AIB At the Web Summit 2015 in Dublin

From Pixar’s Ed Catmull to graduates from the AIB Hatch programme, there was no shortage of expertise and talent showcased at this year’s Web Summit.

Kicking off in Ballsbridge from Tuesday morning, over 40,000 attendees gathered across the three days to pitch businesses, network and hear some of the tech world’s brightest share their learnings.

In attendance to soak up the atmosphere and meet potential clients and investors, KillBiller’s Shane Lynn was keen to make the most of the occasion.

“We took part as finalists in the AIB Start-up Academy from January to March earlier this year,” he reveals.

“A specific session we had was focused on networking and the importance of networking at events just like the Web Summit in Dublin and I find myself recalling that here today and it’s been invaluable.

“I’ve come along to Web Summit primarily to meet people in the tech industry. It’s a fantastic opportunity to meet people in the industry in Dublin and internationally and also to listen to great talks to people who have genuine experience from growing their own business.”

With the company due to shortly launch in Canada, Shane says that the event marked a milestone for the KillBiller team.

“The most exciting thing for us is that we’ve built something from scratch,” he says.

“We started off as three guys with a ‘Build an Android app’ book on a kitchen table to building something that’s been used over 40,000 times, has over 20,000 – 30,000 users in Ireland and will soon be used internationally.”

“The thoughts of someone in the UK or Canada using something we’ve made is genuinely exciting in itself.”

Along with KillBiller, Irish start-up Locodot were also in attendance, showcasing their business in the Enterprise Summit, proudly backed by AIB, in Simmonscourt.

Run by 17-year-old Hatch programme graduates, Glen Brannelly and Ralph Moran, the duo have created a platform to help ensure personal safety.

Ralph explains: “Locodot is a location data management service with a view towards personal safety. It works via volunteer broadcasting. Each user can broadcast their location on a private map which is accessed by another user through a unique code.

“So if I’m a parent whose children have gone out for the night, this helps me make sure they get home safely.”

The lead developer on Locodot, Glen said that they were excited to be back in the midst of the action at the Enterprise Summit.

“Everyone here is on the same page, and wants to achieve something. Everyone believes in, and is passionate, about their projects. Everyone is trying to change the world and I like that,” he adds.

“AIB have been brilliant, they’ve helped fund our way here and been very supportive.”

The second app venture for the secondary school students, Glen said that they’ve learned a lot over the development stage.

He reveals: “Our biggest learning is to work together as a team and not give up. We’ve had some failures but we’ve overcome those.”

Along with dozens of Start-ups pitching for business, the event also played host to a range of talks across the industry – from content & marketing innovations to the Machine & Data Summit.

With over 1,000 speakers on stage over the 3 days, author Dan Brown, Instagram’s Mike Krieger, Tinder’s Sean Rad and 500 Startups founder, Dave McClure, were amongst the line-up.

A diverse range, Johnny O’Dwyer, AIB’s Head of Technology, Media & Telecoms Banking, said that key themes emerged over the 3 days.

“The big things I’ve picked up on this year is all around artificial intelligence, machine learning and the hyper inflation data that companies and people are accumulating. Everything from pictures on your mobile phone to how that’s being stored,” he explains.

“For us the big thing is all about big data and the internet of things, where that’s going and how the tech world can store this data as we move forward into a world of 20 million devices.”

Want to learn more about the Web Summit and how we’re backing tomorrow’s technology? Watch our video below and head over to our dedicated AIB YouTube channel for more information – and exclusive videos from the event. Search #backedbyAIB on Twitter to catch up with us and our events.

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