Why meditation is the secret to being more productive in 2020 January 7, 2020 Everyone wants to be more productive. In fact, so eager have we become to get the most juice out of our work that we’ve spawned an entire productivity industry, filled by people promising to maximise our efficiency and get us more bang for our buck. But what we often find is that after only a [...]
The UK’s social care system is in crisis — but technology can help ease the burden November 26, 2019 Care of elderly people affects us all, whether a loved one requires these vital services, or we simply wish for everyone in society to be treated with dignity in old age. And so we should all care about the current crisis. Social care is one of the burning issues of our time. Social care has [...]
Boardrooms are snoozing on the UK’s sleep crisis November 5, 2019 Britain’s productivity has long been the bane of the economy. Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show that UK output has declined year-on-year since 2014 and lags behind the rest of Europe. Clearly, there’s no silver-bullet solution to turning the tide – it will take a mix of tried-and-tested measures, like application of [...]
Vaping saves lives, so let us resist the temptation to panic over e-cigarettes November 4, 2019 Over recent weeks, there have been many headlines about several deaths and respiratory illnesses in the US linked to e-cigarettes. First, it is absolutely right that public health authorities are investigating these events with the seriousness that they deserve. However, for the 3.6m smokers in the UK who have successfully quit smoking completely by switching [...]
AI health firm Healx bags $56m funding as it looks to fast track rare disease treatments October 16, 2019 Health tech firm Healx has secured $56m (£44m) in a Series B funding round as it looks to launch a new accelerator programme to find treatments for rare diseases. The Cambridge-based company said it raised the funds from European venture capital giant Atomico, Global Brain and Btov Partners, as well as its existing investors. Read [...]
London VC 4BIO raises first tranche of new $150m advanced therapies fund September 9, 2019 London-based venture capital firm 4BIO has completed the first round of fundraising for a new fund focused on the advanced therapies sector, which uses stem cells, genes and tissues to treat chronic medical conditions. 4BIO said the first tranche had attracted over $50m (£40.4m) of capital. The firm is hoping to raise $150m of capital [...]
Meet Par Hedberg – the godfather of Sweden’s tech startups August 27, 2019 If you were asked where the most tech innovation comes from, you’d probably answer Silicon Valley – the home of Google, Amazon and Facebook. And you’d be right. But what you might not know is that Stockholm is a close second. The Swedish capital produces more billion-dollar companies per capita than any other region in [...]
Owlet and the appeal of wearable tech for babies August 12, 2019 Wellbeing is a big business. Technology can now closely track our personal health, with apps and devices to monitor how many steps we take, what calories we’ve eaten, our blood pressure, and even how well we sleep. Fitbits and other wearable gadgets have also exploded in popularity with health-conscious consumers. Is there a limit to [...]
Slacking and napping at work could lead to business success July 3, 2019 Want a killer app for making your company more innovative? Look no further than to your nearest nursery school. Here, the staff are trained to ensure that their young clients utilise a key innovation technique – the midday nap. As odd as this may seem, something similar may be just the thing to kickstart your [...]
Calling the data doctor: How Chronomics wants to educate you about your epigenetics June 27, 2019 How old are you? A simple enough question, you may think, but not for Dr Tom Stubbs, co-founder and chief executive of epigenetic testing company Chronomics. Epigenetics is (to quote the Chronomics website) the study of heritable phenotype changes that do not involve alteration in the DNA sequence. It’s essentially how environmental factors – from [...]