TU Dublin's SPEAR Wins Gold at 2024 National Start-up Awards
SPEAR, an Enterprise Ireland Commercialisation Fund project in collaboration with TU Dublin Innovation, has achieved a significant achievement by winning Gold in the prestigious 2024 National Start-up Awards. The project was recognised in the highly competitive Emerge-Tech Start-Up category, which celebrates the ground-breaking work of emerging technology companies reshaping industries.
Led by Noel Lourdes, SPEAR is a vertical focused AI agent that automates sourcing tasks for businesses. It is the solution when sourcing is the root cause of production downtime, operational risk and delays in issuing sales invoices. SPEAR has a Total Addressable Market of $685bn and is focused on companies where supply chain has constrained operations and sales activities. Unlike existing mainstream ERPs or niche procurement solutions, SPEAR is driven by Large Language Models and easy to use.
Commenting on the award, Noel Lourdes, Commercialisation Lead for SPEAR said:
Winning the Gold Award at the 2024 National Start-up Awards is a fantastic achievement for SPEAR. This recognition reflects the impact we believe that our AI-driven agent will have in completing tasks to ensure that sourcing activities do not become the root cause of losing customers. This award is a great motivator as we continue to scale and transform the industry helping businesses to navigate procurement more effectively and efficiently.
With support from the team at TU Dublin Innovation, TU Dublin’s award-winning Innovation & Knowledge Transfer Office, SPEAR has been able to leverage cutting-edge research and expertise to develop innovative solutions with real-world applications. This collaboration has played a crucial role in transforming innovative ideas into viable, market-ready technologies. The recognition at the 2024 National Start-up Awards further validates the team’s hard work and vision, highlighting the impact of their work on Ireland’s growing tech ecosystem.
Congratulating the SPEAR team, Dr. Paul Maguire; Head of Innovation and Knowledge Transfer at TU Dublin said:
I am delighted for Noel and the other members of the SPEAR team. Being recognised is testament to the work the team has carried out to date. This national accolade, earned in a highly competitive field, highlights not only the quality and innovation of the research being conducted here at TU Dublin but also the significant economic benefits our research brings by addressing real-world, near-term industry challenges. Congratulations must also be extended to TU Dublin Innovation case manager David Gardiner for all his invaluable efforts supporting this project. I look forward to following SPEARs progress in the coming months as they refine their technical and commercial offering and onboard trial customers ahead of their planned spin-out in second half of 2025.
The National Startup Awards highlight Ireland’s most promising and innovative start-ups, celebrating those that push the boundaries of innovation and set new standards of excellence. Winning Gold in the Emerge-Tech Start-Up category, sponsored by McCann FitzGerald LLP., further cements SPEAR’s status as a driving force within Ireland's dynamic tech ecosystem.
Congratulations to the Regional Finalists, National Finalists and Gold, Silver and Bronze winners who can be viewed via: https://bit.ly/4i28JxL.
Learn more about SPEAR: www.spear-poc.com or to contact Noel on noel.lourdes@tudublin.ie.