Three start-ups join ESA BIC Ireland at NovaUCD
18 September 2025
Pictured at NovaUCD, Dr Sarah Cosgrove, founder, Restore Blue; Meg Brennan, founder, Polliknow; and Anthony McLoughlin, founder, Better Futures Credit: Paul Sharp/Sharppix
Three Irish start-ups have joined NovaUCD as part of (opens in a new window)ESA BIC Ireland, a two-year incubation programme supporting space-connected enterprises.
Each company, (opens in a new window)Better Futures, (opens in a new window)Polliknow and (opens in a new window)Restore Blue, will receive up to €50,000 in seed funding along with access to technical expertise, training, funding opportunities and a network of space industry leaders to further develop their products and services.
Collectively, they plan to raise €3.3 million over the next two years to drive growth.
“We are delighted to welcome Better Futures, Polliknow and Restore Blue to the NovaUCD entrepreneurial community through ESA BIC Ireland,” said Michelle Doyle, Senior Manager, Strategic Innovation Partnerships, NovaUCD.
“Along with our consortium partners we look forward to supporting these innovative start-ups as they harness space data and technologies to grow, scale and attract investment over the next two years.”
Better Futures, founded by Anthony McLoughlin, has developed EVATM, a vertical AI platform that helps engineers automate documentation tasks, tripling productivity.
The company recently won awards at the Irish Times Innovation Awards and ABB Startup Challenge.
“Space engineers spend up to half their day on low-level repetitive documentation tasks, and this has become an accepted norm in the industry, where they are literally drowning in ‘paperwork’,” said Anthony McLoughlin.
“With the breakthrough of large language models, we now have the opportunity to change that, but only if we address the current gaps in accuracy, control, and domain-specific knowledge, and that is why we built EVATM. As aerospace engineers, we are proud to join the ESA BIC community and are excited to contribute to the wave of innovation now transforming the sector.”
Polliknow, founded by Meg Brennan, is using AI-powered ground sensors to monitor insect pollinator diversity and other environmental indicators.
Its approach generates 20 times more data than traditional surveys and is being deployed across airports, renewable energy sites and restoration projects.
“ESA BIC Ireland connects you with an extensive network of technical experts and keeps you informed about the latest space technology innovations,” said Meg Brennan.
“Within the programme we plan to improve the geolocation features of our device and explore the use of satellite imagery to provide additional data for projects.”
Restore Blue, founded by Dr Sarah Cosgrove, is developing data-driven software to help offshore wind projects incorporate Nature-Inclusive Design and minimise environmental impacts.
“Following the launch of our software in a pilot programme earlier this month our next priority within ESA BIC Ireland is to enhance its capabilities with a focus on using satellite-derived data to assess the viability of offshore sites for nature-inclusive technologies.” said Dr Sarah Cosgrove.
ESA BIC Ireland is managed by ESA Space Solutions Centre Ireland, a consortium led by Tyndall National Institute with University College Dublin, Atlantic Technological University, DCU, Maynooth University, MTU and TUS.
Enterprise Ireland acts as the national contact point for ESA.
Peter Finnegan, Manager, ESA Space Solutions Centre Ireland and Head of New Ventures at Tyndall National Institute, said the three new additions into the ESA BIC Ireland network was a “testament to the growing level of space-related activity in Ireland”.
“All of these companies are engaged in innovative activity that address global problems in their respective fields. We look forward to seeing these companies scale and execute on their ambitious visions.”
Other start-ups at NovaUCD under the programme include LirOptic and Sports Impact Technologies, while alumni include Oblivious AI, Plasma Bound, Proveye, StrongBó Agritech and Timing Solutions.
Applications to join (opens in a new window)ESA BIC Ireland are accepted year-round.
By: David Kearns, Digital Journalist / Media Officer, UCD University Relations (with materials from Micéal Whelan, UCD Research and Innovation)
To contact the UCD News & Content Team, email: newsdesk@ucd.ie
