Zobi scoops investment from UK’s largest ever seed funding competition ahead of product launch

Home Intelligence brand Zobi has secured up to £150,000 in equity funding through institutional investors, Worth Capital, after winning The Start Up Series competition.

Created to discover the UK’s brightest entrepreneurs with the smartest ideas, The Start-Up Series has been running since October 2016. To date, £4.3 million has invested into winners of the The Start-Up Series Fund which is managed by Amersham Investment Management.

Beating a host of other budding start-ups to the winning investment, the cybersecurity business is set to launch its first consumer product, Hedgehog, in September and uses artificial intelligence to discern between routine and non-routine communication between Internet of Things (IoT) devices on a whole home network.

Described as a ‘digital guardian’ for the home, Hedgehog detects and prevents cybercrime across multiple devices in the entire home network, giving homeowners one less thing to worry about. Working alongside a household’s existing broadband router, firewalls, anti-virus software and other home security products, Hedgehog takes a holistic 360-degree view of the home – shielding all the people, devices and networks within.

Setting it apart from competitors, Hedgehog’s high-quality sculptural design has been created to feel like a piece of homeware rather than a functional technology device. Available in sleek interior-friendly colours, the compact device is so smart it installs itself and simply connects to an existing Wi-Fi connection.

With access to funding being one of the biggest challenges for early stage businesses, The Start-Up Series aims to help remove this barrier, helping new entrepreneurs gain access to not only equity funding, but the expertise to turn ideas into successful sustainable businesses.

As such, Zobi, which received the latest instalment of funding in April, has received hands-on advice in the form of Worth Capital co-founder Paul Soanes, to help grow the business. 

The investment couldn’t be timelier, as Hedgehog’s services are set to be more in demand than ever following the Coronavirus pandemic. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting everyday people sending texts, emails and phoning businesses to offer spurious financial support or tax refunds with more than 95 Covid-related financial scams detected since March^*.

Hedgehog is perfectly catered to detect and prevent intruders on your home network – particularly those intruders attempting to access company data through personal devices, whilst much of the country continue to work from home.

Scott Lever, Founder of Hedgehog, said: “We have so many connected devices in the home from nanny cams and speakers to smart fridges, digital doorbells and games consoles, that we need security for all of them. Our vision is to protect at least two million homes and families from cyber-attacks by 2025 so this investment will support our efforts to grow substantially over the next 12 months in order to do so.”

Scott is an expert in his field and has led many cybersecurity and digital transformation projects across multiple business sectors including government, Parliament, insurance and banking.

He has also experienced and defended well publicised cyber attacks of the largest scale throughout his career.

The Hedgehog device and its annual subscription is available to pre-order now via the Hedgehog website hedgehog.ai/discover  at an RRP of £199. 

Monthly subscription costs for essentials begin at £3.99, family cover at £4.99 and £9.99 for the pro and gaming editions.  

A range of early bird discounts are available from a variety of partners, including IndieGoGo and offer a reduction of up to half price. 

Hedgehog is available in orange belly, woodland brown, dusk grey, forest green and midnight blue. For more information on the Hedgehog device and the offers available, visit www.hedgehog.ai

ENDS

If you would like to cover this story, please ensure you credit out using the following link: 

https://worthcapital.uk/winner-zobi/ – The Start-Up Series

Notes to Editors

*HMRC Employer Bulletin, June 2020, Issue 84

For more information, images, interview requests and samples contact the Hedgehog Press Office  [email protected]  or Natalie Smith [email protected] / 07931903730

About Hedgehog

Hedgehog uses Zobi Home Intelligence to detect  and prevent cyber-crime across your entire home network. It’s small and cute – but prickly in the face of attacks. Hedgehog observes, detects and stops cyber-criminals.