Ten breakthrough teams have been named finalists in the Smart Data Challenge Prize, bringing new technologies and platforms designed to fast-track net zero, help gig workers manage their money, and take on life-admin tasks.

Each of the finalist teams will receive £50,000 and gain access to a bespoke Smart Data sandbox, built specifically for the prize by NayaOne. This sandbox will give teams a chance to test their products using secure, synthetic data, representing 5,000 individuals and 100 small businesses over a one-year timeline.  

Later this year, an overall winner with the most promising smart data solution will be awarded £50,000, while two runners-up will receive prizes of £25,000.

Among those competing in the final leg of the competition is VoltView, a company aiming to support UK businesses to cut their energy costs, find cheaper tariffs, and flag power waste by unifying energy, property and financial data, then distilling thousands of options into one clear plan.

Another finalist, Rodeo, plans to give the UK’s 4 million gig economy workers a leg up on money matters by combining earnings data from multiple digital platforms, as well as expense data, and turning this into a functional account for managing finances, simplifying taxes and applying for work opportunities.

Also looking to win the grand prize is Beyond Encryption, which will develop its AI-driven, customer engagement platform, Nigel, to help businesses deliver hyper-personalised, actionable insights directly to their customers. 

By using Smart Data, Nigel could help people save money, avoid problems, and make better decisions on life-admin tasks like finding insurance, utilities and mortgages, while also helping businesses understand their customers better, save money and build trust with personalised support.

“Access to data has enabled major innovations, including Open Banking, and is at the heart of the Smart Data Challenge Prize,” said Holly Jamieson, executive director of Challenge Works, one of the delivery partners for the contest.

“Using synthetic data in the new Smart Data Sandbox, teams will be able to test their solutions, demonstrate the potential benefits of a Smart Data ecosystem for customers and society, and help government to understand what it can do to support the widespread creation of impactful uses of real-world Smart Data across different sectors in the UK.”

Recommended reading

• Can Smart Data Fix Britain’s Broken Energy Market?
• £600K Smart Data Prize Launches to Drive Innovation
• Smart Data Foundry Secures £3M for Financial Data Service

Launched at the start of this year and funded by the Department for Business & Trade, the UK Government aims to use the Smart Data Challenge Prize to gain insight into a range of in-depth, tested use cases across a variety of sectors, giving a clearer picture of the potential barriers to development for UK innovators. 

Hoping to find and fund the next data breakthrough that might follow the success of Open Banking, the Government is focusing on identifying exactly what data would need to be unlocked to bring the most innovative ideas in the smart data space to life in the long term.

“This prize supports Britain’s world-class entrepreneurs and innovators to develop the technologies that will lead the world and seize the opportunities of the future, making the UK a better place to live, to work and to run a business,” said Justin Madders, UK minister for competition and markets.

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