Bath’s hi-tech innovators have been celebrated at the inaugural SPARKies Awards.
Microchip design firm Picochip, which was sold in January to US company Mindspeed Technologies for £33.6m, collected three of the 12 awards on offer.
Its chief technical officer Dr Doug Pulley was named best tech founder while the company itself won The Totally Killing It Award for competing globally and Biggest Success Story of 2011.
Other winners were Box-based musician-turned-techie Peter Gabriel, who won Best Mentor/Adviser, Mike Ellis, creative director of the Bath Digital Festival, who won the Individual Contribution to Tech award, and Luke Woodbury, won walked off with the Best Use of Tech for Doing Good trophy for his use of technology to enrich lessons for children at Three Ways School.
The awards, staged at Komedia, formed part of the first Bath Digital Festival.
Full list of winners are:
Best Digital Design Agency, sponsored by: Bowers & Wilkins – COMPLETE CONTROL. Complete control create educational and engaging content for children.
Best Mentor/Advisor, sponsored by: Bath Ventures Innovation Centre – PETER GABRIEL
Best Tech Founder, sponsored by: Bath Ventures Innovation Centre – DR DOUG PULLEY (Picochip)
Best Service Provider (to the tech sector), sponsored by: Storm Consultancy – RIPE DIGITAL. Ripe digital is a short-run print agency which has supported Bath’s many digital events with free print support.
Biggest Success Story of 2011, sponsored by: Bath & North East Somerset Council – PICOCHIP
The One To Watch for 2012, sponsored by: Catalyst Venture Partners – TREEHOUSE. The Treehouse mission is to teach web design and development to anyone, anywhere.
Individual Contribution to tech, sponsored by: Real World – MIKE ELLIS
Best App 2011, sponsored by Handsome IP – TAP! by FUTURE.Tap is a highly successful interactive magazine App.
Best startup, sponsored by Eden Ventures – BARDOWL. Bardowl is a new and innovative model for the provision of audio books.
The Totally Killing It (for competing globally from Bath), sponsored by: Eden Ventures – PICOCHIP
The Good Award (for best use of tech for doing good), sponsored by Teach It! – LUKE WOODBURY
The SPARKies gave out its 12th award to the winners of the University of Bath’s App Crunch competition, Virtual Loci.
