€650k funding for software company

An Irish software company Zinc has secured €650,000 in funding and become the first European company to partner with PCH International as part of its accelerator programme.

The investment comprises a €150,000 investment by Kernel Capital through the Bank of Ireland MedTech Accelerator Fund, with the remainder of the funds provided by Enterprise Ireland, PCH International, and the AIB Seed Capital Fund.

Zinc is focused on biofeedback, an area of computing expected to see huge growth. This sector involves software that reacts to a user’s heartbeat or other biometric inputs.

Zinc has developed a wireless biosensor that clips onto an earlobe and transmits heart waveform data to an iPhone, iPad, or Android, and created a game that, based on this information, reduces both blood pressure and levels of stress hormones in the blood.

PCH International CEO Liam Casey said he is delighted to be working with such an innovative company.

“The products they are developing are game-changers for the health and wellness market,” he said “PCH will help them achieve scale and bring an exciting new product to market.”

Zinc Software CEO Darran Hughes said the company will use the funding to bring their first product, The Zen, to market.

“The Zen gamifies meditative breathing and allows anyone to take 10 minutes out of their day to re-energise and refocus,” said Mr Hughes.