port-logistics sector today?
It is a long journey for a startup to become successful. One obvious thing - there is a lack of capacity when one begins - with founders wearing multiple hats. Focus on getting the product first-class or a least an impressive MVP. Don’t hire Business Development people until the Founders have proven that there is a market, and customers will pay. Founders are the best salespeople! Only when the product market fit has occurred then you should bring in new business development people.
8. If you had to sum up the future of port-logistics innovation in one word, or a short phrase, what would it be?
We believe that ports and logistics will become more automated and autonomous. More digitalised. Ports will also grow to encompass a huge increase in drone activity in air, land, water.