It was fun pitching in front of the judges. It feels good to win and the money is going to accelerate our product development. Huge thanks to Baba, Timur and Sabba for their support and to the Entrepreneurship Institute for hosting this event. We’re only getting started in our vision to 10x every artist with AI. We’ve got a long way to go, but the seed has been planted.
Sundar Arvind, Co-founder and CEO of Mozart AI (Stealth), King’s alumnus (Computer Science, 2024)
03 June 2025
Soyoye Entrepreneurship Prize 2025 winners announced
The Soyoye Entrepreneurship Prize, supported by Babatunde Soyoye, Timur Mamedov (King’s alumni) and Sabba Keynejad, celebrates high-impact tech ventures from King’s Start-up Accelerator Cohort VIII.
At an evening event hosted at Science Gallery London, shortlisted entrepreneurs pitched their ventures for the chance to be awarded a substantial grant to support their growth.
The five pitching ventures were:
| CarbonTag |
The definitive solution for product carbon foot-printing. |
Jasper Doninghaus (Founder and COO), King’s alumnus (Philosophy, Politics and Economics, 2022, Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy) |
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Hijack Bio |
Breakthrough engineered bacteria to monitor glucose and make and release insulin. |
Dr Salpie Nowinski (CEO and Co-founder), King’s alumna (PhD Cancer Bioinformatics, 2018, Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine) |
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All-in-one wealth management platform for Muslim women. |
Fahan Ibrahim-Hashi (Founder and CEO), King’s alumna (Business Management, King’s Business School) |
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Mozart AI (Stealth) |
Enabling faster music production through AI-powered Digital Audio Workstations. |
Sundar Arvind (co-founder and CEO), King’s alumnus (Computer Science, 2024, Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences) |
| Find Care Compare |
A one-stop solution for finding and comparing health and care services to empower patients and achieve health equity. |
Roxanne Stevenson-Brown (Founder and CEO), King’s alumna (MSc China and Globalisation, 2020, Faculty of Social Science & Public Policy) |
3-minute pitches were followed by questions from the judging panel, featuring:
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Babatunde Soyoye (Co-founder of Helios Investment Partners and Co-CEO of Helios Fairfax Partners, King’s alumnus, Electrical Engineering, 1999)
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Sabba Keynejad (Co-founder and CEO of Veed.io)
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Elif Sancek (Start-up Fundraiser)
Judging criteria assessed each venture’s strong commercial potential, leveraging of technology to create a positive and sustainable impact, ability to communicate a clear and compelling vision and proof of a customer centric approach.
After judge’s deliberation, the winners were announced:
- 1st prize - Mozart AI (Stealth) - £15,000
- 2nd prize - Hijack Bio - £10,000
- 3rd prize - CarbonTag - £7,000
The evening showcased the rising quality and calibre of committed young entrepreneurs tackling large market opportunities, while also highlighting the significant impact that support, no matter how small, can have on overall outcome at this stage their journey.
Babatunde Soyoye, Co-founder of Helios Investment Partners and Co-CEO of Helios Fairfax Partners, King’s alumnus (Electrical Engineering, 1999)
Timur Mamedov, Co-founder and CTO of Veed.io and King’s alumnus (Computer Science, 2017) received £20,000 from the Soyoye Entrepreneurship Prize in 2018, to support Veed’s development. Veed has since grown to become the world’s biggest AI-powered online video editor, with 10 million users each month and one video exported from the platform every second.
Veed.io added to the prize fund this year, giving back to support the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders and their ventures.
If we didn’t receive the prize money from the Soyoye Awards, Veed probably wouldn’t exist. We went from hanging by a thread, to making £50m ARR in less than seven years. It literally meant the world to us. It was heartwarming to listen to all the pitches and witness the founders’ ambition and rebellious energy. New founders rely on the previous generation and their support. That’s why it’s important to give back. Every little deed can have a butterfly effect beyond your wildest imagination.
Timur Mamedov, Co-founder and CTO of Veed.io, King’s alumnus (Computer Science, 2017)
It’s amazing to see King’s entrepreneurs showcasing their innovative ventures that are leveraging technology to create meaningful impact. My thanks go to King’s alumnus, Babatunde Soyoye for his support, alongside Timur Mamedov and Sabba Keynejad. There’s something truly special about seeing King’s alumni return to uplift our entrepreneurial community, building on their own success to help champion the transformative ideas of the future.
Julie Devonshire OBE, Director of the Entrepreneurship Institute
This year’s award is one of a three-year series, funded by a material gift from Babatunde Soyoye to support the advancement of King’s ventures.
Previous winners of the Soyoye Entrepreneurship Prize, including New Motion Labs and Panakeia Technologies, have gone on to raise $50 million in capital.
Photo credit: David Tett Photography.
To find out more about King's Start-up Accelerator, visit our website.
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Director, Entrepreneurship Institute