Mid-Week Tech News Roundup – October 6th to October 10th 2025
08 Oct, 20256 minutesPEAK:AIO secures £5m to accelerate global growth of its high-performance AI infrastruc...
PEAK:AIO secures £5m to accelerate global growth of its high-performance AI infrastructure platform
Manchester-based PEAK:AIO has raised £5 million in a funding round led by Pembroke VCT, with participation from NPIF II – Praetura Equity Finance (managed by Praetura Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II) and a Silicon Valley investor.
The investment will enable the company to expand globally and accelerate the development of its energy-efficient AI data storage platform, which is already being used by the NHS, King’s College London, the Zoological Society of London, and Los Alamos National Laboratory in the US.
Founded to address one of AI’s most pressing infrastructure challenges — how data is stored, accessed, and delivered to GPUs — PEAK:AIO has built a high-performance, energy-efficient software platform that removes bottlenecks slowing down machine learning workloads.
Co-Founder and CSO Mark Klarzynski explained:
“AI has created demands that traditional IT was never designed to handle. From the start we built PEAK:AIO to answer those challenges, and our success in the UK quickly led to adoption in the US. This investment is about more than growth — it’s about backing a UK company that is setting new standards in AI infrastructure worldwide.”
The platform’s technology is designed to deliver faster and more efficient AI systems, tackling the performance limitations that often leave GPUs idle while data loads slowly.
Fred Ursell, Head of Investments at Pembroke Investment Managers, commented:
“Every major technology wave exposes bottlenecks that hold back progress. In AI, that bottleneck is storage — GPUs sit idle while data crawls in. PEAK:AIO has built a solution from first principles that flips this equation, unlocking the full potential of AI infrastructure. With a team that has repeatedly scaled and exited category-defining businesses, and early validation from some of the most complex customers in the world, we believe PEAK:AIO is positioned to be a critical enabler of the AI revolution.”
Of the £5m raise, Pembroke contributed £3.7 million, alongside the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II) and a Silicon Valley-based investor.
Louise Chapman, NPIF II Fund Principal at Praetura Ventures, added:
“Our NPIF II investment into PEAK:AIO comes at a very opportune time for the AI sector, with Google, Microsoft and Nvidia all announcing plans to invest tens of billions into the UK. This will create even bigger opportunities for companies like PEAK:AIO, which is already showing impressive traction both in the UK and globally. We’re excited to be part of the company’s next chapter and support the team as they scale.”
With AI adoption soaring across healthcare, research, and enterprise sectors, PEAK:AIO’s platform is poised to become a key enabler of sustainable, high-performance AI systems, supporting the UK’s growing role as a leader in global AI innovation.
UniHomes enters next growth phase with investment from Macquarie Capital
Sheffield-based UniHomes, the student accommodation platform, has announced a strategic investment from Macquarie Capital, marking a major milestone in its journey as it celebrates its 10th anniversary.
The deal sees private equity investor LDC also reinvesting in the business following a successful two-year partnership that began in 2023. The combined backing will support UniHomes’ next phase of expansion, including both organic and acquisition-led growth, as it looks to enhance its technology and broaden its offering to new markets such as purpose-built student accommodation, build-to-rent, and professional sharers.
Founded in 2015 by Bradley Cox, Phil Greaves and Luca Mori, UniHomes has grown into a leading UK marketplace for bills-inclusive accommodation, partnering with over 1,000 letting agents and operators across more than 60 UK locations. The platform has helped hundreds of thousands of students find housing, with a model designed to simplify renting and improve the student experience.
Phil Greaves, Co-Founder and CEO of UniHomes, said:
“This new partnership comes as we celebrate our 10-year anniversary. We’re proud of everything we’ve achieved so far, cementing UniHomes as a leading marketplace for accommodation and building a trusted business over the last decade.
Our partnership with LDC has been an important part of our recent success, helping us expand nationally and invest in our people and technology. We’re delighted to welcome Macquarie as we set out on our next phase of growth — their investment and support will be instrumental as we continue to enhance our offering to the rental market.”
Nick Patrick, Managing Director at Macquarie Capital, added:
“We are excited to partner with this impressive management team as they enter the next phase of growth. UniHomes’ leading market position and relentless focus on student experience really stood out to us. We look forward to supporting the business as they find more ways to support tenants across the UK.”
Meanwhile, Dan Smith, Partner and Head of Yorkshire at LDC, commented:
“UniHomes’ growth journey so far has been remarkable. In the last two years, its management team has shown what can be achieved with a great business idea, hard work and the right partners. We’re proud to continue to support the business alongside Macquarie.”
With the new investment, UniHomes aims to build on its strong UK presence and explore new rental markets, positioning itself as a key player in the evolving student and shared accommodation landscape.
Invosys and DVSAnalytics launch ‘Chorus’ a unified CX suite for SMEs
Manchester-based telecoms innovator Invosys has partnered with DVSAnalytics to launch Chorus, a unified customer experience management (CEM) platform designed to help small and mid-sized businesses access enterprise-grade customer engagement tools.
The new solution brings together a range of technologies under one umbrella, integrating call routing, unified communications (UCaaS), contact centre services (CCaaS), workforce optimisation, and AI-powered agent guidance. Chorus aims to simplify CX delivery by providing everything businesses need — from inbound call management to speech analytics — in a single, scalable platform.
Jane Anderson, CEO of both Invosys and DVSAnalytics, said:
“This integrated product suite provides everything customers need to succeed, from AI-powered call routing to workforce optimisation, all under a single platform. Chorus will empower businesses of all sizes to deliver seamless and exceptional customer experiences.”
Barry Tuffs, CRO of both organisations, added:
“We’re bringing a full portfolio of services that were once only available to large enterprises, all at a price point that’s accessible for small to mid-market organisations. With Chorus, businesses will have everything they need to optimise their customer experience.”
Founded in 2006, Invosys has spent nearly two decades developing and managing technology that handles hundreds of millions of call minutes each year. The company said the launch of Chorus reflects its mission to remove complexity from communications while giving SMEs access to scalable, AI-backed CX tools once reserved for large enterprises.
myHappymind wins Wellbeing Award at 2025 National Children & Young People Awards
Manchester-based mental health education provider myHappymind has been named the winner of the Wellbeing Award at the 2025 National Children & Young People Awards — a recognition of its work to improve mental health and resilience in schools nationwide.
Head of Marketing Hayley Male reflected on the milestone, saying:
“So proud! I get to hear about the difference we are making in schools every day. I truly couldn’t be prouder of the work we do and the positive difference the programme is making to children’s lives.”
Backed by the NHS Innovation Accelerator programme and founded by Laura Earnshaw, myHappymind delivers a preventative mental health curriculum rooted in positive psychology, neuroscience, and character education. The programme is now used in more than 2,000 schools and nurseries across the UK and internationally, helping children learn how their brains work, manage emotions, and build confidence and self-awareness.
“Our mission has always been to create a generation of resilient, self-aware and mentally healthy children,” the company said following the announcement. “This award reflects the innovation, care, and collaboration that drive everything we do, and our commitment to improving children’s mental health and wellbeing across the UK.”
Independent research from the University of Chester has validated the programme’s impact on self-esteem, emotional literacy, and resilience, with evidence suggesting reduced CAMHS referrals and improved attendance across schools.
The company described the award as “a reflection of the incredible schools, partners, and team who make this impact possible every day.”
Sitehop formalises advisory board role for tech veteran Karl Perkins
Sitehop, the UK-based specialist in network acceleration and secure communications, has officially added Karl Perkins to its advisory board. Perkins brings decades of experience across cloud communications, collaboration, and network infrastructure, having held senior leadership roles at Avaya, Tata Communications, and Cisco.
Perkins has been involved with Sitehop since its earliest days, serving as the company’s first advisor. According to co-founders Melissa Chambers and Ben Harper, his early insight and introductions to major tech brands were pivotal in shaping Sitehop’s commercial trajectory, including enabling the company to scale its technology to 100 Gbps and secure a Global Tier 1 Carrier as its first enterprise customer.
With Perkins now formally joining the advisory board, Sitehop aims to leverage his expertise in digital transformation, innovation strategy, and commercialising emerging technologies to guide its next phase of growth. The company is focused on tackling a critical challenge in enterprise and telecom networks: how to maintain low-latency communications while implementing robust encryption to prevent cyber risk.
Sitehop’s flagship product, the SAFEblade 1100, is designed to optimise and accelerate cloud and telco networks while significantly reducing the attack surface for cybercriminals. By using custom programmable hardware, the solution helps communications providers avoid the trade-off between network speed and security — a challenge that has become increasingly urgent as organisations migrate more workloads to cloud environments and data throughput demands rise.
The appointment comes at a time of expanding adoption for Sitehop’s technology, which addresses performance bottlenecks in encrypted networks and enables deployment scenarios previously considered impractical. Perkins’ involvement is expected to support both technical strategy and commercial growth, including broader global partnerships and enterprise customer acquisition.
By formalising the role of Perkins on its board, Sitehop strengthens its leadership bench while reaffirming its commitment to delivering enterprise-class, low-latency, secure communications infrastructure. The company’s combination of hardware innovation and strategic advisory support positions it to continue scaling in a market where both speed and security are critical priorities.
OpenPayd appoints Yasemin Swanson as Chief Operations Officer
OpenPayd, the global financial infrastructure provider, has strengthened its senior leadership team with the appointment of Yasemin Swanson as Chief Operations Officer. Swanson joins from ClearBank, where she served as Chief Business Officer, and brings extensive experience in operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and payments operations.
In her new role, Swanson will scale OpenPayd’s operational infrastructure to support international growth and the continued development of payment innovations. She previously led large-scale operational transformations at ClearBank and Barclays Payments, focusing on KYC, AML monitoring, and customer onboarding.
Iana Dimitrova, CEO of OpenPayd, said: “We are delighted that Yasemin has joined OpenPayd. Her experience will enable us to continue fostering a high-performance culture aligned with our growth and innovation goals.”
Swanson added: “I’m thrilled to help build the operational backbone for a truly borderless financial future, ensuring scalability, compliance, and customer trust as OpenPayd expands globally.”
OpenPayd’s platform provides rails-agnostic financial infrastructure, enabling global money movement and embedded finance solutions across fiat and digital assets. Trusted by eToro, OKX, and B2C2, OpenPayd processes over €130 billion annually for 800+ businesses worldwide.
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