London, United Kingdom · Angel InvestorTech veteran and angel building founder communities through Passion Capital and individual bets.
Angel InvestorPre-Seed to Series AFintechSoftware
London, United Kingdom · StartupVirtual and hybrid event platform enabling immersive conferences, expos, and town halls.
StartupGrowthEventsSoftware
London, United Kingdom · EventPractitioner-led software engineering conference focused on architecture, microservices, and AI/ML engineering. Price: about GBP 2350-2900. Ideal for dev-tool and infrastructure startups.
EventEventsDeveloper ToolsSoftware
London, United Kingdom · Angel InvestorTaavet Hinrikus is a prominent European tech entrepreneur-turned-angel investor, best known as the co-founder of Wise (TransferWise). Hinrikus, originally from Estonia, was Skype’s first employee before co-founding TransferWise in London in 2011. Under his leadership (as CEO then Chairman), TransferWise revolutionized cross-border finance and reached a multi-billion valuation. After Wise’s success (it went public in 2021), Taavet Hinrikus shifted focus to investing and supporting other startups. He has become an “operator angel” who backs early-stage European founders, particularly in fintech and software, bringing his experience in scaling a fintech unicorn. In 2022, Hinrikus teamed up with Teleport co-founder Sten Tamkivi to launch a new VC firm called Plural, a €250 million fund “built by founders” to invest in Europe’s next generation of tech companies. As an individual angel, Taavet has made personal investments in startups like Bolt (ride-hailing, Estonia), Mirror (US fintech), Zego (insurance) and many others, often taking advisory roles. He is known for his hands-on mentorship style – for example, he has provided guidance to Wise alumni starting companies and frequently advocates for Baltic and European tech on the global stage. Taavet also serves on various boards (e.g. he was on the board of Nasdaq’s Estonia arm and advisory boards of fintech companies) and was a special adviser to the UK government on fintech. In the Europe Startup Guide, Taavet is described as an angel “investing as an operator-angel in European fintech and software,” focusing on pre-seed to Series A deals. His journey from founding a $10B fintech company to re-investing in the ecosystem has made Hinrikus an influential figure. Not only does he bring capital, but also credibility and connections – helping younger European startups navigate growth and international expansion. In essence, Taavet Hinrikus exemplifies the new wave of successful European founders who “pay it forward” by fueling the next cohort of startups.
Angel InvestorPre-Seed to Series AFintechSoftware
Cambridge, United Kingdom · EventSingle-track, founder-focused conference for SaaS and software leaders. Price: about GBP 995-1495. Deep talks on scaling, product, and culture.
EventEventsSaaSSoftware
London, United Kingdom · Startup11x is the breakout star of the UK's agentic AI wave, known for building "digital workers" that replace full job functions rather than merely assisting them. Founded in 2022 by Hasan Sukkar, the company frames its product as autonomous employees rather than software tools. That positioning is controversial, but it resonates with revenue teams seeking to eliminate manual drudgery and scale outreach without linear headcount growth.
The flagship product, Alice, is an AI Sales Development Representative that can source leads, research accounts, craft highly personalized outreach, and follow up continuously. In late 2024, 11x launched Jordan, a multilingual AI phone agent that conducts real-time voice conversations for qualification and support in more than 30 languages. Together, these agents can run a large portion of the outbound funnel end-to-end, from initial outreach to handoff, with human oversight focused on high-value exceptions.
By early 2026, 11x had exploded in valuation after a Series B led by Andreessen Horowitz, a rare win for a UK-first startup. The company processes millions of interactions for high-growth tech companies such as Otter.ai and Airwallex and is expanding its footprint in San Francisco to preempt US-based competitors. The roadmap centers on "digital teams" that coordinate multiple agents across tasks: one agent identifies a lead, another calls, a third negotiates logistics, and a final agent drafts the contract. This orchestration layer is the company's strategic bet on becoming the default system for revenue operations.
The company's roots include Y Combinator's Summer 2023 batch, which accelerated its US network and credibility, and its UK engineering base sits in the London Bridge tech hub. Investor support spans US and European capital: a16z led the Series B, Benchmark led the Series A, Lux Capital participated early, Quiet Capital backed growth, and 20VC provided influential local support. In 2026, 11x is the UK's most visible play on AI-native revenue teams, aiming to become a category-defining platform for autonomous sales operations.
StartupGrowthAIAutomationSales
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