AI self-hosting start-up Doubleword finds new Dawn with £9m funding boost
A British start-up which enables companies to 'self-host' their artificial intelligence functions will this week announce that it has raised nearly £10m in a round led by one of Europe's leading venture capital firms.
Sky News understands that Doubleword - previously called TitanML - has secured the funding from Dawn Capital, a backer of successful technology companies including Mimecast and iZettle.
Doubleword was set up to tackle what is known among tech experts as the 'inference problem', with AI becoming increasingly central to companies' interactions with customers, suppliers and other stakeholders.
Inference refers to the process of running live data through a trained AI model to make predictions or undertake tasks such as answering questions or generating images.
Peter Kyle, the science, innovation and technology secretary, said in a statement: "AI will help us to deliver growth for our economy and new opportunities for people up and down the country, so it's vital businesses have the confidence to adopt and realise its potential.
"Doubleword's work is helping set the standard for how companies can do exactly that - adopting AI quickly and efficiently so they can realise their ambitions and allow their workers and customers to thrive in the age of AI."
Mr Kyle claimed: "This is yet another illustration not just of how British-born tech expertise is tapping into AI to help give businesses the world over a unique point of difference, but in the steps we've taken to make our tech sector a true global magnet for innovation and investment."
The $12m (£9m) funding round will be announced on Thursday.
Meryem Arik, co-Founder and chief executive of Doubleword, said: "Ou customers want to build AI-powered applications-not AI infrastructure.
"We eliminate the heavy lifting of inference at scale so they can go from idea to production faster, without racking up technical debt."
"We ensure that our customers can deploy any AI model with a single click, while always having the latest models and hardware supported - and without being wedded to a single model provider."
The new capital will be used to grow Doubleword's workforce as it build partnerships with tech giants such as Snowflake and Nvidia.
Doubleword's other backers include AI entrepreneurs such as Florian Douettau, the chief executive of Dataiku, and Datadog CEO Olivier Pomel.
"Enterprises creating specific business-critical AI would gladly self-host, if "expertise" and "cost" didn't sound like double trouble," Mr Douetteau said.
"Doubleword flips the script, making self-hosting effortless and reshaping the market for enterprise customers."
Haakon Overli, general partner at Dawn Capital, described the company as "the most exciting startup in this spac".
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Free holiday clubs and meals For parents needing childcare or activities for the kids during the holidays, Holly recommends the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme. 6 This country-wide government programme provides free meals, activities, and childcare during school holidays for children from low-income families who receive free school meals. Local councils can also use 15% of their funding to support other children who may benefit, without needing approval from the Department for Education. Parents will need to check with their child's school and check their list of benefits based on free school meals. 'HAF runs during school holidays and offers free holiday clubs with meals included for eligible children,' she explains. 'It's such a helpful option – not just for childcare but for keeping kids active and engaged during the summer. 'Holiday clubs can cost around £20-£30 per day, including food, so by using HAF for five days of holiday clubs could save £100 - £150 per child.' 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'Netflix now offers a cheaper plan that includes adverts,' she says. 'It costs half the price of the standard plan, and the ads aren't too disruptive. I made the switch and found it better than expected.' You can also use free streaming services instead of paying. 'There are some great free options available in the UK if you want to avoid monthly subscription fees,' explains Holly. If you have Sky TV, they often give away a free movie rental each month through the Sky Store Holly Smith Other suggestions include Roku Channel, a free content without needing a subscription, Samsung TV Plus, which is available on Samsung smart TVs with plenty of live and on-demand options, Rakuten TV (free section), which includes a variety of films and shows and Pluto TV, 'excellent' for fans of reality TV, with themed live channels and on-demand content. There are other ways to get free movies too. 'If you have Sky TV, they often give away a free movie rental each month through the Sky Store. Just log in and claim it,' she says. 'Octopus Energy customers can claim a free movie at the start of each month through Octopus Rewards, and Vodafone users should check the MyVodafone app, as it often includes free films in the rewards section.' SAVINGS: £10+ Cheap petrol For families travelling this summer, Holly recommends the PetrolPrices app to find the cheapest petrol or diesel based on your location. 'It's so useful when you're on a day out or in an area you don't know well. Even saving a few pence per litre makes a difference, especially when you're filling up often. 'The savings would depend on how much fuel you purchase and the price difference per litre. 'If you save 5p per litre and fill up 50 litres of fuel, the saving would be of £2.50, but if you are filling up more frequently during summer (e.g., 4 times), the total saving would be a saving of £10.' SAVINGS: £2.50 per fill-up or £10 across four fill-ups Supermarket hacks Holly's expertise in grocery shopping is one of her top ways to stretch a summer budget. Digital free to use coupon apps like Shopmium, GreenJinn, and CheckoutSmart are staples in her money-saving toolkit. 'These apps are updated weekly with freebies and discounts on branded groceries,' she explains. 'You can usually claim three or four free items a week. Just buy the item, scan your receipt in the app, and cashback is paid directly to your PayPal or bank account. It's so easy to use, and the savings build up quickly.' Holly also advises keeping an eye out for yellow-sticker food. 'Knowing what can be frozen is key,' she says. 'I use a vacuum sealer to store chicken breasts, vegetables, and other essentials, so nothing goes to waste. ' Yellow-sticker food and vacuum sealing can reduce waste and save around £20-£30 per month on groceries, which means over the summer, this adds up to £40-£60.' She also highlights Amazon's Subscribe & Save feature as a great way to stock up on household essentials at a discount. 'Track the prices, wait for a drop, and then subscribe to get an extra 15% off. Once it's delivered, you can cancel the subscription if you don't need it again.' On-pack promotions are another great way to save. 'Robinsons squash bottles are brilliant for this,' Holly says. 'Last summer, they ran a promotion for free swimming sessions. All you had to do was scan the QR code on the sleeve and sign up online. 'These offers often include free football training, days out, or kids' meals. They're easy to spot and claim. 'On-pack promotions like free swimming sessions or football training could save around £5 - £10 per activity per child, and claiming three to four promotions over the summer could save £15-£40.' SAVINGS: £115-£190 Christmas list ready One trend in Holly's Facebook group that she is a fan of is simply prepping for Christmas from now. 'People in my Facebook group have started to save £7 a week in their Amazon balance. 'By Christmas, they've got a pot to use for gifts. 'It's like the old Christmas savings schemes but safer because you can buy pretty much anything on Amazon now. 'I also use Amazon's Subscribe and Save a lot for essentials like toilet rolls. 'I track prices, wait for a drop, subscribe to get an extra 15% off, and then cancel the subscription after delivery. Affordable holidays Holly has a clever tip for cutting costs on family holidays. ' Haven holiday parks offer touring and camping pitches, which are much cheaper than staying in a caravan,' she explains. 6 'I'm not keen on camping, so I once paid £100 for a tent pitch at Haven in Kent but stayed at a nearby Travelodge for £29 a night instead of paying over £1,000 for a caravan. 'We used the Travelodge as our base, filled up on their buffet breakfast, and spent our days at the holiday park. It was such a money-saver.' For families who enjoy camping, Holly suggests buying a cheap tent to use at the holiday park for an even cheaper alternative. 'It's all about personal preference, but there are so many ways to save on holidays.' SAVINGS: £900 - £1,200 Summer toys Keeping kids entertained over the summer doesn't have to cost a fortune, and Holly has plenty of ideas for treats and toys. Apps like YoungPlanet are a fantastic way to save money while keeping kids entertained. 'Families can list toys and children's items they no longer need, and everything is free to collect locally,' Holly explains. 'It's a great way to get things like garden toys, books, games, and bikes without spending anything. 'It's also perfect for passing on items your own kids have finished with to help others. 'Using the YoungPlanet app to get free toys like garden toys, books, or bikes could save you anywhere around £10 - £50 per item. 'Claiming three to four items over the summer could save up to £200.' She also mentions apps like Jungle Search, which is free to use and helps find mispriced items on Amazon. 'You'd be amazed at what you can find - everything from garden toys to paddling pools at a fraction of the cost,' she explains. 'When my son was born, I got almost everything for his nursery for under £200, even though the retail value was £1,200.' SAVINGS: £200+ Coupons and loyalty schemes Holly's passion for couponing shines through as she explains the strategy behind it. 'You've got to time your coupons with promotions,' she says. 'For example, Tesco magazine coupons are often better towards the end of the month when the products go on offer. That's when you get those gems where you're paying next to nothing.' She also mentions loyalty schemes like Pampers. 'With the Pampers loyalty scheme, for every 10 packets you scan, you get one free,' she says. 'They send you a coupon through the post. But it's all about timing. Some people use coupons too quickly, but you need to come up with a method. 'I write down expiry dates, track prices, and use the coupons when the timing is perfect. It's a lot of work, but I share this research instantly in my Facebook group, so others don't have to do it all themselves.' Instead of searching for discount codes, Holly has a much easier technique to save some money. 'I use a Google Chrome plug-in such as Honey or Pouch, " she says. 'When you're shopping online and get to the checkout, the plug-in quickly tries out all the discount codes that might work for that store and applies them to your basket in seconds. 'Sometimes, you can even use more than one code on the same purchase.' But when it comes to the best digital coupon app, Holly's favourite is Shopimium. 'It's really user friendly and a great one to get people started.' SAVINGS: £50+ Get talking with ChatGPT Holly embraces AI to make saving easier. 'In my Facebook group, using ChatGPT to save money is really popular right now,' she explains. 'People are using it to figure out what to cook with leftovers in their fridge. You can just write down what you've got – potatoes, random leftovers – and ask ChatGPT what meal you can make. 'It provides recipes in seconds, and you end up with a family meal you'd never have thought of. It's a great way to avoid wasting food and save money.' She continues: 'People even upload pictures of their garden and ask ChatGPT for budget-friendly ideas to improve it. The results are amazing.' SAVINGS: £50-£100 Build a stockpile Holly's strategic approach to saving has helped her build an impressive stockpile over the years. 'It's gone from a notepad to an industrial-sized chest freezer and shelves that look like a mini supermarket,' she says. She explains how combining coupons and offers can lead to huge savings over time. 'For example, Huggies DryNites offers a free sample with a £2.50 coupon. If you wait for the right sale, you can get the product for free. That's how you build a stockpile – by timing your purchases perfectly.' Previously at Christmas time, Holly managed to buy over £100 worth of minced chicken for about £15 and picked up a whole turkey worth £35 for 5p - after buying at a reduced price on Christmas eve. Once she got the food home, she vacuum-sealed it before freezing it. SAVINGS: £150 Money saving challenges Here's some of our favourite money saving challenges. Weather saving challenge - Save the amount equal to whatever the highest temperature was that week. £1 = 1C. 1p challenge - save 1p a day for everyday of the year, but it increase the amount by 1p each day. So day one you save 1p, 2p on day two and 3p on day three. When you reach 100 days you start adding a £1 coin each day too, while this increases to a £2 coin each day plus pennies at 200 days, and £3 each day on top of pennies at day 300. 20p a day challenge - Start by putting 20p in savings, then increase the amount by 20p every day. For example, the first week will look like this: 20p, 40p, 60p, 80p, £1, £1.20, £1.40. £5 a week challenge - Like the 20p challenge, put aside £5 a week and increase it by a fiver each week. Eg £5, £10, £15, £20 Round-up challenge - Every time you buy something, round up the purchase to the nearest £1 and put the difference in a savings account. Eg. You pay £2.60, so you put 40p in savings. You can use an app such as Monzo or Starling to do this. Bingo challenge - Here you have a bingo card with different numbers on it and you tick them off when you've put that amount in your savings account. It can be ad hoc but you have to tick them all off by the end of the month. Monday to Sunday challenge - With this challenge, you simply save £1 on Monday, £2 on Tuesday and so on until the weekend where you don't save on Saturday or Sunday. 365 day challenge - Every Sunday you put aside £1, followed by £2 on Monday, £3 on Wednesday and so on. On Saturday you'll put away £7, and then the process repeats and you'll put aside £1 on Sunday as the new week begins
