demoDay 2014: Two years in the making

Our most recent demoDay was a defining moment in Wayra’s history.

will.i.am, HRH The Duke of York, Ronan Dunne (CEO, Telefónica UK), and Feilim Mackle (Sales and Service Director, O2 UK) joined a crowd of 500 to celebrate the acceleration of our 2014 cohort and welcomed 29 new start-ups into the Wayra family – they will begin their journey with us in February 2015. The success of the day, however, was a culmination of a two and a half year effort with a number of stakeholders involved.

The event demonstrates the impact of a long-term vision we share not only with Telefónica, but our mentors, partners, and alumni, who identify corporate venturing as an essential element to the continued growth of the UK’s entrepreneurial economy.

12% of all accelerators in the UK are now owned by large corporate enterprises and on average, those start-ups who have gone through an incubator or accelerator programme are more likely to secure significant financial investment – on average more than £68,000 once they’ve graduated. The support and guidance they receive during this time also gives them an invaluable edge versus their competition.

Watch the video below to see what happened on the day.