LinkedIn Top Startups 2024: The 10 Irish companies on the rise
Today, we unveil LinkedIn's annual list of Top Startups, revealing the 10 emerging Irish companies you should know now. These companies aren't just growing fast and garnering attention from investors and jobseekers – they're also building innovative solutions that are shaping the future of their industries, whether it’s leveraging artificial intelligence to automate daily work tasks or establishing electric vehicle charging networks.
The list is built on exclusive LinkedIn data across four key pillars: employee growth; jobseeker interest; engagement within the company and its employees; and how well these startups have pulled talent from Top Companies. To be eligible, companies must be headquartered in Ireland, fully independent, privately held, have 30 or more full-time employees and be seven years old or younger. You can learn more about our methodology at the bottom of this article.
Here are this year’s 10 Top Startups in Ireland – take a look then join the conversation using #LinkedInTopStartups.
All headcounts are provided by the companies, unless marked with an asterisk. Those headcounts are from LinkedIn data.
1. Tines
Full-time headcount: 229 | Headquarters: Dublin** | Year founded: 2018 | Most common skills: Design thinking, user experience design, user interface design | Most common job titles: Software engineer, business development representative, strategic sales specialist | Largest job functions: Engineering, sales, arts and design | What they do: Tines is a no-code automation platform. Having originally specialised in cybersecurity, they have expanded to automate workflow processes in all industries. **Tines is jointly headquartered in Boston and Dublin.
2. Wayflyer
Full-time headcount: 300 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2019 | Most common skills: Mathematics, teamwork, design thinking | Most common job titles: Investment analyst, software engineer, data analyst | Largest job functions: Marketing, finance, sales | What they do: Wayflyer is a financial technology company that provides capital to emerging businesses based on their revenue. The company primarily focuses on helping e-commerce brands scale and grow.
3. Outmin
Full-time headcount: 43 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2020 | Most common skills: Auditing, financial accounting, financial reporting | Most common job titles: Accounting clerk, accountant, account assistant | Largest job functions: Accounting, operations, sales | What they do: Outmin streamlines accounting and bookkeeping, specifically for businesses in the hospitality sector. Leveraging artificial intelligence, it integrates services including tax and compliance, managed payroll, financial operations, advisory and accounting into a single platform.
4. Circit
Full-time headcount: 69 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2017 | Most common skills: Marketing strategy, agile methodologies, cascading style sheets | Most common job titles: Software engineer | Largest job functions: Engineering, business development, customer success and support | What they do: Circit is an audit evidence collection platform designed for firms to verify assets at source. It connects teams with evidence providers, aiming to streamline collaboration throughout the audit process.
5. &Open
Full-time headcount: 72 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2017 | Most common skills: Design thinking, lead generation, digital marketing | Most common job titles: Strategic sales specialist, buyer | Largest job functions: Sales, finance, arts and design | What they do: &Open is a gifting platform designed for corporate clients. It offers a digital marketplace that enables instant gifting, both digital and physical, and allows clients to measure the impact of what they have given.
6. Manna Drone Delivery
Full-time headcount: 110 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2019 | Most common skills: Aerospace, electronics, simulink | Most common job titles: Pilot, software engineer, manufacturing technician | Largest job functions: Operations, engineering, information technology | What they do: Manna Drone Delivery aims to provide an efficient, streamlined drone delivery service. The company partners with businesses across Ireland to facilitate deliveries by drone in select areas.
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7. ePower
Full-time headcount: 60 | Headquarters: Cork and Dublin | Year founded: 2019 | Most common skills: Customer relationship management, teamwork, leadership | Most common job titles: Sales executive, director | Largest job functions: Sales, information technology, operations | What they do: ePower develops electric vehicle charging technology and offers installation services across Ireland. The company works with individuals and corporations to provide recharging points for both private and public use.
8. Deciphex
Full-time headcount: 165 | Headquarters: Dublin | Year founded: 2018 | Most common skills: Machine learning, artificial intelligence, deep learning | Most common job titles: Machine learning engineer, software engineer, artificial intelligence engineer | Largest job functions: Engineering, information technology, human resources | What they do: Deciphex offers software and services that use artificial intelligence to enhance pathology. Its technology aims to improve efficiencies and productivity in health workflows and support better patient outcomes.
9. XOcean
Full-time headcount: 235 | Headquarters: Louth | Year founded: 2017 | Most common skills: Maritime operations, navigation, maritime security | Most common job titles: Marine pilot, hydrographic surveyor, control system engineer | Largest job functions: Operations, engineering | What they do: XOcean collects ocean data using uncrewed robotic vessels. These vessels support the ocean data needs of various companies globally, from mapping the seabed to environmental monitoring.
10. Alchemy
Full-time headcount: 325 | Headquarters: Kildare | Year founded: 2017 | Most common skills: Digital marketing, project management, teamwork | Largest job functions: Operations, customer success and support | What they do: Alchemy is a tech-refurbishment company which processes smartphones, tablets and computers to extend their life and reduce demand on resources needed to produce new products. It sells direct to consumers in some markets, and in bulk to companies and organisations including schools.
You can check out the Top Startups in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Europe, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands (Dutch & English), Saudi Arabia (English & Arabic), Singapore, Spain, Sweden (Swedish & English), Türkiye, the UAE (English & Arabic), the UK and the U.S.
Methodology
LinkedIn measures startups based on four pillars: employment growth, engagement, job interest and attraction of top talent. Employment growth is measured as percentage headcount increase over methodology time frame, which must be a minimum of 5%. Engagement looks at non-employee views and follows of the company’s LinkedIn page, as well as how many non-employees are viewing employees at that startup. Job interest counts the rate at which people are viewing and applying to jobs at the company, including both paid and unpaid postings. Attraction of top talent measures how many employees the startup has recruited away from any global LinkedIn Top Company, as a percentage of the startup’s total workforce. Data is normalised across all eligible startups. The methodology time frame is 1 July, 2023 to 30 June, 2024.
To be eligible, companies must be fully independent, privately held, have 30 or more full-time employees, be seven years old or younger and be headquartered in the country on whose list they appear. We exclude all staffing firms, think tanks, venture capital firms, law firms, management and IT consulting firms, nonprofits and philanthropy, accelerators and government-owned entities. Startups who have laid off 20% or more of their workforce based on corporate announcements or public, reliable sources between 1 July, 2023 and the list launch, are not eligible. These decisions are made by the LinkedIn News team based on company statements and/or reputable news outlets.
About company insights
*Company insights were sourced from LinkedIn Talent Insights. Data reflects aggregated public member data from active LinkedIn profiles in the relevant country and includes full-time employee profiles associated with the company on LinkedIn. We exclude members who identify as part-time or contractors. Headcounts are provided by the companies directly, unless otherwise noted with an asterisk. Those headcounts are based on LinkedIn data. All insights reflect a 12-month time period looking back from July 2024. Skills data was derived from measuring the most frequent skills among a company’s employees. Most common job titles represent the occupations that are most common within each company. Largest job function measures the function area most prevalent within each company.
Reported and proofread by: Polly Dennison
Methodology and insights by: Alejandra Budar
🌟Deloitte Ireland BPS: LSHC Industry Lead | ⚙️Tinkerer | ⚡️Founder | 📚Storyteller | 🚀 Market Voyager | 🤖Futurist | 💾AI Explorer | 🤝Building Meaningful Connections | Passionate about 🈺Business & 🏢Entrepreneurship
1mo🚀 It's inspiring to see such innovative solutions coming out of Ireland, especially in areas like AI and sustainable technology. These startups are not just meeting the challenges of today but are actively shaping the future across various industries. The focus on growth, talent, and meaningful engagement shows that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well, even amidst global uncertainties. Exciting times ahead for Ireland's startup ecosystem – can't wait to see where these trailblazing companies go from here! 🌱✨
HowToCompany.xyz ► R&D Company ⦿ Research - AI, Technology, Ecology, Xology. ⦿ Writing - Fiction, storytelling. ⦿ Navigator: Founder Mentoring / Guidance.
1moOne of the most exciting parts of your journey is the constant innovation and growth. I loved the ride, the ride in which I ended up building my dream company, one I’m proud of, exiting and living happily ever after. I didn't have any vision like that at the start but I knew I wanted to create something....
Founder/CEO @ Organisational Solutions | CPRO for any Startup with an Idea/Device/Tech that's so Novel, it's Anarchic | I ensure you succeed in Destroying Conventional Reason by hiring the right Disruptive Thinkers |
2moHow to stand out as a Startup in 2024: 1. Frighteningly high levels of drive, determination, tenacity, & a total refusal to quit are the difference between success & failure in the first year or two. 2. You must have a USP &, ideally a global one, that does whatever you want it to do, in a completely “novel” way, if possible. Novel is a seriously overused word when it comes to startups. 3. Market Research & Competitor Analysis are essential before you even consider taking the leap. No matter how amazing you think your idea/device etc is, it is irrelevant, if your target market doesn’t feel the same. Do the Market Research as early as possible, because you want to find out if it is actually viable or is a pipedream. 4. If your prototype & your vision, get you some real investment, such as enough funds to immediately hire 5 people, to go with the 3 co-founders, this is usually where I come in. When you have 3 co-founders, the first person you hire represents 25% of your workforce & this is how you must look at it. 5. The most important thing you can do is to NOT hire the WRONG person, because if 25% of the staff is not aligned to the other 75%, they can destroy everything you’ve built before their probationary period is finished.
Senior Marketing and Communications Director at Techfynder & Test Triangle I Strategic Growth I Global Brand Management I Market Penetration I Communications I SaaS I Leadership I
2moGreat to see this list and not surprised to see the startups mentioned. Ireland is known for its excellent environment for startups and for supporting their growth and prosperity. I’ve been in two and my current one Techfynder, has seen incredible growth and development thus far thanks to the environment and the community. Congratulations to all.