“Before the programme, I was doing too many things at the same time. Now I have a better understanding how to sequence my business and product strategy.”
Growth Lab Founder
Back in May 2026, we introduced you to eight founders stepping into the first Growth Lab, led by CreaTech Frontiers’ collaborative partner, Digital Catapult. We knew what the ambition was: moving the cohort along in the commercialisation of their products. Eight companies have since developed skillsets, connected with one another and become stronger founders with the guidance of Digital Catapult’s deep tech experts.
What did they get up to?
Beyond an upskilling and mentoring programme, the CreaTech Frontier Growth Lab allowed founders to test ideas and validate them with the right support. This included workshops to provide financial guidance, product and business development sessions, and development of softer skills through growth coaching and a mentorship scheme. The cohorts received structured time with business and innovation specialists who have experience with new and scaling companies in this space, enabling them to build insight into softer skills of business management through a series of masterclasses in topics such as storytelling and responsible innovation, and access to the wider CreaTech Frontiers and Digital Catapult networks, allowing meaningful conversations to take place and collaboration to thrive.
It’s not unusual for founders commercialising a business to have a lot of questions. The innovators that joined the programme had the space to ask these key questions early in their development journey, by being in the room with the right people who had the experience to provide the right guidance.
On completion of the programme, one of the founders said:
“Before the programme, I was doing too many things at the same time. Now I have a better understanding how to sequence my business and product strategy.”
What each company did was unique to the challenge they’re tackling. Here are the eight deep tech solutions:
- TeamsGlued sharpened their approach of their VR-based team development experience and shared it at the CreaTech Frontiers’ Showcase.
- Tinkr moved forward on the business development of adaptive bedtime stories that learn what a child needs, night by night.
- JODO fine-tuned their pre-production planning product that is one collaborative workspace instead of five disconnected tools.
- Angry Swan pushed further on their project of giving filmmakers physical control over AI-generated video, rather than leaving it to a prompt.
- KLPS moved closer to garments that read the body in ways wrist-based wearables don’t.
- ModnyVR built out and showcased their slit lamp simulator that lets optometry students train without specialist hardware.
- MyJams got nearer to solving the loneliest part of learning an instrument — practising without another player in the room.
- BeeStoon kept refining how ordinary photos become usable 3D worlds in minutes rather than weeks.
By being part of CreaTech Frontiers Growth Lab, the companies have meaningfully moved further along in their commercialisation journey and are more prepared for adoption and scaling than they were previously. The support they received will get them closer to a commercialised product, closer to the right investors, with the next steps clearer and the founders ready to take on the next challenge.
What’s next?
We marked the end of this Growth Lab at our showcase at STEAMhouse on 16 July 2026, where some of the companies presented to the wider West Midlands creative technology community. Read more about the showcase here.
The first cohort of the CreaTech Frontier Growth Lab is now complete. The companies that came out of it are just getting started and we’ll be watching to see how their businesses develop and continue to contribute to a thriving creative industries ecosystem across the West Midlands.
Want to follow where these companies go next? Find them on LinkedIn (links are in our original cohort announcement) and keep an eye on the CreaTech Frontiers blog for the next funding opportunity from CreaTech Frontiers.
