Startup Angels

Dublin

It is no coincidence that Google, Facebook, PayPal, and many other tech giants have established their European headquarters in Dublin. Ireland’s favorable corporate tax rates and government regulations attract the world’s largest corporations to lay roots, providing Dublin with a diverse pan-European talent pool. The city’s welcoming reputation and generous government programs provide the community with ironclad support. The government-backed Enterprise Ireland’s Competitive Start Fund (CSF) is a leader in early-stage funding, offering startups €50,000 in exchange for equity. Coworking spaces such as Dogpatch Labs and the Guinness Enterprise Center along with organizations such as the DCU Ryan Academy demonstrate both the breadth of support for the city’s entrepreneurs, and the collaborative atmosphere that has attracted over 1,200 startups. While Ireland’s small market is a drawback, it forces companies to scale rapidly and makes Dublin a good place to test ideas. However, Ireland’s tax laws regarding early employee stock options, which discourage individuals from leaving their corporate jobs to join a startup, and the punishing capital gains tax (twice as high as the UK) are both significant challenges to growth. And while many are grateful of governmental support, some accuse it of disincentivizing the growth of a vibrant angel community.

Key players

Eoghan Stack Chief Executive at Dublin City University's (DCU) Ryan Academy
Ryan Academy is a partnership between Dublin City University (DCU) and the founders of Ryanair to promote an entrepreneurial mindset and innovation across Irish businesses. As the CEO, Eoghan is responsible for overseeing its Business Innovation Program and Propeller Seed Acceleration Fund.
Gene Murphy Entrepreneur in Residence at Bank of the Ireland; Cofounder at Startup Ireland
Gene is a staple in the Dublin community, having founded several startups and as an organizer for Startup Weekend. He is a cofounder of Startup Ireland, a grassroots network connecting Irish startup ecosystems, is an EIR for the Bank of Ireland innovation team, and also runs the Startup Next pre-accelerator, a Techstars program.
Niamh Bushnell Dublin Commissioner for Startups
As the first Dublin Commissioner for Startups, Niamh is responsible for making Dublin the best place in Europe to start and grow a tech and innovative business. She was previously a serial entrepreneur and an Entrepreneur in Residence at Talent Tech Labs in New York City.
Michael Culligan General Manager at Dublin Business Innovation Centre (BIC)
In his role as the General Manager, Michael works with young startup and growth companies, offering support, such as investment preparation and funding. The BIC also operates HBAN (Halo Business Angel Network) and its many business angel syndicates, funding over 40 companies.
Brian Caulfield Partner at Draper Espirit
Brian is a Partner at Draper Espirit, a pan-European VC firm that invests at early and growth stages. Having previously founded software companies that were later acquired Prior to joining Draper Esprit, Brian is a serial entrepreneur turned VC.
Patrick Walsh Managing Director at Dogpatch Labs
Patrick is the Managing Director of Dogpatch Labs, one of Ireland's leading co-working spaces for startups.
Previously, Patrick worked at Ding.com, early stage startup PayMins.com, and at Hassle.com.
John O'Dea Manager of High Performing Start-Ups at Enterprise Ireland
In his role as Manager of High Performing Startups at Enterprise Ireland, John is responsible for dispensing Enterprise Ireland's resources to support startups. Part of this is the Competitive Start Fund, where startups receive an equity investment of up to €50,000 for a 10% ordinary equity stake.
Gary Leyden Commercial Director at the National Digital Research Center (NDRC)
Gary Leyden is Commercial Director at NDRC, an early stage investor in technology companies. Through its’ pre-seed accelerator programmes, it has invested in over 180 companies during the last seven years. NDRC portfolio companies include Boxever, Logentries, Soundwave, Bizimply, Nuritas, Clearsight & SilverCloud Health.
Ian Lucey CEO at Lucey; Founder at Lucey Fund
Ian Lucey is the founder and CEO of Lucey, a cloud computing company, and is an angel investor through the Lucey Fund, where he's made over 40 investments in startups since the fund's creation.
Elaine Coughlin Cofounder & General Partner at Atlantic Bridge Capital
Elaine is a Co-Founder and General Partner of Atlantic Bridge Capital, a fund providing growth equity and expansion capital to technology businesses in Ireland, Europe and the US. She is also a co-founder of Summit Bridge Capital, a $100m China Ireland Tech Growth Fund focused on investing expansion capital in Irish companies with a focus on scaling in China.

Market timeline

Enterprise Ireland is founded
Enterprise Ireland is the government organization responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises globally. With offices across Ireland, Enterprise Ireland provides R&D incentives, export assistance, and competitive support.
1998
National Digital Research Center (NDRC) is founded
Formerly a research organization, the NDRC is now an early stage investor in tech companies. NDRC utilizes an accelerator model through its NDRC Launchpad, NDRC Catalyser and NDRC VentureLab investment programs, providing capital and hands on support to early stage companies.
2007
Declan Ryan founds Ryan Academy
Declan Ryan, of Ryanair, founds the Ryan Academy in partnership with Dublin City University. Its primary focus is supporting growing businesses with tools, guidance, and information.
2009
The first annual Web Summit is held
Between 2010 and 2015, when the Web Summit was held in Dublin it convened tens of thousands of people annually to discuss internet technology.
2010
Enterprise Ireland announces its Competitive Start Fund
The Competitive Start Fund is designed to accelerate the growth of startups that have the capability to succeed in global markets. The fund is designed to enable those companies reach key commercial and technical milestones, such as building a prototype, developing an entry plan for international markets, and building partnerships.
December, 2010
Google opens its EMEA HQ
Google revitalizes a large portion of Grand Canal to open its EMEA offices. Since then, many other tech giants such as Facebook, Twitter, and Airbnb have moved their EMEA headquarters there as well, leading to the area being dubbed Silicon Docks.
2012
The first Dublin Commissioner for Startups is appointed
Funded through the DCU Ryan Academy for Entrepreneurs, the role of the Commissioner is to develop international recognition of Dublin as an innovation hub where companies will start-up, scale faster and create long-term sustainable jobs and added value to the economy.
September, 2014
Dogpatch Labs moves to CHQ
After coming to Dublin in 2011, Dogpatch Labs relocates to a much bigger space in the heart of the Dublin Docklands (in the historic CHQ Building). It spans an area of 13,500 sq. ft., and provides workspace to many well known tech companies that are scaling operations in Europe for the first time, along with Enterprise Ireland backed early-stage Irish start-ups.
2015
Intercom raises $50 million
Perhaps one of Dublin's most famous success stories, Intercom raises $50 million in a Series C led by Index Ventures. The company provides a platform for customer communication with a suite of integrated products for different teams.
April, 2016
AngelSummit Europe 2016
Startup Angels and Google for Entrepreneurs are bringing AngelSummit Europe to Dublin. The summit will convene investors, community leaders and entrepreneurs for a 2-day gathering on the state-of-the-art in startup investing, its impact on innovation, and ways to unleash the potential of millions of new investors in communities across Europe.
June, 2016

Dublin

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